Osée Kamga, an Afro-Canadian writer who lives in Rockland, has written a comical novel about second-language training in the federal government, something that many people in Ottawa can relate to. In this novel, he tackles the downsides of the language-training process, government bureaucracy and politics, and the historical role that language has played in Canada.
The narrator of Gone By The C views Canada from the perspective of someone who grew up in Africa. The comedic element of this novel is surprising because, in second-language training, tensions can run high as careers can be salvaged or lost by one’s ability to pass proficiency tests. The “C” in the book’s title refers to a specific level you must attain to qualify for some positions.
Book Cover of Gone By The C. Photo provided.
The narrator is Touré, a reluctant French-language instructor whose first name is never revealed. Touré is tasked with helping his student Marsha pass a language test to help her attain a position for which she works in an acting capacity.
Touré’s curiosity is piqued by a mysterious student named Perdida, whose tearful outburst in the first chapter intrigues him. Wry humour is the thread that connects Touré’s interactions with his students and colleague Kourouma, as well as his private musings.
Kamga has written half a dozen novels published in French and this is his first English-language novel. One of the strengths of this publication is the author’s ability to create realistic and often hysterically funny dialogue. He used his two years of experience teaching French as a second language to federal public servants as a foundation for the story.
Osée Kamga. Photo provided.
In the foreword, Kamga describes his time teaching French as “rewarding in its successes, funny in its incongruities and rich in those memorable encounters it allows.” He went on, saying he paid tribute “to all the students and teachers I have met, with whom I experienced both exhilarating moments and sad ones, and of whom the fictional characters are but types.”
Kamga discussed his motivations for writing the book. “Learning a second language is a huge challenge for any adult. There are exceptions, of course. But it’s extremely demanding… People really have no clue of the stress that the second-language proficiency process represents for many public service employees. So, I simply wanted to bear witness to their challenge and their courage.” As for the humorous aspect of the book he says: “I like to write a story in a way that makes me smile.”
All of Kamga’s novels are set in Canada, except Mère porteuse, which is set in France. Kamga has spent most of his life in Canada, acquired a Ph.D in communication, is a university scholar and essayist, and currently works for the federal government of Canada.
One day Kamga hopes to complete a novel about Africa, the continent of his birth. “I’ve had an African project in my drawers for a few years now. After decades away from the continent, my anchorages have faded somewhat and my memories are no more than reminiscences. And I think I’m afraid of writing about Africa wrongly, that is, as an authentic son of Africa, of telling it in the wrong way. But I know that one day, this project will reach maturity.”
Will Marsha pass her test? Will we learn more about Perdida? You will have to read Gone By The C to find out. Despite some typos, this novel is well worth a try, especially if you have ever participated in second-language training in the federal government!
Gone By The C is published by Austin MacAuley Publishers and is available on amazon.ca and in local bookstores.
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