HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Loading...

Entrapped in My Own Shell

by Yvonne Marie Tiandem-Adamou

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations
117,662,328 (5)None
Entrapped in my Own Shell is a fascinating and inspiring story of one woman's struggle to overcome the sexism and corruption of her native Cameroon by seeking refuge in the United States where she now lives and has provided means for her extended family to share in her success. This book would be of interest to diverse audiences from women seeking moral support and students in Ethnic/Black studies, to Americans interested in learning about other cultures.… (more)
Recently added byRalphBlossom

No tags

None
Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

Entrapped In My Own Shell is the personal memoire of Yvonne Marie Tiandem-Adamou who was born in the African country of Cameroon and, as an adult, later immigrated to the United States. In this book, Tiandem-Adamou has opened a window to the life and culture of her native country and also to the challenges and rewards of the immigrant experience. Before reading this book, I knew nothing of the daily life of west Africa and could not have named the cities, Yaoundé and Douala, which are the places in Africa where the story begins. In the journey from Africa to America, Tiandem-Adamou brings her two worlds together showing that gains on one hand were offset by losses on the other. For example, in America women are accorded more equal treatment and in Africa the community takes a larger role in the rearing of children.

The book begins with an account of Tiandem-Adamou’s first marriage which failed because it was founded in a deception. She goes on to show that the deception was framed by African traditional and tribal attitudes which work to subjugate women and make them second class citizens who are not accorded treatment equal to men within the paradigm of Cameroonian society. She unfolds this by giving in turn an account of her childhood, her education, her relationship with her mother and finally her immigration to the United States. Along the way, she becomes a forceful advocate for the just treatment of women.

Tiandem-Adamou earned a degree in Law from the University of Buea in her home country, and later earned a master’s degree in theology from Xavier University of Lousiana. At the end of the book there is a chapter called “Reflection.” This begins as a sermon on the importance of self love and the importance of the unique gifts that we each receive. Tiandem-Adamou argues that discernment of these gifts is the foundation for a successful life and that the nurture and realization of these gifts is the means to the abundant life promised by Christ in St. John. This sermon becomes a hymn of gratitude for the success that she has achieved in her life.

In this process, Tiandem-Adamou comes alive as a positive and dynamic personality. “My perseverance was the key to a successful life,” she says. In her life she has been like a force of nature which cannot be denied such as the tides or perhaps a tsunami. Her story is down to earth and heroic at the same time. I wish to offer here a personal word gratitude for her courage and effort to share her experience. ( )
  RalphBlossom | May 30, 2011 |
no reviews | add a review
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
First words
Quotations
Last words
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English

None

Entrapped in my Own Shell is a fascinating and inspiring story of one woman's struggle to overcome the sexism and corruption of her native Cameroon by seeking refuge in the United States where she now lives and has provided means for her extended family to share in her success. This book would be of interest to diverse audiences from women seeking moral support and students in Ethnic/Black studies, to Americans interested in learning about other cultures.

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Genres

No genres

Rating

Average: (5)
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5 1

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 203,186,721 books! | Top bar: Always visible