A Gentle Reign

Kwabena Oppong, who is the king and supreme ruler of the African Ashanti tribespeople living in the United States of America, has a throne in his living room. The American Ashanti king is elected every two years from the ranks of an Ashanti social and cultural organization called the Asanteman Association of the United States of America, Inc. The first stateside king, Kwadwo Tuffuor, was a plumber. The second, Kusi Appouh, repaired air-conditioners and refrigerators. Kwabena Oppong is the third king; he drives a cab.

In A Gentle Reign, Susan Orlean, author of The Orchid Thief and Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend, lends her wry, exuberant voice to the unforgettable portrait of an ordinary man thrown into an extraordinary circumstance and follows closely as the newly crowned supreme ruler navigates his life as an unlikely king.

A Gentle Reign was originally published in The New Yorker, December 12, 1988.

©2016 Susan Orlean (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Susan Orlean for the win

As always, her enchanting and fully informational writing delights. I love her choice of an almost unheard of subject and then riffs on it fully. Beautifully written and narrated as only Susan Orlean can do.

Interesting—

I have long enjoyed Susan Orlean’s work on the page, but now realize she’s a good “listen” also. An excellent article.

Start to finish

So interesting.
Author narrating her own writing is fantastic and this story is one you can’t put down for the entire hour. Love Susan Orlean. Another gem

Loved it

This was a nice peek into a small community of Ghanaians living in the U.S. I love that they elect a king to assist their community members in all manner of ways. Quite delightful.