If I were to describe Alàgbà Komi’s Son of Olódùmarè (The Castaway) in one sentence, I would say, “it is an ode to culture, the Yoruba culture.” From the carefully constructed title to the ami that adorns the author’s name, one thing stands out, the author has a mission to “save” his culture. It is not every day that one finds a contemporary Nigerian poet committed to promoting his/her traditional language in their art; no thanks to colonialism.

True to my suspicions, the first “poem” The Great Commission proves that Alàgbà Komi is on a mission to restore the culture in his Son of Olódùmarè (The Castaway). According to the poet persona, he has been charged to “Please lead back to their heritage, your brothers and son!” by Olódùmarè. While admirable, the big question is, does he achieve his goal with the collection?

While the Yoruba culture and…