'The Yahoo Boys' by Carlos Barragan

 The Yahoo Boys, Carlos Barragan (4.0)

I learned a lot about the history of Nigeria and the sad situation there now through this interesting book about the young men who use the internet to con people in the west. The author went to investigate the crime syndicate responsible for his mother losing money and found a group of young men, working independently to scrap together a sad existence. Unlike organized groups out of various countries in Asia, the Nigerian Yahoo Boys come across as opportunistic, but not very successful at turning their cons into security. The majority he talked to over several years worked ‘paycheck to paycheck’ so to speak. The culture of the con men was to flaunt and share the wealth with few investing or saving. Much was sad in the book – particularly the lonely people who had to have known the love of their life was not the famous person (Brad Pitt?? Cody Rhodes??), but the person texting with them was someone showing them attention and listening to them.

'Kin' by Tayari Jones

 Kin, Tayari Jones (4.0)

I enjoyed this touching story of friendship and family. The characters were fresh voices, and the plot was not overly predictable. The author did a great job of highlighting two seemingly similar but different young women growing up in the South without mothers. While their journeys were quite different, they were always there for each other. I also appreciated the view into the lives of young, black women at Spelman college in the 1950’s.