Review: Kofi and the Strange-Looking Visitors From Afar by Robert Peprah-Gyamfi

Review: Kofi and the Strange-Looking Visitors From Afar by Robert Peprah-Gyamfi 

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lately, I’ve been revisiting a book series that was a childhood favorite for me. I think children’s books are particularly important because they can introduce kids to the world of literature by presenting situations to which they may relate, or simply show how fascinating stories can be by presenting an interesting narrative. With the series I’ve been looking back on, I remember the story being captivating! 

However, a story aimed at children can also present them with moving relationships within the narrative. Kofi and the Strange-Looking Visitors From Afar tells a story with touching themes of friendship and connection presented through the eyes of a young boy. This story ended up moving me in ways I didn’t expect, and I think there is a lot a young reader can take away from the story being presented here. 

Before I go into it further, let’s see what it is about!

Summary

Kofi lives in a village in Ghana where life is normal. One day, however, he meets a couple from out of town at the market. Not thinking much of it, he helps them communicate with the seller there, not realizing that this one small act is just the start of a relationship that will affect his life in ways he never expected. 

Thoughts

So, I admit that I wasn’t sure what to expect going in. While I have read and reviewed some children’s stories in the past, it’s not a regular thing for me, and I was concerned that this would affect how I viewed this narrative. That said, this story ended up showing me that I didn’t need to worry. Robert Peprah-Gyamfi has woven together a narrative of connection and friendship that ended up being rather moving. 

However, I do want to give quick mention to one subject the story touches upon involving Kofi’s parents. This scene surprised me because it felt like it came on rather suddenly and I don’t know how to react to it. I think this just tells me that how it fits into the overall narrative is unclear, and it’s left me a bit confused when considering it within the context of the rest of the story.  

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s look at how the story is built! 

Structure

The narrative is structured in an interesting way, with Kofi meeting the titular visitors by chance multiple times and forming a relationship with them within that period. The narrative is built through short chapters that show how one event leads into another. These transitions between events aren’t seamless, but they’re set up to be chance encounters where it wouldn’t make sense for the events to flow entirely smoothly. 

The narrative also shows a little bit about Kofi’s life before the couple comes in, which is important because we get to know him a bit and it sets up how he crosses paths with them for the first time. This ended up working well to show how the circumstances affected all the people involved. 

However, the way a story is structured is only part of it. Let’s move on and take a look at the writing!

Writing

The prose is one of this story’s strongest points. It reads as if it is being presented through a child’s eyes, which works to connect the audience to Kofi’s situation. The writing works to communicate what happens to a young reader, but there are also some characteristics to the writing that may challenge where the reader thinks the story may go. 

What I find intriguing is how tension is used at certain points in this story. When Kofi is playing with his red ball with his friends, the tension in the scene is built up beautifully, leaving the reader hanging on every word to see how the scene will end. However, an event like this is also helped by the way the scene is illustrated. Let’s move on to those illustrations next!

Illustrations

A story aimed at children can use artwork to significant advantage in helping the reader to connect with the story. The illustrations here help to elevate the events of the plot by showing how an event unfolds visually as well as textually. The illustrations also pop out, with vibrant colors being used to represent these situations. The color makes them easy to remember and shine a spotlight on a certain part of the story. 

A great example of this is when Kofi first sees the couple at the market. The body language used in the illustration conveys the context of the situation perfectly. Kofi is just a short distance away from them, watching as the situation unfolds, making it easy to see how he may get involved in what is going on. 

With all that said, I think I’ve covered everything I was aiming to. I think it’s time to wrap this up. 

Conclusion

I found this story to be rather sweet. All things considered, I think Robert Peprah-Gyamfi has written something that will resonate with children and show them the importance of human connection and what positive relationships can do for all parties involved. For this reason, I will be giving this story four stars.