-
African Studies (27)
-
Postcolonial Theory (3)
-
Urban Studies: Theory and Philosophy (7)
-
Oxford Street, Accra: City Life and the Itineraries of Transnationalism
In Oxford Street, Accra, Ato Quayson analyzes the dynamics of Ghana’s capital city through a focus on Oxford Street, part of Accra’s most vibrant and globalized commercial district. He traces the city’s evolution from its settlement in the mid-seventeenth century to the present day. He combines his impressions of the sights, sounds, interactions, and distribution of space with broader dynamics, including the histories of colonial and postcolonial town planning and the marks of transnationalism evident in Accra’s salsa scene, gym culture, and commercial billboards.
Quayson finds that the various planning systems that have shaped the city—and had their stratifying effects intensified by the IMF-mandated structural adjustment programs of the late 1980s—prepared the way for the early-1990s transformation of a largely residential neighborhood into a kinetic shopping district. With an intense commercialism overlying, or coexisting with, stark economic inequalities, Oxford Street is a microcosm of historical and urban processes that have made Accra the variegated and contradictory metropolis that it is today.
“Oxford Street, Accra offers a fresh portrait of a rising African metropolis by one of the most original and skilled critics of the African condition. Deeply researched and packed with detail and bold in scope and analysis, Oxford Street, Accra is a unique addition to the growing body of work on contemporary African Urbanism. This extraordinary book shows the extent to which the future of urban theory might well lie in the global South.” – Achille Mbembe, author of Critique de la raison négre.
KEY SELLING POINTS:
- Oxford Street, Accra is a must-buy as an invaluable companion and compass for both newcomers and returning visitors to Accra.
- Oxford Street, Accra was chosen as one of the ‘UK Guardian’s 10 Best City Books of the World in 2014.’
- Oxford Street, Accra was also the Co-Winner of ‘The Urban History Association’s Top Award in the International Category For Books Published About World Cities in 2013 – 2014.’
- Oxford Street, Accra contains an encyclopedic knowledge of the City of Accra, tracing the city’s evolution from its settlement in the mid-seventeenth century to the present day.
- The book offers a microcosm of historical and urban knowledge of the making of the city that have transformed Accra into the sophisticated metropolis that is it today.
₵160.00 -
The Ewe People: A Study of the Ewe People in German Togo
The Ewe of Ghana, Togo and Benin have been one of the most documented ethnic groups in West Africa, given their encounters with the German, French and British colonial administrations. In 1906, Jakob Spieth, a German Bremen Missionary, published Die Ewe-Stamme. Die Ewe-Stamme is one of the most comprehensive treatises on the history, religion, economic life, traditional social structure, and, indeed, the entire spectrum of everyday life of the Ewe. Published over 100 years ago the book had limited circulation and became increasingly rare to the extent that it almost became a deified piece of work and source of classified knowledge. Additionally, Die Ewe-Stamme was published in German and old non-standard and colloquial Ewe languages. It is hoped this translation of Die Ewe-Stamme into English and contemporary Ewe might create a revival of interest amongst researchers, enhance the understanding for the traditional Ewe culture and become reading material in schools and universities.
₵490.00₵500.00The Ewe People: A Study of the Ewe People in German Togo
₵490.00₵500.00 -
Sebiticals Chapter X
For eons, the character of the neglected wise observer has captured imaginations. Be they the community trickster, clown, gossip or drunkard, they have always been a thorn in the flesh of social miscreants. There is no one name for them, as they tend to be many things to many folks. Every society has their version. Audiences love them, hate them and love them again. These fellows have no allies. Their allegiance is to all. Their knife cuts both ways, as does their tongue. Oh, yeah. Ever the custodians of spicy, social secrets, they issue forth the most acidic insults. But, abuse them? Naaah, these characters are insult-proof!
In this salacious new collection, Nana Awere Damoah has consummated the essences of this conceptual character. More than that, the author has effected their relevance in the national body politic. In Sebiticals Chapter X, Wofa Kapokyikyi the social commentator entertains, informs and pricks the conscience – as does his anecdotal nephew.
Episode after episode, the reader cannot help but conclude that if there is a time the nation needs a voice of conscience, that time is not tomorrow. Bottomline? A Kapokyikyi is an institution that keeps the morals of society in check.
₵65.00Sebiticals Chapter X
₵65.00 -
The Pen at Risk: Spilling My Little Beans
“The Pen at Risk is more than a memoir. It is a piece of authentic, ungarnished history by a writer and public intellectual who is too modest to accept the title of a historian, but who witnessed and chronicled the most intriguing epochs of Ghana’s national life. Laced with the innate Fante humour, this book is a piece of deep but entertaining non-fiction that is told with the demystified simplicity of one of Ghana’s greatest academics and writers. Kwesi Yankah is a gift to humanity, and this memoir is a greater gift to an unfortunate generation like mine that did not live in the era of the incisive writings of the great Kwatriot.” – Manasseh Azure Awuni, Editor-in-Chief, The Fourth Estate
“When a citizen who has spent his whole life scrutinising society, turns the spotlight on himself, the risks include this epic engagement that spares no one, him included. In this bare-it-all memoir, the Yankah enigma is fully bared, warts and all. As it turns out, Yankah has had more than his fair share of privileged roles, ultimately impacting the national narrative. The richness of ethnography here, is as riveting as his urban-savvy accounts of the intrigues of university and national politics. While we watch him weave his wizardry of words, we are also awed by the totality of his humanity. The Pen at Risk is a hilarious package of eruditions. It is about the exalted gossips of our Motherland. The narratives are so sweet they hurt. If this isn’t the best book you have read in years, call me illiterate.” – Kofi Akpabli, Scholar, Author, Journalist
“In this memoir, Kwesi Yankah delivers a sparkling tableau of key aspects of his life, tabling his charmed childhood and amazing trajectory as an academic. He then rolls out his long stint as an audacious social commentator and columnist for leading papers (which may have put his pen at risk). With a penmanship characterized by a keen eye for detail, this autobiography is an entertaining and captivating book that should be read by all interested in media and social history as well as autobiography as a literary genre.” – Professor Mansah Prah, University of Cape Coast
“Intriguing, revealing, and brilliant. The Pen at Risk is unvarnished introspection beautifully strung together with anecdotes in a way that is vibrant and colorful. Kwesi Yankah’s work is a refreshingly modest invitation to see life through a different lens, even for a fleeting moment.” – Dr Obeng Amoako Edmonds, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
₵250.00 -
Remnants of a Haunted Past: Forts and Castles of Ghana (Photo Book, Hardcover)
Yaw Pare is a celebrated Ghanaian photographer. This ground-breaking book richly illustrates the history and legacies of Ghana’s forts and castles through photography. In the same way that the forts and castles themselves bear witness to the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade and slavery, so too do these photographs provide compelling material and visual testimonies, offering possibilities for understanding that words do not.
In this book, the photographer’s camera captures a reality that many choose to remember but just as many choose to forget. Ultimately, Remnants of a Haunted Past: Forts and Castles of Ghana constitutes an attempt to document the past so that it is never forgotten in the present.
₵1,250.00 – ₵1,450.00Remnants of a Haunted Past: Forts and Castles of Ghana (Photo Book, Hardcover)
₵1,250.00 – ₵1,450.00 -
Kings, Priests, and Kinsmen
This collection of E. A. Ammah’s ethnographic writing includes essays, some poetry, and other documents. Created over four decades, these pieces cover a wide range of topics including Ga culture in comparative perspective, Ga social organization, Ga political structure and history, Ga life transition ceremonies, and Ga religion. The collection provides a unique cultural insider’s twentieth century perspective on Ga society and history.
₵95.00Kings, Priests, and Kinsmen
₵95.00 -
Sebitically Speaking
Sebitically Speaking is an uplifting elixir that courses through the hearts and minds of readers and awakens their consciousness regarding how to improve themselves and their country. In confronting the complicated issues that perpetually frustrate Ghanaians, Damoah’s style was not to depress or provoke insanity, but to deftly inspire readers with a view to affecting positive change.
For someone who has written four great books, Sebitically Speaking is an incontrovertible confirmation of Damoah’s literary genius. His uncanny ability to transform debilitating and chaotic socio-political topics into an exhilarating literary rollercoaster, using a perfect blend of wit and humour, and inducing a mixture of laughter and tears from readers, is especially evident in this book.
Sebitically Speaking is an irresistible literary tiger nut that every lover of Ghana must chew.
₵70.00Sebitically Speaking
₵70.00 -
The Imported Ghanaian
With her rose tinted glasses firmly in place, the Imported Ghanaian deluded herself, believing that she could simply waltz into Kotoka International Airport with a grin like the winning ticket in the national lottery, and the band would strike up whilst the jubilant nation screamed, “Akwaaba-o, akwaaba, our sister has returned back to us.” She returned home thinking she was as Ghanaian as any other and that she would fit in snugly with the skills of a chameleon. The reality proved otherwise as she plunged headfirst into the endurance test of living in Ghana, where nothing is ever what it seems. Layer by layer, as if peeling an onion, each ‘coming back home’ cultural reality weaves her through a world where you can never be too sure, where an invitation is not exactly an invitation, where you have to die to find out how popular you are, and where being a Ghanaian and being Ghanaian are often two opposing concepts.
₵120.00The Imported Ghanaian
₵120.00 -
Aluta Insomnia
This book of reflections is about a Ghana boy who travels within his country and around the world, sharing the anecdotes graciously. Whether it is a visit to see the US President at the White House or a trip to an Ada village called Totimehkope, each story is down a memory lane that is paved with nuggets of wisdom. The work showcases the beauty of being alive to the moral and developmental happenings around us. The author’s capacity to smell and milk story ideas from the most mundane scenario is remarkable.
A neurosurgeon by profession, his words cut and heal clinically in equal measure. Page after page, he operates as in the theatre − precise, penetrating, productive. If you love the brilliance of Ernest Hemingway and Ayi Kwei Armah, you will never stop reading Teddy Totimeh.
Sometimes, you do not know what you did right to be rewarded with a priceless gem. Aluta Insomnia is one such gift!
₵90.00Aluta Insomnia
₵90.00 -
Proceedings of the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences (Volume XIII, 1975)
Proceedings, 1975.
Contents
Address by the Academy President at the 15th Anniversary Dinner – Professor E.A. Boateng
Tradition and Progress – Professor E.A. Boateng
Ghanaian Society in Change and Stability – Professor K.A. Dickson
The Study of French Literature: 17th Century French Drama and Corneille – Professor R.F. Amonoo
Chieftaincy in Ghana Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – Nene Azu Mate-Kole
Chieftaincy in Ghana Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – Nana Agyeman Badu I
Chieftaincy in Ghana Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – Togbe Adza Tekpor VI
Chieftaincy in Northern Ghana – Mr. J.A. Braimah
Chieftaincy in Ghana Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – Nii Anyetei Kwakwranya II
Traditional Marriage – Mrs. Emily Hesse
The Extended Family and Problems of Child Care in Modern Ghanaian Society – Dr. D.K. Fiawoo
The Family, the Individual and Inheritance – Professor W.C. Ekow Daniels
₵20.00 -
Nsempiisms
Listed as one of the top ten exceptional non-fiction writers from Ghana by Gird Center, Nana Awere Damoah brings to his readers another must-read, this time a fast-paced, short, straight-to-the-point, shot-from-the-hip, collection. The author proves why he is seen as one of the rising voices of his homeland, using words to speak truth to power.
“Nana Awere Damoah is a multi-talented writer [who] believes in creating his own style anytime he writes. In his non-fiction writing, Nana introduces a diversity of style using poetry, storytelling and satire.” Gird Center
“I envy the mind of Nana Awere Damoah. Nsempiisms is deep, insightful and piercing, yet Damoah’s writing flows with breezy simplicity.” Kwaku Sintim-Misa (KSM)
₵45.00Nsempiisms
₵45.00 -
Not My Time to Die
“Reading Yolande Mukagasana’s book in French at the age of 15 changed my life.”- Gaël Faye
Originally published as La mort ne veut pas de moi in 1997, this book was the first survivor testimony to be published about the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
In 1994 Yolande was an unconventional nurse and mother of three who enjoyed wearing jeans and designer glasses. She ran her own clinic in Nyamirambo and was planning a party for her wedding anniversary. But when genocide started everything changed. Targeted because she was a successful Tutsi woman, she was separated from her family and had to flee for her life.
Mukagasana’s gripping memoir describes the betrayal of friends and help that came from surprising places. Quick-witted and courageous, Yolande never lost hope she would find her children alive.
Translated from the French by Zoe Norridge.
₵100.00Not My Time to Die
₵100.00 -
Beyond the Political Spider: Critical Issues in African Humanities (African Humanities Series)
Beyond the Political Spider: Critical Issues in African Humanities by Kwesi Yankah is the first title in the newly established African Humanities Association (AHA) publication series.
By integrating his own biography into a critique of the global politics of knowledge production, Yankah, through a collection of essays, interrogates critical issues confronting the Humanities that spawn intellectual hegemonies and muffle African voices. Using the example of Ghana, he brings under scrutiny, amongst others, endemic issues of academic freedom, gender inequities, the unequal global academic order, and linguistic imperialism in language policies in governance.
In the face of these challenges, the author deftly navigates the complex terrain of indigenous knowledge and language in the context of democratic politics, demonstrating that agency can be liberatory when emphasising indigenous knowledge, especially expressed through the idiom of local languages and symbols, including Ananse, the protean spider, folk hero in Ghana and most parts of the pan-African world.
“Fascinating snapshots from an engaged scholarly life in Africa, valuable as an archival resource for the understanding of this period of higher education in Africa.” – John Higgins, Arderne Chair in Literature, Department of English Literary Studies, University of Cape Town
“This book is unique and gives a powerful rendition of the state of the Humanities in Africa (with Ghana as a case in point). It grapples with some of the pertinent issues dogging the Humanities in Africa. It comments on the Humanities scholarship in Africa, and subtly throws a challenge for future scholarship. It draws on African traditions, communal heritage, and governance in discussing the role and place of the Humanities in Africa. It also brings into the analysis the ever-changing imperatives and modernity in re-configuring African Humanities.” – Mark Benge Okot, Head of Department, Literature, Makerere University, Uganda
“Beyond the Political Spider’ effectively draws, in a unique fashion, from literature, history, linguistics and other cognate disciplines in the African Humanities.” – Sati Umaru Fwatshak, Department of History, University of Jos, Nigeria
₵340.00 -
The Valley of Memories (Hardcover)
October 10th 1963, a Dutch teenage girl is sent away to Ghana by her resentful mother to marry a man she has met only once and who is more than twice her age. Arriving at the airport in Accra, a whole new world unfolds for this young girl. At first, she is shocked and disappointed by the things she sees in this new country she is to call her home. To her Ghana is hot, humid and dirty but then she meets the warm and welcoming people of Ghana and starts to open up to the country, culture and its people.
Her new husbands job takes her to some of the most remote areas in Ghana from Accra to the Northern, Upper East and Volta Regions where she repeatedly has to build a home with the meagre resources her husband and herself have available. Whilst building her homes and family, she encounters the most fascinating, emotional, funny, unbelievable and sometimes scary experiences.
This is a story about a young girl coming of age and finding love and happiness under the most unusual circumstances. The story will take the reader on a very vivid and colourful tour of life in post-colonial Ghana and gives the reader a history lesson about one of the most interesting periods Ghana has gone through after gaining independence from Britain and trying to build a strong and independent nation.
₵200.00 -
Baffour Osei Akoto: A Royal Patriot and the Making of Ghana (Hardcover)
Foreword by President John Agyekum Kufuor
This book is primarily composed of speeches presented at the 16th edition of the annual Re-Akoto Memorial Lectures held at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi. The Re Akoto Memorial Lectures, instituted by His Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, life patron of the Students’ Representative Council (SRC) of the Ghana School of Law, seeks, amongst other things, to promote research, study and educate the citizenry on the development of Ghana’s constitutional democracy and human rights. Over the years, it has been presented by a good number of eminent Ghanaians and through which they have illuminated various spheres of life, especially issues regarding law and fundamental human rights, which are the key components that form the genesis of the famous Re-Akoto Case.
The presenters included Kwame Pianim, one of Ghana’s eminent economists; Maxwell Opoku-Agyemang, then-acting Director of the Ghana School of Law; Chief Justice Kwasi Anim Yeboah and Attorney-General Godfred Dame. Prof Mike Aaron Oquaye, a veritable political scientist and accomplished politician, knitted the strains together to discuss how Baffour’s strides and successes reaffirmed the liberal democratic political philosophy of the New Patriotic Party (NPP). He indicated that human beings have a dignity that must be protected and that dictatorial tendencies must not be accepted. Finally, provided a historical trajectory of Ghana’s stint with an authoritarian regime focusing on the country’s post-independence one-party political system.
“Baffour excelled in this career as an Asante diplomat, a valuable repository of Asante and Ghanaian social, cultural and political history, and a defender of the power of traditional leadership in the face of the onslaught of modern post-colonial politics in Ghana.” – His Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene
₵350.00