“The Forest Dames is a pulsating story about the devastating effects of war, in which Ada Okere Agbasimalo dwells on the sordid consequences of civil war on humanity, and the tortuous effort to achieve normalcy. It features Deze, a young girl with a keen mind, who lived with her parents in a typical African setting, and felt the pain of war. As an adult, the memories remain intact, kind of haunting her.
The Forest Dames is a strident voice detailing and condemning potential malignant actions that continue to impede the development of African nations and indeed, parts of the developing world. These include wars, culture-based biases, illogical and deadly tribal hatred, wanton destruction of life and property, etc.
The Forest Dames is:
Designed to get war agitators to have a rethink.
A vivid and authentic literature for post war citizens anywhere in the world, and anybody for that matter.
A celebration of femininity. A motivation on how to move on.
A potpourri of cruelty, resilience, ingenuity, industry, commitment, hopes and aspirations.
A potent material for ‘War and Gender’ scholars.
“The girls watched the women melt into the thick forest, through the same emergency pathway that had led them in. This time, there was no sound of water; there were no whispers, only footsteps on the path.”