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African Violet and Other Stories: The Caine Prize for African Writing 2012
The Caine Prize for African Writing is Africa’s leading literary prize. For over ten years it has supported and promoted contemporary African writing. Keeping true to its motto “Africa will always bring something new,” the prize has helped launch the literary careers of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Segun Afolabi, Leila Aboulela, Brian Chikwava, EC Osondu Henrietta Rose-Innes, Binyavanga Wainaina, and many others.
The 2012 collection includes the five shortlisted stories and the stories written at the Caine Prize Writers’ Workshop.
These fifteen stories show yet again the richness and range of current writing on the continent. They underline the primacy of the short story, with its oral antecedents, at the very heart of African literature.
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It Happened in Ghana: A Historical Romance 1824-1971
It Happened in Ghana carries a positive message. Conceived as a literary work, it demonstrates that racial prejudice based on skin colour is not a pervasive and unalterable human condition.
The principal characters who are both Black and White are embroiled in various encounters, notably wars, slave trade, colonialism and post colonial reconstruction. Regardless of their skin colour and cultural differences, they make friends or fall in love secretly during these encounters. When they are forced to part company by the cessation of hostilities or whatever brought them together, they serve in various capacities in new locations outside their original places of domicile. They are accepted or integrated into existing social structures because of the warmth oftheir personalities and the manner in which they are able to adjust themselves to the pressures and challenges of new environments.
Changes in the circumstances of the principal characters or their descendants enable them not only to restore broken relationships but also to identify themselves with the cause of freedom and justice or to reconnect in various ways with the development aspirations of Ghana where it all started.
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They Came From Ghana: The Two Worlds of Kwame and Kwabena Boaten
In this historical novel of 19th century Gold Coast, two young Ashanti boys are introduced to the unfamiliar but fascinating world of the white man. Kwame and Kwabena Boaten are eager to learn the ways of their mentors, Tedlie and Bowdich, to become doctor and administrator respectively so they can come back and help their own people. Despite the curtailment of their government sponsorship in London, they get benefactors to help them continue their education. They however have to contend with racism and bullying from Hardwick as well as inordinate hatred from Dupuis, Under-Secretary and later His majesty’s Envoy to the Guinea Coast (whose machinations dog them all their lives). How do they survive? Kwabena reminds Kwame, ‘If they attack us – we can bear rough handling. [But] they cannot break our spirit; we are Ashanti remember; and afterwards we shall carefully plan our revenge.’ Do they succeed in the face of all the odds?
Noel Smith effortlessly weaves a brilliant tale of sheer determination, ambition, intrigue, love and altruism, through the treacherous terrain of the slave trade, missionary activities and disease ridden expeditions, and historical insight.
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Disguise: Masking What’s Beneath
A hit man’s identity shrouded in secrecy. There are a number of killings in town; One man wants it all for himself, so he tried betraying his best friends he set-up a company with, in order to claim it.
Mr. Kuipers’ nephew is murdered and the police believe it’s strongly linked to him, because he’s the powerful median titan in the country.
But with the help of the police and Ken Kraken, they try to find out who badly wants their demise and later discover the shock of their lives.
A thrilling novel to spark up your thoughts, a book intrigued and spun with unimaginable suspense that all readers are swept breathless from the beginning of the story to the end. Pure reading entertainment as good you’ll ever find.
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Adjovi
Age: 12 years and above
Despite being a Form One student poor Adjovi leads her village school to win the coveted first prize in both the Inter-School Debate Competition and in the Inter-District Drama & Culture Competition. But a night before the final competition in Accra which will give her the Visa to visit the White House in America, Adjovi is arrested and taken to a tro-kosi shrine to atone for the supposed crimes of her late father for the next twenty four years. Will she be able to escape from the shrine or from the hands of its uncompromising priests before her mandatory period of servitude to pursue her education and even to the highest level?
‘Written in very simple language, the book is interesting to read. It would serve as a guide to young adolescents and motivates them to air their views frankly without fear, instead of gleefully accepting conditions that are unfavourable for them… the story gives hope and enlightenment.’
Rev. Prof. Philip Arthur Gborsong
Head, Communication Studies, University of Cape Coast, Ghana
₵32.00Adjovi
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Travellers
Shortlisted for the 2020 James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Modern Europe is a melting pot of migrating souls: among them a Nigerian American couple on a prestigious arts fellowship, a transgender film student seeking the freedom of authenticity, a Libyan doctor who lost his wife and child in the waters of the Mediterranean, and a Somalian shopkeeper trying to save his young daughter from forced marriage. And, though the divide between the self-chosen exiles and those who are forced to leave home may feel solid, in reality such boundaries are endlessly shifting and frighteningly soluble.
Moving from a Berlin nightclub to a Sicilian refugee camp to the London apartment of a Malawian poet, Helon Habila evokes a rich mosaic of migrant experiences. And through his characters’ interconnecting fates, he traces the extraordinary pilgrimages we all might make in pursuit of home.
₵135.00Travellers
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Taduno’s Song
The day a stained brown envelope arrives from Taduno’s homeland, he knows that the time has come to return from exile.
Arriving full of trepidation, the musician discovers that his community no longer recognises him, believing that Taduno is dead. His girlfriend Lela has disappeared, taken away by government agents. As he wanders through his house in search of clues, he realises that any traces of his old life have been erased. All that was left of his life and himself are memories. But Taduno finds a new purpose: to unravel the mystery of his lost life and to find his lost love. Through this search, he comes to face a difficult decision: to sing for love or to sing for his people.
Taduno’s Song is a moving tale of sacrifice, love and courage.
₵125.00Taduno’s Song
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Mafoya and the Finish Line
Age Range: 8+ years
Mafoya is an accomplished sprinter but she is tired of being second-best. She hatches a wicked plan and succeeds in beating Amina in the 100-metre dash. Elated by her victory, Mafoya decides to employ the same trick in the athletics championships but things take an unexpected turn.
In the middle of the race, a strange whirlwind sweeps Mafoya away to Musanga kingdom- the land of talking animals and birds. Mafoya face both hostility and friendship as she travels an impossible journey back to the world she knows.
₵50.00Mafoya and the Finish Line
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Ashawo Diaries: Tales of Adwoa Attaa
A most intriguing intercourse of tragedy and sex
The titillating intrigues of a good bad girl…delightful reading: sometimes light, sometimes dark; always with ponderous insights! – Koku Dotse
Ashawo Diaries makes for engaging reading, and beyond connecting with earlier literary forebears, it is important to think about how such a novel enters the Ghanaian social landscape where sex is traditionally a public taboo. Ashawo Diaries is a text that challenges sanitized perspectives of Ghana. – Kwabena Opoku-Agyemang, Lecturer, Department of English, University of Ghana, Legon
[The author] is zealous towards unearthing the ills of society. I describe her as the “perfect role model of today’s world”. I am not surprised she took this bold step to write this story. Though bold for our traditional society, l am of the view that she held the bull by the horn. The story…will surely leave readers scratching their heads with excitement. – Dr (Mrs.) Nana Ama Pokuaa Arthur, Lecturer, KNUST
A thrilling page-turner. Amoafowaa is fluid in narration, and succinct in description. – Rebecca Obuobisa-Darko, Personnel Officer, Ga East Municipal Education Directorate
Cecila’s Ashawo Diaries is storytelling meddled in art, obviously, science and a game of the protagonist. Daring diary entries with erotic sprinkles, gripping and sustaining, which depicts the struggles of a native daughter in contrast to Richard Wright’s native son, the zigzag turns of life and the map of love, friendship, pleasure, identity, re-identity as compasses at each turn. Poetically written and with a feminist undertone. – Grace Ihejiamaizu, Lecturer, University of Calabar, Founder of IKapture and Opportunity Desk, Nigeria
Ashawo Diaries raises queries on why young girls should experience sexual suppression in a cultural context like Ghana where children are valued, moral standards are held high and sexual discussions silenced. – Dr. Georgina Yaa Oduro, Director, Centre for Gender Research, Advocacy and Documentation (CEGRAD), University of Cape Coast
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Santrofi on National Service
Santrofi on National Service is the story of a young Sixth Form leaver who was posted to the Upper West Region for his National Service. Born and bred in Accra, he had never left the capital, and to be sent 960 kilometers away was a big dilemma for him. His father, who had refused to allow him to take up a career as a professional footballer, asked him to honour the posting as every citizen of the land should. He took it on the chin and went, and was assigned to teach Mathematics and Science at Jawia JSS, a small village some 19 kilometres from Tumu.
Thrust into a completely new world, he accepted the challenge of serving the people not only in the classroom but also with his many other talents. And as he shone in the village, the people loved him and he in turn loved them. And a new life and future undreamed of just opened before him.
₵50.00Santrofi on National Service
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Same Elephants
Marjy Marj’s anticipated follow-up to The Shimmigrant is an enlightening, introspective, heartwarming novel about four friends from diverse backgrounds. Sasha Badu is an immigrant in search of a better life. After meeting Rakiya Muhammad, Jane Taylor and Aviva Schwartz at a political event, the four become fast friends. When Sasha and Rakiya are mistaken for trespassers, the friends embark on a quest to educate their community about the dangers of stereotyping.
Same Elephants explores everyday relationships, the presumptuous nature of society and the ability to rise above prejudice.
₵70.00₵85.00Same Elephants
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Between the Generations: An Anthology for Ama Ata Aidoo at 80
Ama Ata Aidoo, multiple award-winning Ghanaian novelist, poet, playwright and author of the critically acclaimed play, Dilemma of a Ghost, turned 80 in March, 2020. And as part of efforts to celebrate her – the first female African playwright – Between Generations: An Anthology for Ama Ata Aidoo at 80 was released.
Described by Editor Ivor Agyeman-Duah, as ‘international affairs through fiction’, the 230-page collection tackles wealth and inequality, immigration, sisterhood, love lost and regained and other contemporary issues in Africa and the world.
Opening with Aleppo by Ama Ata Aidoo, the anthology includes stories by eleven other contemporary African writers: Nigerian novelists, Sefi Atta, Ogochukwu Promise; South African novelist, Njabulo S. Ndebele; Senegalese novelist Boubacar Boris Diop, Ghanaian novelists, Ayesha Haruna Attah, Bisi Adjapon, writers Martin Egblewogbe, and Gheysika Adombire Agambila; Rwandan writer, Louise Umutoni and Cameroonian writer Ray Ndebi.₵115.00 -
Madam High Heel
Age Range: 9+ years
Every knew the mischief and cantankerous behavior of Agyekum at Sir Good Leaf Boys Academy, a school that prides itself for discipline and academic brilliance.
However, when his deviant behavior becomes anti-social to the point where he causes bodily, harm to the much-liked Ms. Philips, things had to change.
In comes the new substitute teacher, Ms. Helen Eel and, for once, Agyekum pranks cannot trip her
One night, the legend of madam high heels hits Sir Goodleaf. The ‘click clacks’ footfalls of the one high heeled, red-gowned ghost appear to scare everyone but Agyekum.
Will the much-dreaded Madam High Heels be able to reform the stiff-necked Agyekum, or would he meet a grimmer end?
₵45.00Madam High Heel
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Sintim
Age Range: 9+ years
Thirst for freedom from oppression motivates four young friends to confront an old tyrant and with the assistance of Nana Domfeh, a mysterious sorcerer figure. The new order finds Sintim the assumed leader of the quartet ascending the throne .However, he immediately loses the throne in a bloody battle and is forced into exile. Will this principled and selfless character regain the throne that he had been ordained by the oracle to occupy?
₵65.00Sintim
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The Waiting
A largely allegorical exploration of the loneliness of an existence based on an alien world-view, Martin Egblewogbe’s The Waiting is a collection rooted in metropolitan Ghana, but its primary territory is the human mind. Juxtaposing his training as a physicist against his curiosity about local myth, he creates a universe that’s both entertaining and erudite. In A Photograph of K & S, Smiling, a completely self-obsessed man, returned home after his father’s death, attempts to explain away his unremarkable life based on one perceived slight from his youth; in The Gonjon Pin (title story for the 2014 Caine Prize anthology) a genius working on a program to predict lottery numbers is stumped by the appearance of an intruder’s disembodied genitals on the wall of his computer engine room; The Making, Rain and Back to the Halls explore futility in different ways, while Atta explores life after death – a theme that reoccurs in a much bleaker guise in The Crwoling Caterpillar. Often Kafkaesque in its isolation of characters and a pervading sense of powerlessness, The Waiting nevertheless maintains a constant hum of humour, nowhere more so than in The Going Down of Pastor Mintumi – in which a pastor who has discovered the pleasures of the flesh late in life overindulges with hilarious consequences. The title story, The Waiting, is judgement day in a twisted mind, filled with the kinds of questions that haunt a life on earth, which, ultimately, is the quest of all art.
₵125.00The Waiting
₵125.00