REVIEWS
Love in the face of hate
These Letters End in Tears by Musih Tedji Xaviere is a tremendous debut novel, engaging with the realities of LGBT+ life in Cameroon, where, in the shadow of the violent legacy of colonialism, existing as a queer person is punishable by law. Through impassioned letters, Bessem, a lesbian university professor, addresses her first love, Fatima, who’s been missing for 13 years. After a chance encounter with an old friend, she decides she must uncover the truth of Fatima’s whereabouts.
As students, both Fatima and Bessem dive headlong into love with reckless abandon. Xaviere’s prose sings with the humour of day-to-day life beside a partner. Everyone deserves an ordinary kind of love, but their relationship must be maintained in secrecy. As a masculine-presenting person, Fatima is subject to greater public scrutiny than Bessem, who favours dresses. Their love is threatened constantly by police raids, suspicious classmates, disapproving families and hypocritical politicians.
Looking back, the adult Bessem feels such longing for Fatima. She
