Confessions of Nairobi Women and Men (Book Review)
As a woman living in Nairobi, a chaotic and beautiful city, I was immediately captivated by Confessions of Nairobi Women. There’s something about reading a book that feels so familiar, where the streets, the sounds, and the atmosphere resonate so closely with my reality. This book transported me to places I’ve walked through, places I know, without needing to imagine a faraway world.
The stories are so vivid, and not just fictional tales – they are the real-life experiences of women I might have passed by on the street, shared a bus with, or stood behind in line at a supermarket cashier. These women have seen it all – they’ve made mistakes, loved fiercely, felt powerless, and yet managed to survive and hustle at the same time.
The stories are raw, their courage admirable, and their victories awe-inspiring. The book constantly reminds you that no matter how tough your struggles seem, someone else is facing even greater battles. It sheds light on our shared humanity—the messiness, tenderness, naivety, and greed we all carry within us.
From the woman addicted to her lover’s touch, unaware that his body is a vessel for drugs, to the one raised under the Globe Roundabout, shaped by the unforgiving streets of Nairobi and from a woman who loves too much, enduring abuse at the hands of the man she loves, to a sex worker grieving her daughter, lost to the reckless chaos of Nairobi traffic. And then there’s the woman whose jealous rage lands her in prison after a violent confrontation.
FYI: This is the first book I have read in one sitting, one weekend.
Confessions of Nairobi Men.
Unlike Confessions of Nairobi Women, Confessions of Nairobi Men is dark, sad, and tense, I read the first chapter and the more I did, I would ask myself, wait what did i just read?
These are not easy stories. They’re harrowing, made all the more chilling by the fact that they are true. These are the lives of men I might see every day, passing by without knowing the depth of their pain. These are men whose hearts, minds, and bodies have endured so much. Their stories will break your spirit, some will infuriate you, and others will make you curse under your breath.
From the Uber driver who is violated twice and witnesses death on two different rides, to the man left to raise children who aren’t his, after his wife’s suicide upon revealing the truth. Some of these stories offer a glimpse of redemption, of surviving long enough to find some light. But there’s a darkness that lingers over them all, a shadow cast by the harsh realities of life in Nairobi
This is a must-read for everyone.
Hats off to the author, Joan for penning these stories✨
