Camouflage (Say You're One of Them)

Throughout many of the stories in this collection, the children learn to survive by blending in with their surroundings, whether or not they can control them. The reader sees this first in the story "Fattening for Gabon" when Kotchikpa realizes that his only way of escaping child slavery might be by pretending to befriend the guard sent to watch over him at night. In this way, Kotchikpa pretends to be part of the plot, pretends to be working alongside the guard instead of against him: "I found some solace in the fact that I could make him believe I liked him...I felt I had a bit of control over how things might turn out" (p. 118). This theme is repeated in the story "Luxurious Hearses" when Jubril realizes that he must disguise his true Islamic identity in order to survive the bus ride...