September in Review, Projections for October
September wasn't a bad month for reading, though I encountered several hitches and have not read a word in three days. I set out to read four books and four single stories (Caine Prize Shortlist). Books projected to be read included: The Shadow Catcher, The Book of Not, A Grain of Wheat, and Excursions in My Mind. Some of the projected books were read others were not:
- The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. I began this book in late September. This is the third in the Robert Langdon's series. It follows Robert Langdon as he fights his way to save his friend Peter Solomon whilst protecting the Mason's pyramid from destruction by Mal'akh. Similar to the others, this book is full of codes and cliffhangers.
- A Grain of Wheat by Ngugi wa Thiong'o. This colonial literature traces events that occurred a few days to Kenya's independence day. It also predicts the disaffection that would later befall the real freedom fighters. Read for the Top 100 Books Reading Challenge.
- Excursions in My Mind by Nana Awere Damoah. This is a motivational and inspirational book with local and personal examples. This book was read for BAND.
- Death and the King's Horseman by Wole Soyinka. This is a play that tells of a true event. It tells of the repercussions that occurred after a colonial District Officer intervenes in a ritual suicide. This book was also read to celebrate Nigeria's independence day book reading/reviewing organised by Amy and also for the Top 100 Books Reading Challenge.
The following Caine Prize short stories were read:
- Soulmates by Alex Smith
- How Shall we Kill the Bishop by Lily Mabura
- The Life of Worm by Ken Barris
- Muzungu by Namwali Serpell
- Stickfighting Days by Olufemi Terry
Currently, I am reading The Book of Not by Tsitsi Dangarembga. I didn't read The Shadow Catcher. Within the month, I also reviewed a book and a short story read in the previous month:
- Neo-Colonialism the Last Stage of Imperialism by Kwame Nkrumah. I read this to celebrate Ghana's Founder's Day which fell on September 21, 2011.
- Waiting by E.C. Osondu (Caine Prize winner, 2009)
Follow me on twitter, facebook and/or blogger for updates. You can also subscribe by e-mail. Note that I do not pretend to have academic insight into all the books I read. Even academics do disagree as often as they get to express their opinions. Every book I review or discuss is my personal reaction to the story. Thus, if you disagree, express it and let's discuss. If you think I didn't do a great job or understand the story, express it. However, don't come in with a quarrelsome motive, especially if you aren't the author of the books and cannot explain the author's mind. In effect, we all speculate what we think the author meant and that's the essence of reading and its appreciation.
There's a great list of writers here, who my knowledge of is scant - non existent, so this is an area I need to work on, as the books by 2 Ghanaian writer that I read recently I thoroughly enjoyed - half blood blues & tail of the blue bird although I don't believe either reside their now, thanks for the post, It's giving me places to look.
ReplyDeleteyou're right Parish. None lives in the country. In fact, Esi Edugyan is listed as Canadian. The problem is widespread in Africa. Most writers from the continent don't live on the continent. Only a few come and go. Most are permanent residents.
ReplyDeleteFor what I do here i don't discriminate.
It's so nice that going three days without reading is a comment-worthy feature for us bookish types!
ReplyDeleteNice reading. You know, i read "How shall we kill the bishop". An enigma for sure. I will do a writeup soon.
ReplyDelete@Niranjana, don't you see? lol
ReplyDelete@Kinna, That story is difficult to pin down. Followed it up to a point and got lost.
ReplyDelete