His family lived up-country in a village in a compound owned by the Chief. I lived (at first) in a school campus (500 students) about 30 minutes from the capitol (not that far, but the roads were poor). He made friends easiy, and remembers details to a degree I can't come close to.
There are a few glitches: termite queens are 3-4 inches long, not 3-4 feet. But you won't care.
The title was a name given to Erik after the people heard his stories about America. It was the name of a folk hero of the Gola, who was as famous for his tall tales as his deeds. Bridges that can stand the weight of many cars? You're joking with us.
He started as an object of fear, and then of fascination. The friend he called Bobby suffered injustices Erik couldn't do anything about, and many of their friends were thieves. His sister was almost of marriagable age by village standards. Her story would have been an interesting addition.
The obligations of the children impressed him--they had roles from young ages. Some of the tribal rules seemed reasonable, and some crazy.
The supernatural played (and still does) a huge role in village life, and he had some close calls when his curiosity about the secret societies' doings got him in trouble.
Read it. Yes, the formatting is sub-par and an editor should have caught a duplicate story. Don't worry.
