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The African Predicament: Collected Essays
This collection of Kofi Awoonor’s writings comprises essays written over a period of three decades, and includes several previously unpublished pieces. According to the author himself: ‘[they] reflect a life-time of engagement in literature and politics, my two passions…’
Kofi Awoonor addresses a diverse range of subjects from an African perspective: the slave trade, post-independence history, globalisation, and the fate of the African continent given the twin scourges of poverty and HIV/AIDS. Literary criticism considers the legacy of W.E.B DuBois, and in a contemporary context, Kofi Anyidoho’s poetry. Further essays are reflections composed during the author’s long sojourns in the US: on Negro, Afro-American, black, African-American and African and identities. Further essays cover historical and political topics, such as the overthrow of Nkrumah, and the UN in relation to Africa in the post-Cold War period.
₵70.00 -
Ahafo & Bono Regions In Historical Perspective
In the centre of Ghana once straddled the Brong-Ahafo Region. It was noted for its beautiful geographical features as well as its rich natural and human resources. The maxim, unity in diversity, a cherished Ghanaian quintessential trait, was exemplified in the region by the peaceful and harmonious coexistence of multiple ethnic groups. On the eve of its Diamond Jubilee, the Region was split into three: Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Regions to promote the speedy development of the area.
This book gives a historical overview of the erstwhile region with respect to culture, its achievements and legacy. It also showcases the endowments of the new regions carved out of it. The contents are rich in information, data and photographs of historic people and events which historians, politicians, scholars, tourists, and people interested in issues concerning indigenous African societies and the general reader, will find to be invaluable.
“This book provides a succinct glimpse into the erstwhile Brong-Ahafo Region in terms of history, achievements and legacy and also showcases the resources of the three new regions created out of Brong-Ahafo. Through the pages of this book, we can always remember our past, our common history and ancestry, and thereby remain united although physically we will be in separate regions.” – From the Foreword
₵70.00 -
The Children of House No. D13 South Suntresu Kumasi: An Ahwoi & Adu-Gyamfi Siblings’ Collective Biography
*Available from 15 June 2022
To describe The Children of House No. D13, South Suntresu, Kumasi, as an intriguing project is an understatement. A collective biography of eight siblings was always going to be a daunting challenge, even if each person told their own story and got it together in one volume. To do it in a coordinated combination of first and third person “voices” would appear to be a bit implausible. To actually achieve the purpose and turn it from a project into an enthralling reading experience deserves all the plaudits this book is likely to gather.
This book is a collection of life stories of the eight children of Madam Maye Charlotte Hudson, also known as Esi Tutuwa but known to some people as Esi Nkwagye and to the people of South Suntresu, Kumasi as Mrs. Ahwoi. The ‘Ahwois” principally is the collective name of three brothers – Ato, Kwesi and Kwamena – who have played prominent roles in Ghana’s recent history, but the siblings also include five girls, Ama, Adoma, Efua, Naana and Sister Aggie, who also played their part in this thrilling story in their own unique ways.
For such a collective recall of personal histories to work, a principal requirement is a willingness of all the parties involved to treat the project seriously; of equal importance is the need to treat everyone’s personal history as important, which is what this book has succeeded in doing. It would be right to describe it as an exercise in literary democracy!
It is not every book project that produces a good book, but this book has done so because at the heart of the project is a good story. And at the heart of that good story is human progress against the odds capsuled in the life of these eight individuals.
These are the dramatis personae in order of appearance – from the womb – Ato Ahwoi, Kwesi Ahwoi, Mrs. Ama Twum, Kwamena Ahwoi, Mrs. Ama Adoma Bartels-Kodwo, Mrs. Efua Bram-Larbi, Theodora Naana Adu Gyamfi and Mrs. Agnes Appiagyei-Dankah. Theodora Naana Adu-Gyamfi passed away at the age of 28 and so her role ends early except in passing references. However, it is worth recalling that before she died, and in an act that exemplifies the major theme of this book, Naana secretely transferred all the money in her own bank account into that of her six year old niece, Abena Tutuwa Ahwoi, the daughter of her brother, Kwamena.
The structure of the narrative, which makes it possible to flow, is simply to follow the fortunes of these siblings sequentially in turn through the main phases of their development. The person whose presence permeates the story is the matriarch – Mrs. Ahwoi, nee Maye Charlotte Hudson.
The book achieves the purpose of showing the “remarkable togetherness and the mutual support system that enabled the children of House No. D13, South Suntresu, Kumasi, to overcome the many hurdles along their individual paths in life as being due to their mother, Madam Maye Charlotte Hudson (Mrs. Ahwoi). Indeed, the matriarch herself is effectively the ninth subject of the biography of the eight children” as Honourable Kwame Preprah states in the Foreword.
Nana Kwasi Gyan Apenteng
Consultant in Communication, Media and Culture
Former Chairman, National Media Commission (NMC)
Former President, Ghana Association of Writers (GAW)
₵250.00 -
Moments & Memories: My Journey of Grace – An Autobiography
Sharing our experiences in various ways helps us accept the lessons God has for us. These experiences go a long way to help those who read or hear them. I consider myself a beautiful piece of broken pottery put back together by God Almighty for a purpose.
As an Adult, I realised that the challenges I had experienced as a teenager would prove very useful as I worked with young people. When I tell young people that there is nothing they are doing that I have not done before, they look at me with doubt, as if to say, “No, You are just saying that to make us feel better”.
A successful life has within it good things as well as challenges, and the total outcome is based on how we allow the Lord to lead us. Many times we see the hand of God long after the outcome.
This has been my life. This is my story. I hope you enjoy reading and learning from my Moments and Memories.
₵75.00 -
History of the Gold Coast and Asante
First published in 1889, this history became an out-of-print classic, and is now brought back into print. The work has been used as an authority in the Law Courts of Ghana, where customs and their usages are relevant to interpretation of the law. The author (1834-1917) stated his purpose as the need for such a history by a Ghanaian, conscious of the customs and tradition of the people. He himself, a distinguished medical practitioner, was a key actor in some of the pre-colonial wars.
Twenty-nine chapters are arranged chronologically. Chapter 1 covers a short description of the Gold Coast; the Kingdom of Guinea; expeditions sent by Pharaoh Necho and the Carthiginians; F. Romber’s reference to the Kingdom of Benin; traditional accounts of emigration to the coast; tribes assumed to have been the aboriginal races on the coast, and their conquest. The period covers BC600-750 and AD1400-1700.
Chapter 29 covers 1851-1856: administration of justice according to English law & its effects; imposition & collection methods of a poll tax, and conspiracy to refuse payment; bombardment of Christiansborg, Labadi and Teshi; peace and the rebuilding of Christiansborg.
₵250.00₵300.00History of the Gold Coast and Asante
₵250.00₵300.00 -
History of the Navy: A Case for a Credible Naval Force as an Instrument for National Development (Hardcover)
The History of the Navy: A Case for a Credible Naval force as an instrument for National development
₵200.00 -
The Black Pimpernel: Nelson Mandela on the Run
In March 1961, after giving a brief speech at a conference, Nelson Mandela vanished.
For the next eighteen months he was an outlaw, living under assumed identities and in various disguises (sometimes as a chauffeur, sometimes a gardener) as the South African police and secret services, helped by MI5 and the CIA, sought him in vain. His mission? To undergo military training and set up armed resistance to apartheid.
₵140.00 -
Art and the Power of Goodness: A Collection of John Agyekum Kufuor (Hardcover)
**Available from 16 June 2021
FOREWORD BY GORDON BROWN, Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
There is a strong correlation between art and power and in this book, Ivor Agyeman-Duah, a cultural and literary historian, looks at it from the art collection of the former President of Ghana – John Agyekum Kufuor.
From a matrilineal household in Kumasi that is connected to the visual and palace art in the ancient imperial Kingdom of Ashanti, Kufuor travelled the world from Oxford into the pantheon of great personages and power. Along the way, whether in villages in Ethiopia or among the Maasai in Kenya, across the Maghreb into Morocco, infatuation with the Persia classical period, Ottoman or Asia Minor’s remains of modern day Turkey, northern Lebanon and parts of Greater Asia, some of these acquisitions came by way of gifts and purchases.
They reflect family life and belief, ancient trade relations and routes as well as patterns of contemporary geo-politics. It could be through Benin bronze sculpture with facial stratifications or of metal smelted Malian Islamic crusaders on horseback or a herdsman from a Sahel water well.
These works, seventy of which form the basis of this book with few external ones, include resistance art in the fashion of the ‘empire fights back’ against British West African colonial conflict engagements and resultant Independence.
₵200.00 -
Red Oak Heroes Series: Abedi Ayew ‘Pele’
*Available from 15 August 2023
Age Range: 10 – 14 years
From playing football barefooted in his neighbourhood as a young boy, Abedi Ayew is now rated among the top footballers around the world. He started playing for the Ghana senior national team when he was only seventeen years old. His passion for the game did not die when two arch-rival clubs in Ghana, Accra Hearts of Oak and Kumasi Asante Kotoko, refused to sign him on. He went ahead to sign a contract with AS Dragon FC of Benin and subsequently moved to European and United Arab Emirates clubs where he influenced their style of play. As an attacking midfielder, his spectacular goals were what pushed his teams to win trophies at major tournaments. Abedi’s contribution to football at both club and national levels is what earned him nicknames like ‘Pele’ and African Maradona.
₵30.00 -
The Anglican Story in Ghana: From Mission Beginnings to Province of Ghana
The Anglican Church, by virtue of being the Christian communion most closely tied to the colonial history of the West Africa sub continent, could be said to be the oldest historic mission ecclesial body within the region. Emeritus Professor Canon John Samuel Pobee’s work The Anglican Story in Ghana is the only published full length monograph of Ghanaian Anglicanism since Church of England missionaries first set foot on the soils of the then Gold Coast in the middle of the 18th century. It is a historical account that features insights into the work and activities of the various dioceses of the Anglican Church including their contributions to education, social evangelism and education in particular. Each chapter is illustrated with pictures of key personnel dating back to the colonial era.
“The yester-years have lessons for us today and for our new life as a province. So this publication is timely, galvanizing us to take lessons to make a success of the new venture. The study challenges us to search for a creative renewal that is thoughtful and mindful of its pedigree and also endeavours to be the Una Sancta in Ghana, Africa.” – Most Rev. DR. Justice Ofei Akrofi, Archbishop of the Church of the Province of West Africa & Bishop of Accra
“It is a privilege to commend this study to all in the Anglican Church in Ghana and beyond, inviting you “to read, mark and inwardly digest” it and above all to take lessons from this story for the renewal of our Church and Province.” – Rt. Rev. Daniel Yinka Sarfo, Bishop of Kumasi Diocese & Presiding Bishop, Joint Anglican Diocesan Council
“The Anglican Story in Ghana is not merely the history of a church chronicling ecclesial achievements, no. It is a well written mission history of the Anglican Church that enables us to appreciate the acts of the Holy Spirit in helping the collaborative efforts of western missionaries and their local helpers to bring God’s word to God’s people.” – Very Rev. Prof. J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, Trinity Theological Seminary, Legon, Ghana
₵85.00 -
Rhodesia File
Kwame Nkrumah intended to write on the Zimbabwean struggle. This book contains key documents from the file on Rhodesia which he opened after U.D.I. in 1965. The letters and papers, many of which are published for the first time here, show the thinking of Nkrumah on the problem of minority regimes in Africa. How accurate it was, as subsequent events have proved. A connecting narrative and chronology from 1887 have been added by the publishers.
₵400.00Rhodesia File
₵400.00 -
History of Ashanti by Otumfuo, Nana Osei Agyeman Prempeh II (Hardcover)
History of Ashanti is unusual, perhaps unique, in that it provides a long historical account of the great West African forest kingdom of Asante by a ruler of that society. Thus, it is African history written by an African king and his assistants. This is, without a doubt, a very important document for historians of Africa. It has too a much wider resonance at the present time: here the Asante ‘voice’ is speaking directly to all those across the globe who claim ancestral links to the African continent, and who are still engaged in the struggle to define, to strengthen and to assert their identities in a world that long discounted the value, or even the existence, of their historical experience.
₵712.00 -
The Lady in Boots: Memoirs of Ghana’s First Female Major General
Available from 11th September, 2023
The book is Major General Constance Edjeani-Afenu’s remarkable memoir. It chronicles her 43-year extraordinary journey in the Ghana Armed Forces.
She was the first female Commanding Officer, and the first female Major General. Her story is a testimony to dedication, leadership, and resilience.₵100.00 -
The Military, My Life: 43 Years – 5 Months – 25 Days: Autobiography
The Military, My Life: 43 Years – 5 Months – 25 Days: Autobiography is General Frimpong’s fifth book.
Starting from his primary school days across Ghana, his secondary education and enlistment into the Ghana Armed Forces in 1970, he discusses his long career in the military, community service, diplomatic life, incursions into academia, retirement in 2014 after over forty-three years’ service, and life after retirement.
He also discusses his sojourns in Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Canada and the USA.
Maj Don-Chebe states in the Foreword:
“For the officers who have schooled peacefully and smoothly in the Ghana Armed Forces, spare a thought for officers like Brig Gen Dan Frimpong, who blazed the trail and suffered all kinds of indignities to his person and unholy twists in his career path. His numerous runs-in with the Military High Command is a subject that should inform commanders at various levels that, a knowledge-based and future-focused Armed Forces needs a certain kind of officer hungry for knowledge and determined to compete with the best inside and outside.
“The autobiography of Brig Gen Dan Frimpong should give hope and confidence to young persons, inside and outside the Military to continue to pursue their dreams and aspirations. Any setback can only be temporary; persistence, perseverance, determination and grit should drive you forward.”
₵200.00 -
Seven Stories and More: Family, Ethnicity and Politics in the Life of an African Lawyer – A Memoir
Seven Stories is a memoir by Azanne Kofi Akainyah broken into interwoven stories that constitute a life defined by a combination of grit, determination, hope and adversity all ground together into a most memorable tale. It is a book full of dramatic turns and twists. As with all good biographies, Seven Stories enlightens the reader about the context and milieu of the time and times in which the actions take place and their ramifications. Some of the passages in the book have a dramatic and cinematic quality. The reader is transported into the story. Many of the characters mentioned are drawn with such skill that the reader is left with the feeling that he also knows them. This is writing of the highest quality and distinction.
Nana Kwasi Gyan-Appenteng
Former Chairman of National Media Commission, GhanaThe ability of the author to keep the reader immersed in the narration is impressive. Lawyers should find his insights relating to the interplay between law and politics especially beneficial.
Bobby Banson Esq., FCIArb. Lecturer,
Ghana School of LawA fascinating set of stories, providing unique insights into life during the transition from the Gold Coast, one of the British Empire’s West African gems, to the modern Republic of Ghana, and the extensive interactions with the UK and the rest of the world. They are based on a wealth of well referenced contemporaneous material. These memoirs chronicle the forces at play in the complex and multi-layered process of self-determination and emerging nationhood, which wrought a dreadful toll on the lives of individuals as cultures and ideologies, egos and aspirations collided. Refreshingly candid, humorous and witty in parts, Azanne Akainyah shares recollections of his life, warts and all, laced with provocative and challenging reflections on universal issues. A must read!
Christiana Hyde MA (Cantab), Retired Employment Judge, England and Wales
A must-read book for those interested in “the African story”. It brings to life important aspects of this story from a unique and personal angle that grips the reader from beginning to end. It covers significant events in Ghana before and after the overthrow of Nkrumah and also the unfortunate happenings in Liberia, Sierra Leone and the Gambia. It portrays how familial, ethnic and parochial interests have played major roles in these events. Akainyah sets the pace in revealing another side of the African story.
Ivan Addae-Mensah PhD (Cantab.) FGA
(Emeritus Professor of Chemistry, Former Vice Chancellor
of the University of Ghana and former General Secretary of the
Peoples National Party under President Dr Hilla Limann)₵200.00