i wish i could have made a shelf called "books in which two twins set off to become soldiers together, only one has second thoughts, and turns back, and then they are separated," and then i could put this and Gob's Grief on it. however, that is too long a shelf name to have, APPARENTLY...come to my blog!

Measuring Time by Helon Habila skillfully weaves the political and cultural environment of Nigeria from the 1960s to the 1990s with the lives of twin boys, Mamo and LaMamo, in the Nigerian village of Keti.Mamo, the older twin, suffers from sickle cell anemia, is physically weak, reserved, introspective, and intellectual. LaMamo is athletic, boisterous, outgoing, and glib. The brothers dream of escaping from their domineering father to lead adventurous lives. Their paths diverge after they run aw...

I could live in this book, and survive on these words...this is what I call a literary memory.

A long & demanding novel, it's also a slow starter, & I kept being tempted to bail out until, at midpoint, I figured out what it was about, & that was two of my favorite topics: History & national identity. "A true history," the main character reflects, "is one that looks at the lives of individuals, ordinary people who toil and dream and suffer, who bear the brunt of whatever vicissitudes time inflicts on the nation. If a historian could capture these ordinary lives, including their recollectio...

I waffled back and forth over if this book was a four star or a three star...so it is getting a 3+ from me. I liked the book and found it very interesting. But the reason for the three stars and not four is because the most interesting part for me was "experiencing" life in an African village and how civil wars/any war affect the life of people living in the conflict areas. The author does an excellent job of painting the picture of African village life and giving depth to Mamo, the main charact...

If I were still teaching, I would teach this book, not only for the questions it raises to which I do not know the answers (Nigerian history primary among them), but also because it is beautifully told, deceptively simple, and filled with love and wisdom, anger and illness, dishonesty and naive, hopeful belief. Mamo and LaMamo are twins who as children seek adventure and fame, and as adults realize the dark side of both ambitions.

"Measuring Time" is the story of twin brothers, their family and the people that shaped them. Living in rural Nigeria, village life and the natural environment add atmosphere and context. Habila's story-telling talents are evident in numerous ways. His own narrative of people and events is interwoven with those of his protagonist Mamo, who in later years writes about the people around him and thereby becomes a recorder of the local history. Giving Mamo the dual voice of the growing boy/young adu...

Two twins, living in a small Nigerian village called Keti, measuring time, wondering how they will each achieve fame together. Mamo, the twin who has sickle cell anemia, measures his time as a child, sick in bed, while his twin colors and entertains him by his bedside. Mamo measures his time, waiting for his father's love. Mamo measures his time, waiting for his twin to come back from numerous rebel armies, trying to "save Africa" from the puppets of the Western Powers. Mamo measures his time, g...

I loved the sprawling tale of the brother who stayed behind in rural Northern Nigeria when I read it, but the story faded and was eclipsed by sharper, more urgent works (Born on a Tuesday, Season of Crimson Blossoms). A meandering deep dive into political corruption and local boss machinery, and how young men are woven in as bright threads-- actors-- but are not the loom or the weaver or the tapestry.

first time this has happened to me. i usually abandon a book early on, the most i will read is about 70 pages before i leave it. i enjoyed this book so much and then, when there were about 100 pages left, i didn't want to read anymore. i think it is written very well and it is an interesting story, but i think the detail of the history got too much for me. i love historical novels, but this one was a tad too much. pity though, as it was really promising. i skimmed over the last 100 pages.

I felt this amazing story of 2 brothers. So recommend this.

This is an excellent novel about twins raised in northeastern Nigeria, one, LaMamo, who goes off to fight as a mercenary in regional conflicts, while his twin, Mamo, who was afflicted with sickle-cell anemia stays in the home village of Keti and becomes a school teacher and town historian. The story centers on Mamo's life. In bringing out the story of Mamo and Keti and their history, we find out the colonial and church history of the village. Two of the original missionary's daughters continue t...

A remarkable piece of work by Habila. His prose is lyrically attractive, poetic, a canvas of colours playing with some trompe l'oeil techniques and intertextual references from various authors. It's stories within a story. The twin fighter vs the academic twin, two sides of the same coin really, although the academic twin occupies much of the narrative there is always an implicit reference to the risk taker and fighter. Set in the Nigeria of the '60s to the 90's we witness through the characters...

reading this book was listening to my father talk about his life before immigration. i could easily see him and his mates living out their lives in this novel. it was realistic fiction, becuase it bought the nigerian of my father's youth (and the nigerian during the present elections) to life in a very sublte way. helon habila writes in a plain fashion. he puts me in the mind of chinua achebe. what you see is what the characters see. what you experience is what the characters experience. what yo...

I ADORE this book. I have never thought that a random book that I picked from a pile and for which I paid a few coins would affect me this much.Nigerian literature is a powerhouse of which Habila's ability is a token. This book is not just a story, but it is more of a saga; a saga that narrates the passage of time and its effects on a group of people that share the acquaintance of the protagonist who seems to be the life of the village in which he lives.This book broaches many themes that permea...

The author's style of putting across the story is unique and wonderful. I love the characterization, particularly that of Mamo, the sickly twin. The author takes us carefully into his gentle and admirable character. He is a young man that speaks less and lives in much silence, from which he studies his environment very well, and becomes a historian determined to preserve his people's history and tell their story from different angles and from the point of view of several distinct individuals inc...

I liked the characters and their relationships, and the political goings-on -- both the political-hopeful father and the government interference in the school intrigued me. The language was pleasant and enjoyable to read, and the main story was interesting. It was maybe 150 pages too long and could have used an editor with a more judicious eye.

Measuring Time confirms Habila as an exceptional voice in African literature. His great skill is to infuse the individual and the local with panoramic, historical significance. Colonial history, tribal myth, 20th-century politics, Plutarch and the poetry of Christopher Okigbo are tightly woven into precise and loving descriptions of landscape. The novel's triumph is to allow hope to endure." - Stephanie Merritt, The ObserverIn fact all the themes of the book are somehow linked to this notion of

Really a 4.5. For all of what seem on the surface like "gimmicks," (Nigerian twins, the structure of the bildungsroman, etc) it adds up to a smart, elegant story. Mamo and LaMamo grow up neglected by their father and raised by their aunt. Mamo is physically weak from sickle-cell anemia; LaMamo is strong. They run away and LaMamo becomes a soldier; Mamo is forced to turn back and becomes a teacher and a historian. The pathos and boredom of Mamo's life is punctuated by LaMamo's letters from Liberi...

this was an interesting read but not quite what i expected. the characters were wonderful and one can't help but want the twins to succeed in their quest to become famous. i enjoyed the beginning of their tale the most - the young boys are very entertaining. i also enjoyed reading about their journeys and felt extremely sympathetic for mamo and his adventure, perhaps because the story is told from his perspective. still, i feel as though the story loses its way just as it is winding down and bel...