Baking Cakes in Kigali introduced Tanzanian Angel Tungaraza and the cake baking business she established in Rwanda while her husband worked there as a Special Consultant at the University. In When Hoopoes Go to Heaven, Angel's husband, Pius, has a new consulting assignment in Swaziland. The Tungarazas and the five grandchildren they're raising live on a farm. The story is told mainly through the eyes of ten-year-old Benedict, the oldest of the three boys. As the oldest, he feels the burden of responsibility, especially when his Baba has to travel. Benedict is a sensitive boy with a love for animals and learning. When he's not outdoors watching birds or insects, he's indoors reading the encyclopedia. Benedict seems to have inherited his grandmother's observant and thoughtful nature. Although he doesn't understand the problems that weigh on the adults and older children around him, he's able to help them see things from a different perspective and often find a solution to their problems.

I quickly fell under Benedict's spell. He's not precocious, and his innocence and sweetness are endearing. Writing from the perspective of a 10-year-old allows Parkin to indirectly comment on Swaziland's social problems, such as the status of women and the AIDS epidemic. (According to UNICEF, Swaziland has the world's highest HIV prevalence rate.) Both Baking Cakes in Kigali and When Hoopoes Go to Heaven show Africans and African nations not as the recipients of Western aid, but as agents in solving their social problems. I highly recommend both books.

I'll leave you with a sample of Benedict's wisdom:

Benedict wasn't sure that he liked the idea of a separate Heaven for dogs. Say you loved your dog and then you both got an accident and went to Heaven, but your dog had to go to a separate Heaven. Wouldn't being without your dog feel more like being in Hell? What if the Heaven for dogs was next door, and you had to speak to our dog through a fence and you could never hold him? Eh! God had made people and animals, all creatures great and small, and He had put them all together here on Earth. Why would He put them in separate Heavens afterwards? It didn't make sense. ( )

A feel-good read set in Swaziland,, 15 November 2015

This review is from: When Hoopoes Go to Heaven (Hardcover)
This book grew on me, and I would give it a 3.5.
It's sweet, it's undemanding, but it has a charm all of its own. I hadn't read its prequel ("Baking Cakes in Kigali") but that didn't matter.
This is the tale of family life in Swaziland seen from the point of view of sensitive 10 year old Benedict. He and his cousins are all being brought up by their grandparents, their own parents all being deceased or "late." Money is tight, requiring Baba to take on consultancy work which forces him to travel; and meaning Mama needs to get her cake business up and running in their temporary new home in Swaziland.
Benedict observes - and sometimes misunderstands - the adult complexities of the world around him. But everything comes pretty good in the end. ( )

This book continues the story of Angel and her family in Baking Cakes in Kigali when they lived in Rwanda. Pius (Baba) is originally from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania who goes where his job takes him. His wife Angel earns income by baking cakes, a legal business in Rwanda but "under the table" in Swaziland. All of their children are actually grandchildren whose parents are "late". Benedict often refers to his "first mama" and "first baba".

The story is presented from 10 year-old Benedict's viewpoint. He describes moving between African countries with all the attendant issues such as the differences in language and culture. However, he is delighted to have a collection of books in their rented house and a garden where he spends a lot of his free time. This appealing boy attempts to find a solution for every problem, including his Mama's fading cake-baking business.

Although the writing is lighthearted the story behind it is complex and serious. Reading between the lines provides a more telling story of the changing circumstances many families are experiencing, brought about by the political and health upheavals of war and AIDS. In a postscript, the author claims Swaziland has the highest rate of AIDS in the world. Nevertheless, this book is a charmer that I can recommend highly. ( )