"Mama used to say that our dreams were the way in which we resolved our problems, that every problem could be solved if we paid close attention to the tiniest details in our dreams."

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Under the Udala Trees is both an important and beautifully written book about a young girl, Ijeoma and her journey into womanhood and the relationships she has throughout her life. This book is important because it focuses on the queer experience in Nigeria and the lack of rights that Queer people have and how they have been persecuted since the 2014 legislation to prohibit Same Sex Marriage was passed and meant homosexuality became punishable by 14 years in jail.
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Under the Udala Trees not only touches on the persecution of the queer community. It also begins with the Nigerian Civil War (1967-70) which began when Biafra (a region made up of the Eastern Nigerian states) declared independence from Nigeria. Ijeoma recounts how the war encroached on her family life, stole her father and changed her life trajectory forever.
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The structure of the book I really enjoyed as the chapters were short and the book was broken down into several parts which jumped back and forth in time. I liked this because it revealed different elements of Ijeoma's life outside of chronological order and the reader was able to view with hindsight how various events changed her life.
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The relationships within this book broke my heart as we saw Ijeoma develop a bond and relationship with her first love Amina. Okparanta not only focused on how this relationship was forbidden because it was the love of two women, but also how relationships between ethnic groups (Igbo and Hausa in this case) are deeply forbidden.
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Although this book touches on lots of important themes at the root of it, it is a beautifully written story about love, womanhood, and identity that I would recommend to all.