Memoirs of a Mbororo

the long version

"This book recounts the life of Ndudi Umaru, a pastoral nomadic Mbororo Fulani who was born in the Nigeria-Cameroon border zone. A leper from childhood, Ndudi became increasingly separated from his kith and kin in his search for treatment. Eventually, Ndudi was befriended by Pere Bocquene, a French missionary in Cameroon who took him on as a field assistant. Working closely with the young man, Pere Bocquene realised Ndudi was a keen observer of his own people and their wider social context, and he suggested Ndudi record his life story on tape. The result is a rare and sensitive collaboration, which sheds new insight into the world of the Mbororo and the complex and ever-changing social mosaic of West African savanna societies. Ndudi's leprosy and his efforts to find a cure grant him the necessary perspective to analyze this complex world, while still remaining a part of it." "For the western public, the Mbororo have often been the photogenic subjects of "disappearing world" documentaries or glossy coffee table books. However, this account renders "the exotic" comprehensible, preserving the cultural authenticity of Ndudi's story while making this unique world more accessible to outsiders."--BOOK JACKET.