Before you say anything, let me explain - the modem in the house overheated, melted and died. We didn't get it replaced till sometime this month, and The Goo has been sick with illnesses that I've been assured are pretty run of the mill for toddlers.
So basically, I couldn't get online and then I was busy and not mentally here and now I'm just exhausted.
However, the 2014 Reading Schedule for The (Unnamed) Book Club is ready and it's a happy place for me so I got over my tiredness to share this.
Drum roll, please.
January - No Longer At Ease by Chinua Achebe
February - This is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz
March - Fine Boys by Eghosa Imasuen
April - The Neverending Story by Micheal Ende
May - The Housemaid by Amma Darko
June - The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
July - White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi
August - Emma by Jane Austen
September - Yellow Yellow by Kaine Agary
October - Young Wives' Tales by Adele Parks
November - Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor
December - From 3rd World to 1st World: The Singapore Story by Lee Kuan Yew
I'll put up book covers when I review (I will, I will!).
In other news, guess who read 300 books this year *dusts shoulder*
Booyah!
My next post, I'll let you know what my favourite books were, beyond the obvious 5 star ratings and why.
Merry Christmas, people!
PS. Eat some cake and drink a coke for me. Gracias!
Showing posts with label book club. Show all posts
Showing posts with label book club. Show all posts
Monday, December 23, 2013
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
It's been a while
Holla!
Happy 53rd Independence Day, Nigerians!
What do we have to be happy about? Life and Hope. At all, at all, na winch!
Anyway, this is what I've been up to:
This is what I'm reading now:
And this is my current playlist:
Once More With Feeling
Thanks.
Oh, and Papa Goo's movie TABLOID for EbonyLife TV (Channel 165 on DSTV) will be airing on the 6th of October. That's in 4 days. Make sure you watch it!
Happy 53rd Independence Day, Nigerians!
What do we have to be happy about? Life and Hope. At all, at all, na winch!
Anyway, this is what I've been up to:
This is what I'm reading now:
And this is my current playlist:
Once More With Feeling
- Dog days are over - Florence and The Machine
- When it gets down to it - Fred Hammond
- What the water gave me - Florence and The Machine
- Ring a bell - Late Night Alumni
- Hope is rising - Downhere
- The sun is shining - Third Day
- Breathe slow - Alesha Dixon
- Love song - Third Day
- Supermassive black hole - Muse
- Loved on me - Fred Hammond
- Till it happens to you - Corrine Bailey Rae
- Automatic - Tokio Hotel
- Atmosphere (remix) - DC Talk
- Reformation - GS Megaphone
- Sing, sing, sing - Chris Tomlin
- A Thousand Years - Christina Perri
- Stronger - Mary J. Blige
- In my place - Coldplay
- Don't wait - Kaskade feat. Haley
- Letters from the sky - Civil Twilight
- Poison and Wine - The Civil Wars
- We are hungry/I will not be silent - Jesus Culture
Thanks.
Oh, and Papa Goo's movie TABLOID for EbonyLife TV (Channel 165 on DSTV) will be airing on the 6th of October. That's in 4 days. Make sure you watch it!
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
The (Unnamed) Book Club: The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives
I always start these things with an apology - Book reviews aren't something I do well, I think. I'm more likely to tell you how a book made me feel, or think rather than a discourse on style and structure. So bear with me.
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives was gruesome to read. Not gruesome like Stephen King, James Patterson, or (gag) V.C. Andrews, more emotionally heart wrenching.
It started out well. We (the members of the book club) were clear on who to hate - Baba Segi and his first three wives. Feelings for Wife no. 4, Bolanle, swung between annoyance and sympathy. Then new information came to light. Gasp! And swung us all into emotional turmoil. I can't tell you more (spoilers!) but I can tell you that nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, is as it seems.
The best part of the book - the writing. Sometimes, it was the only thing that kept some of us reading. Lola Shoneyin's storytelling is very Old World. It brings to mind a wizened grandmother sitting to tell her gathered descendants a cautionary tale. I loved it, even though it hurt to read it.
Next month (in two days), is Chick Lit month, and we pick up Sophie Kinsella's Can you keep a secret? Watch this space.
It started out well. We (the members of the book club) were clear on who to hate - Baba Segi and his first three wives. Feelings for Wife no. 4, Bolanle, swung between annoyance and sympathy. Then new information came to light. Gasp! And swung us all into emotional turmoil. I can't tell you more (spoilers!) but I can tell you that nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, is as it seems.
The best part of the book - the writing. Sometimes, it was the only thing that kept some of us reading. Lola Shoneyin's storytelling is very Old World. It brings to mind a wizened grandmother sitting to tell her gathered descendants a cautionary tale. I loved it, even though it hurt to read it.
Next month (in two days), is Chick Lit month, and we pick up Sophie Kinsella's Can you keep a secret? Watch this space.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
The (Unnamed) Book Club
A few months ago, I let loose a bit of a rant on twitter about The Definition of an 'African' Writer, and how we are expected to write village square stories or colonial time stories or civil war stories. Basically, historical fiction. After my rant, and some distance, and some deep breathing, I became somewhat ashamed of myself.
What right did I have to complain about the type of work African writers are expected to produce? First of all, where is my body of work? Second, how many African writers have I actually read? Where did I get the idea that there was a stereotype aspiring authors like myself had to conform to? Shame on me.
So, I decided that next year, as part of my 300 book reading challenge (more on that later), I would read more African authors. Enter my BFF, Cho, who out of the blue asked me to start a book club.
"Why?"
"Maybe it will encourage me to read more".
Hmm. I ran the idea by our mutual friend, Joy, who said, "I've been meaning to start a book club, but never got around to it". Well, then, I was gingered. I asked them some more questions on the number of books we would read - 1 a month, the genres, and other little details. We all agreed to think of a name later, but I was so excited about it (books!!!) that I opened a Blackberry group with the the tentative name - The (Unnamed) Book Club. Little did I know, that once (Unnamed) forever shall it be. Thankfully, the other 12 members of our all female group (which includes Ann) like the quirky name (no one has said they hate it, so yay!).
We don't officially start reading and discussing the books till next year (which is just around the corner), but so far, it has been fun. First, there were nominations, and then campaigns, and then votes. Just this Sunday, the polls closed and we have our reading list for 2013. Drum roll please....
January - The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin
February - I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
March - The Mrs. Club by Ekene Onu
April - Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beechar Stowe
May - Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
June - To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
July - Half of A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
August - Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
September - On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe
October - Stardust by Neil Gaiman or The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (we're still voting, but Stardust is in the lead. yay!)
November - Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
December - The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
I'M SO EXCITED!!!
PS. I nominated Fine Boys by Eghosa Imasuen but it didn't make the cut *sniff sniff*, but I'm going to mention it anyway because the author was nice enough to respond to my inquiry on twitter about an image of his book cover for my campaign.
Will you be taking a reading challenge next year? What books are you just dying to read?
PPS. Sigh. Internet is acting up (I hope that means it will rain tonight), and so that means alas, I cannot upload images of the book covers tonight, but mark my words, I will eventually.
(Cue evil laugh)
(Felt like the thing to do)
What right did I have to complain about the type of work African writers are expected to produce? First of all, where is my body of work? Second, how many African writers have I actually read? Where did I get the idea that there was a stereotype aspiring authors like myself had to conform to? Shame on me.
So, I decided that next year, as part of my 300 book reading challenge (more on that later), I would read more African authors. Enter my BFF, Cho, who out of the blue asked me to start a book club.
"Why?"
"Maybe it will encourage me to read more".
Hmm. I ran the idea by our mutual friend, Joy, who said, "I've been meaning to start a book club, but never got around to it". Well, then, I was gingered. I asked them some more questions on the number of books we would read - 1 a month, the genres, and other little details. We all agreed to think of a name later, but I was so excited about it (books!!!) that I opened a Blackberry group with the the tentative name - The (Unnamed) Book Club. Little did I know, that once (Unnamed) forever shall it be. Thankfully, the other 12 members of our all female group (which includes Ann) like the quirky name (no one has said they hate it, so yay!).
We don't officially start reading and discussing the books till next year (which is just around the corner), but so far, it has been fun. First, there were nominations, and then campaigns, and then votes. Just this Sunday, the polls closed and we have our reading list for 2013. Drum roll please....
January - The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin
February - I've Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
March - The Mrs. Club by Ekene Onu
April - Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beechar Stowe
May - Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
June - To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
July - Half of A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
August - Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
September - On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe
October - Stardust by Neil Gaiman or The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (we're still voting, but Stardust is in the lead. yay!)
November - Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
December - The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
I'M SO EXCITED!!!
PS. I nominated Fine Boys by Eghosa Imasuen but it didn't make the cut *sniff sniff*, but I'm going to mention it anyway because the author was nice enough to respond to my inquiry on twitter about an image of his book cover for my campaign.
Will you be taking a reading challenge next year? What books are you just dying to read?
PPS. Sigh. Internet is acting up (I hope that means it will rain tonight), and so that means alas, I cannot upload images of the book covers tonight, but mark my words, I will eventually.
(Cue evil laugh)
(Felt like the thing to do)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)