Great African Reads discussion
Welcome
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Welcome to new members!!... and introduction... if you want
Hi, my name is Sigrun and I live in Sweden. About a month ago I read Chimamanda Ngozi Adichies Americanah and I realized that I know very little about Africa and that I'd love to get to know more. Shortly after I found your group, which has provided me with great inspiration on how to approach African literature.I'm planning to tag along with the contemporary lit-theme, the Focus on Nigeria this year and with the fiction part of the Grand Tour as long as I can get the books (I get most books from the public libraries here, which have a great, but in no way complete, selection).
Looking forward to seeeing you around :)
Welcome Sigrun! I'm so glad you found us and that you found activities you want to participate in. I look forward to seeing you in the discussion threads!
Hi I'm Mona, a Norwegian living in the UK and have a house in Botswana where I plan to move permanently in a year or so. Passionate about Africa and read a lot of literature from all parts of Africa both fiction and non-fiction.
Welcome, Mona!That's amazing--I bet you can't wait to be there permanently. It must be beautiful! What connected you to Botswana (if I may ask)?
It was fate I think. Did a trip round South Africa and was recommended to go to Botswana. So we did, the following year. It felt like home from the first step off the plane and as if a weight was lifted. Knew then that we must try to make it our home. The rest is history...
That's awesome. Such a beautiful thing to have happen!
hi everyone! my name is jennifer. i just joined the group, though i am happy to see a few familiar faces from other groups. introductions are hard! :) i live in toronto and i read a lot. i do have a strong interest in african literature (fiction and nonfiction), so i am happy to be here to have my reading horizons expanded.
Jennifer wrote: "hi everyone! my name is jennifer. i just joined the group, though i am happy to see a few familiar faces from other groups. introductions are hard! :) i live in toronto and i read a lot. i do have..."I'm so glad you joined us, Jennifer! :)
I posted this under the Authors section and decided that maybe it was supposed to be here instead. Ya na! That is a close spelling to "Good Afternoon" in the Loma dialetc spoken in Liberia. I am new to goodreads and have just joined this group. I hope that this is the right place to post this and that I haven't broken any rules. If so, I've been told that it is better to ask for forgiveness than permission. Maybe the Moderators can move this if it's in the wrong place.
My name is Keith Knecht and I lived in Zorzor, Liberia from 1952-1955 My schooling took only half a day and the rest,I spent in the jungle learning about the animals,language,customs,and people. I returned to Africa,aboard a C2 freighter in 1964,and spent time in Dakar,Conakry,Freetown,Douala,Abidjan,Lagos,Matadi,Luanda, and Point Noire.
I have published two books based loosely on my childhood in Liberia. "Zahwu" has a Lexile score of 800 and while that makes it a book for young adults, it has been equally well received by readers of all ages. "The Lost Ones" completes the story begun in the first book. I am excited to be part of this group and look foward to getting to know you all. Keith
Welcome Keith! Both places where you posted this are perfect. I'm sorry if I missed your other post somehow. It sounds like you had a fascinating childhood! I do hope you enjoy it here with us.
Welcome Keith. I lived in Nigeria from 1966 to 1967 so we do have a bit in common. My question is "What does a Lexile score of 800 mean?"
Penelope, I quite liked We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo. A touching story from Zimbabwe.
Marieke and Larry, Thanks for the welcome. This looks like a fascinating group. I was in Lagos three times in 1964. I could tell a story about the military coming on board our ship. They had to unload weapons that we were carring because the dock worker went on strike and refused to unload them. That was at the time of the Bi-Africa conflict. I have wonderful carvings from the market there. In response to your question about a lexile score,a lexile score places the book at a reading level for school children. 800 places the reading level between the upper portion of the 4th grade to the lower level of the eight grade. As a means of comparision, the newspaper is written at about the sixth grade level. Surprisingly enough, even though my target audience was teenage boys, people of all ages have liked my books. Elderly ladies are some of my biggest fans.Go figure. The books are written in such away that the readers do not know they are being taught about language,customs,animals and life in Africa.
Keith, Are you sure about the dates you were in Lagos? The Biafran/Nigerian civil war started in 1967. I am definitely interested about the weapons the Nigerian Army had to unload from your ship. Were they for the Federal troops? I presume they were. Again, welcome to the group..:)
Hey Larry, Dates are right and the story was right but I had the Biafra part wrong. Sorry about that! I have to call "Oldtimers" on that one. I do know that there was a war of some kind going on at the time or maybe just unrest. I don't know who the weapons were for,but I do remember that the dock workers struck. The longshoremen on our ship honored their strike and refused to unload the weapons as well. The army marched a squad out, came on board, and broke a boom on the ship in the process of unloading. The ship was the Del Aries of the Delta Steamship Lines. I was 18 at the time. Well, maybe it wasn't much of a story but it was a little scary at the time.
Hi. I'm Barbara and I'm currently a Peace Corps volunteer in Ghana. I'm interested in reading more African writers literature. Though I'm not a big fan of history I know it's important to know history to have a better understanding of the people, the land and the culture.
Also with the power outages (lack of stable Internet connectivity) and access to books (I'm in a rural village), I'm limited by what I can read. I'm going home for vacation in late April and want to get as many books in ePub version as possible on my Nook, so any suggestions of upcoming reads would be great.
I enjoy reading, romance, travel, spirituality, historical fiction and some suspense/mystery.
Thanks
Also with the power outages (lack of stable Internet connectivity) and access to books (I'm in a rural village), I'm limited by what I can read. I'm going home for vacation in late April and want to get as many books in ePub version as possible on my Nook, so any suggestions of upcoming reads would be great.
I enjoy reading, romance, travel, spirituality, historical fiction and some suspense/mystery.
Thanks
Hi Barbara,When you’re in Accra, head for Vidyas Bookstore in Osu (call 024 426 2098) and pick up the Ghana editions of my historical novels, Ama, a Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade, Brave Music of a Distant Drum and The Boy who Spat in Sargrenti’s Eye. Consider also Ramseyer's Ghost, set in Ghana in 2050 (from Amazon.com) and, for an African slant on U.S. politics, President Michelle, or Ten Days that Shook the World (Kindle).
Manu
Thank you very much for the suggestions. I will do that.
Thank you very much for the suggestions. I will do that.
Hello,My name is Idowu and I am the author of the book Wealth For All Africans. I am excited to be a part of this group and I look forward to being a valuable contributor. I have a vision of a better Africa where its people and the continent as a whole live up to their potential. My message is to let every African know that regardless of their beginnings, background, or current situation, that achieving greatness is possible; it is possible for them to live out their dreams.
I am currently running a free giveaway for my book so please feel free to take advantage of the program. I also ask that you take a moment to check out the book preview and I invite you to join the cause.
Wealth for All Africans: How Every African Can Live the Life of Their Dreams
Idowu
Would just like to say hello to each and everyone. Thanks for adding me to the group.
Hi, I was born and lived in Tanganyika and Zanzibar in the 1950s and 60s. I have written a novel, Zanzibar Uhuru, dealing with the revolution of 1964. It follows the lives of two women over 50 years. Here is the link. reviews on Amazon. I would love some of you to read it. Regards Anne Chappelhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...
This sounds fantastic, Anne. I can't wait to read it! I loved my visit to Zanzibar a few years ago and look forward to immersing myself in it again.
Anne wrote: "Hi, I was born and lived in Tanganyika and Zanzibar in the 1950s and 60s. I have written a novel, Zanzibar Uhuru, dealing with the revolution of 1964. It follows the lives of two women over 50 year..."Welcome Anne! I just read And Home Was Kariakoo: A Memoir of East Africa and because of that, I think i'm very interested in your book! will try to get to it soon!
Hi everyone - how wonderful to join this forum/community and help broaden my literary pallet and definitions of African literature! The Tour d'Afrique sounds fascinating - though as I mentioned in the NEMA forum I'm also part of, I'm a slow reader - as in, I can get real real slow, when there's a lot on! So I may have to take a more leisurely journey through, as compared to the faster readers out there! But still happy to participate in whatever way I can. At the moment, making my way through Ben Okri's 'The Famished Road' - interesting, that's all I can say for now, as I'm less than half way through. Magic realism is never completely my thing, but I am getting 'into the groove' of it as I'm progressing...
Very jealous of anyone who has travelled more across Africa than I currently have! I've only ventured to opposite ends: Tunisia and Uganda (way back on a college trip). Beautiful places, beautiful people! I can still taste the fresh taste of tilapia and peanut rice in my mouth which I had back in Entebbe... Hope I can return someday soon!
Welcome Niraj! I have yet to read Okri, shamefully. You have been to more of Africa than me :)I have only been to Egypt; I missed my chance to visit my dad in Kenya when he was living there a few years back. Someday I will go....
Thanks Marieke! Ah yes, Egypt would be a priority destination for me too - though in fact I have my heart really set on visiting West Africa (I know that sounds very vague), but more specifically: to Mali, the Gambia, Senegal and so forth. Have fallen in love with the music from that area, and did a lot of reading about that region - one day when I've saved up enough, that's what I tell myself... I don't know if anyone else has read it, but I was blown away by the late Ahmadou Kourouma's masterpiece 'Allah is Not Obliged', about the bloody conflict in early 90s Sierra Leone. I'd love to read more of the man - it's just hard to track down much of his, and lots of other African writers' work (I find), as it's often not published by your big publishing houses and/or not the kind of fare local libraries would stock. And while I love buying books, my bookshelf is strainig under the weight... I'd be interested to know how everyone else finds the books for the reading challenges/voyages?
I also would love to visit west Africa! I've had a thing for Mali for a long time and an acquaintance from Senegal used to talk to me about her home all the time and my high school soccer coach was from Ghana, so I'd love to go there, too! I'm intimidated by Nigeria but still would love to find a way to visit.I have not read Allah is Not Obliged yet but plan to someday.
I am a cheater or lucky duck, however you want to look at it when it comes to books. I have access to three libraries, so if I can't get a book that way, I will sometimes buy it, depending on my level of interest. I have had to set some boundaries for my bookshelves because book buying can easily get out of control for me!
Hi Everyone, My name is Mfonido and I'm Nigerian. I'm fairly new on goodreads and I stumbled on this thread. I'm looking to expand my knowledge about Africa (tradion, culture, beliefs etc). So id welcome some suggestions.
Mfonido wrote: "Hi Everyone, My name is Mfonido and I'm Nigerian. I'm fairly new on goodreads and I stumbled on this thread. I'm looking to expand my knowledge about Africa (tradion, culture, beliefs etc). So i..."
Welcome, Mfonido! It sounds like you might really enjoy our "Tour d'Afrique" which is an alphabetical tour around the continent. We are in the S's this year, but we keep threads open if you want to reinvigorate an old thread. You will find lots of great recommendations in our suggestion threads for each tour stop as well as a thread dedicated to our official selection(s) for each country.
But we do have lots going on here, so poke around and feel free to ask questions about anything!
Hi everyone,My name is Annalisa and I live in New York.
From these first few words it's probably hard to imagine my connection with Africa, but it's stronger than it seems!
Last year I traveled to southern Africa (mainly Namibia and Zimbabwe) and the beauty of those countries and the extreme kindness and strength of their people left a deep mark in me.
I am also a writer of novels, adventure stories with a touch of intimate introspection. One of them is called exactly Africa , and is inspired by my travels.
I have already started a thread about my novel in the Authors section, I would be glad to know what you guys think about it!
It's great to meet you all!
Annalisa
Marieke: ah, the same, the same, the same! I've really fallen in love with West African music, as I've been very much into the 'world music' scene for many years now. A big fan of the likes of Toumani Diabete, Amadou et Mariam, Rokia Traore...such a vast, rich heritage and culture, more of which came to my attention later on reading up on Mali. Which then led to novels from West Africa. I also know about the Festival Au Desert and also the Festival A La Niger, on the river Niger, which I'm dying one day to make a trip out to. Sad that there is so much violence, or at least 'percieved violence by Western governments' taking place in the North of the country...I heard from a local man at a music festival here in the UK telling me that the tourism industry has all but nose-dived since the fighting began. Very sad. But yes, hopefully, one day...(If by the way, anyone has any tips/suggestions maybe for how to travel, and who can help with organising travel, across West Africa, Maybe Mali in particular, I'd be interested to hear!)
Access to three libraries - so that's the magic card! I miss my Uni days when you could happily access both your own and other Uni libraries across the UK with the special SCOLAR card - I read some really beautiful but battered copies of some classic literature that day. Nowadays, I'm stuck with local libraries - while some are well stocked, others don't have much besides the 'usual fare'. Ho hum! But trying to see if I can get access to a Uni library soon though...
Annalisa wrote: "Hi everyone,My name is Annalisa and I live in New York.
From these first few words it's probably hard to imagine my connection with Africa, but it's stronger than it seems!
Last year I traveled..."
Welcome Annalisa! If your book is on goodreads, do feel free to edit your post here so that it links to your book
here. I am sure members will want to have a look. :)
Niraj wrote: "Marieke: ah, the same, the same, the same! I've really fallen in love with West African music, as I've been very much into the 'world music' scene for many years now. A big fan of the likes of Toum..."Yes, West African music is fabulous. These two places in particular have introduced me to some great music:
http://sahelsounds.com/
http://www.okayafrica.com/
if you can get access to a university library, that would be great! my husband works for a university and i work for a very large research library that allows me to borrow books and then we have a fabulous public library system that i use. :)
Hi all, I am Jumai, from Nigeria, currently living in Glasgow. I'm just starting the second year of my PhD in biomedical engineering and I also lecture in an African university. So, I'm a scientist, but I am more of an African enthusiast with most of my energy poured into thinking, talking, dreaming... about sustainable development in Africa.
I've recently been growing into myself (identity) and work got quite daunting, so I decided to start reading more African literature and I found this group.
I've not being able to wrap my head around all the activities going on here, it might be helpful if someone gives a brief group intro.
I'm excited about learning more about the vastness of Africa (outside of my Nigerian cocoon). I've also not been to any other African country and it's quite a shame as I've met several Africans here in the UK and I long to see all the beauty and chaos I read and hear about. Looking forward to an African tour soon if I can find one that is deep and exciting.
Again, it's lovely to be here.
Marieke wrote: "Annalisa wrote: "Hi everyone,My name is Annalisa and I live in New York.
From these first few words it's probably hard to imagine my connection with Africa, but it's stronger than it seems!
Las..."
Hi Marieke, thanks a lot for the tip - I added my book in the Author section of the group, but you're right: I'll add the link in here as well!
Annalisa wrote: "Marieke wrote: "Annalisa wrote: "Hi everyone,My name is Annalisa and I live in New York.
From these first few words it's probably hard to imagine my connection with Africa, but it's stronger than..."
Yes, because more people get notifications from this thread. Now that I think of it, you should edit your post again to include a link to your Author thread! :D
Jumai wrote: "Hi all, I am Jumai, from Nigeria, currently living in Glasgow. I'm just starting the second year of my PhD in biomedical engineering and I also lecture in an African university. So, I'm a scienti..."
Welcome Jumai! I hope you like it here. Your comment about a brief intro reminded me that...we had such a thing for 2014, but never set on up for 2015! Apologies! Our activities are a little bit different this year. I will get that posted this afternoon and come back here to link to it.
Marieke wrote: "Annalisa wrote: "Marieke wrote: "Annalisa wrote: "Hi everyone,My name is Annalisa and I live in New York.
From these first few words it's probably hard to imagine my connection with Africa, but i..."
Great point :)
Jumai wrote: "I've not being able to wrap my head around all the activities going on here, it might be helpful if someone gives a brief group intro."
hello again,
I revised the 2014 road map...let me know if this helps:
I've not being able to wrap my head around all the activities going on here, it might be helpful if someone gives a brief group intro.
i might also need to tweak the group description. Apologies that these htings got neglected at the start of the year. It was a major feat just have threads set up to start the year since i was also ushering a new baby. haha! :D
Amaka LilyHello, My name is Amaka Lily and I'm the author of Shifting Allegiances- A Nigerian's story of Nigeria, America & Culture Shock.
It was a finalist for the Phillis Wheatley 2015 Book Award in First Fiction. You can find it here. http://www.amazon.com/Shifting-Allegi...
I am also reachable via email here or on facebook
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shifti...
Hello group! Thanks to marieke for her wonderful job here, it's delightful to have access to such amount of literature knowledge on Africa. I will be soon travelling to Tanzania, and hence I'd love some recommendations on books to get me into place on my way to this marvellous country. Would love to hear from you all. Kind regards,
Amaka Lily! My apologies I did not see your post here until now! Welcome to the group. Your book looks great and I have added it to my tbr.
Thank you, Carlos! It's good to see you here. I am also looking forward to any recommendations our fellow group members have for you. :)
Hi all, Ibeh here. Just today completed publishing my debut book 'Medicine Man'
It has as its backdrop, the events treated in the Abiyamo article 'The Otokoto Ritual Killings of 1996’ published at www.naijarchives.com.
Happy to schedule a giveaway on amazon to kick off some beta reading by group members and hopefully gauge some initial reactions, particularly given the sensitivity of the subject matter.
Is this something that interests anyone let me know and I will schedule a free giveaway or send an e-book via email? The book is crawling it's way through Amazon's system, but you can find a description faster via my author page link: (amazon.com/author/ibeh).
You can also reach me on eli.ln@me.com and I can send an e-book to you directly.
Ibeh wrote: "Hi all, Ibeh here. Just today completed publishing my debut book 'Medicine Man'
It has as its backdrop, the events treated in the Abiyamo article 'The Otokoto Ritual Killings of 1996’ published..."
Welcome, Ibeh!
i am not familiar with the event your book uses as a backdrop, so i am excited to learn about it!
By the way, we have a folder for authors to have a dedicated space for discussing their work and promoting it freely. if you are interested, you are welcome to set up a thread there. I can help you with it, just shoot me a direct message. :D
Muphyn wrote: "Just wanted to say hello and welcome to the group to all people who have just join!Feel free to start discussing any book dealing with Africa at any time, or join in the discussion already underw..."
OK, I feel like a total dweeb here, but where exactly is the book club section you are referring to. It's probably somewhere obvious, but I cannot seem to locate it?
Hey there Vermicious, no worries. The confusion stems from the fact that this thread began in 2008 when we were just getting started. I'm pretty sure the "book club" is what became our Tour d'Afrique. We have two folders for it; only one is for suggestions/planning and the other is for discussing the actual selections. I hope that helps!
Great African Reads
Books mentioned in this topic
The Shadow King (other topics)The Moor's Account (other topics)
Half of a Yellow Sun (other topics)
Huit leçons sur l'Afrique (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Tsitsi Dangarembga (other topics)Irene Muchemi-Ndiritu (other topics)
Khadija Abdalla Bajaber (other topics)
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o (other topics)
Yefon Isabelle (other topics)
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Penelope, check out our Tour d'Afrique...we try to read both fiction and non-fiction. The books need to be about a specific country, but don't need to be written by an African author, so that might help you in your search for books about Africa.
Rosa, I'm glad to see you'll be joining us in some of our group reads!
Ammanulah, i don't know much about poetry, so i look forward to any knowledge you have to share. :)