African Writers – Equal Opportunity Reader

[Last While In Books] Nobels, BIPOC, and Reviews

A person, seen from the waist down, holding an open book and glasses, lap covered in a brown blanket with a few small pumpkins around them.

Hello, fellow readers. Pay no attention to the time between this post and the last. These aren’t the reviews you’re looking for. There is no hiatus in Ba Sing Se. There is, however, diverse and bookish news to share so without further ado… There are, as always, many more things happening in the world ofContinue reading “[Last While In Books] Nobels, BIPOC, and Reviews”

[REVIEW] A Fledgling Abiba, by Dilman Dila

The paperback cover of A Fledgling Abiba, which depicts a person surrounded by geometric patterns, is held up by a Black woman's hand in front of a handmade upcycled mural displayed in Roslindale Substation.

(Buy this book here.) Sometimes a writer has to work really hard to take the reader into another world, crafting and creating wonder out of both imagination and the collective fantastic. Other times all a writer has to do is write what is familiar to them for an unfamiliar audience. I think this novella actuallyContinue reading “[REVIEW] A Fledgling Abiba, by Dilman Dila”

[REVIEW] La Bastarda, By Trifonia Melibea Obono, translated by Lawrence Schimel

The simple, solid blue cover of La Bastarda is displayed on a tablet, held up against the twilight sky with the moon high and tiny above it.

(Buy this book here.) This is the first book by a woman from Equatorial Guinea ever translated into English. It follows Okomo, a orphaned teen living in her grandparents house in a traditional village. With her mother dead and her father absent, she only has her favorite uncle to turn to when she begins toContinue reading “[REVIEW] La Bastarda, By Trifonia Melibea Obono, translated by Lawrence Schimel”

[REVIEW] Shubeik Lubeik, by Deena Mohamed

The beautifully designed colorful cover of the graphic novel Shubeik Lubeik is held up by a Black woman's(my) hand on a white shelf in front of a white wall . A matching circular mirror frame and a delicate painted ceramic cup are in the background. The cover illustration depicts an Egyptian woman's hands reaching out in the darkness to grab an illuminated bottle containing a wish.

(Buy this brilliant book here.) “In Arabic folktales, Shubeik Lubeik is the first part of the rhyme a genie speaks once released from a lamp. It means “Your wish is my command.“ It’s been a very long time since I read something so captivating. This graphic novel, recently translated from Arabic into English, drew meContinue reading “[REVIEW] Shubeik Lubeik, by Deena Mohamed”

[Review] In Every Mirror She’s Black, by Lola Akimade Akerstrom

(Buy this book at Bookshop) It feels like it’s been 935 years since the last time I wrote a book review but I couldn’t let any more time go by without telling y’all about this one. Work, weddings and war. I lived abroad in 2 different countries over 15 years and I heard this constantly.Continue reading “[Review] In Every Mirror She’s Black, by Lola Akimade Akerstrom”

[REVIEW] Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun, by Sarah Ladipo Manyika

From left to right; A dish containing red rice and a lightly fried egg. A dusty rose tote bag with a checkerboard lining laying on its side, full of handbag junk. A black tablet is propped up in the open mouth of the bag, displaying the vivid yellow, pink and blue cover of Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun.

(Buy it on Bookshop) It’s rare that I can summarize a book with only one word, but for this one it’s easy–“delightful”. Morayo Da Silva is an almost-75 year old Nigerian woman living in San Francisco. She’s funny, well-traveled, cosmopolitan, active, and young at heart. She was a college professor, a writer, a polyglot whoContinue reading “[REVIEW] Like A Mule Bringing Ice Cream To The Sun, by Sarah Ladipo Manyika”

[REVIEW] Raybearer, by Jordan Ifueko

A Black woman's hand holds the brightly lit black and white Kindle cover of Raybearer in front of a round mirror

(This book seems to be out of stock at Bookshop, beautiful people. To check if it’s been added since this was posted , please click HERE.) There’s a moment in this book where our heroine Tarisai is awoken in the dead of night to go rescue someone. The scene isn’t really unusual in a fantasyContinue reading “[REVIEW] Raybearer, by Jordan Ifueko”

[REVIEW] Children of Virtue and Vengeance, Tomi Adeyemi

(Buy it HERE.) Let me begin this review by putting on my flame retardant suit and face mask. sighOkay, I get that people love this book, and the series it forms the center of. I even get why they love it. I want to love it, too. It’s fantasy, it’s epic, it’s romantic (sorta), it’sContinue reading “[REVIEW] Children of Virtue and Vengeance, Tomi Adeyemi”

[REVIEW] A Good African Story: How A Small Company Built A Global Coffee Brand, Andrew Rugasira

(Buy it HERE.) As an American who travels a lot, I’ve learned not to be surprised by finding random brands from my homeland, but I am still startled by what I sometimes find. (Randy’s Donuts in Korea? Hubba Bubba in Indonesia? Ok then…) I live in an Asian country obsessed with foreign brands despite itself,Continue reading “[REVIEW] A Good African Story: How A Small Company Built A Global Coffee Brand, Andrew Rugasira”

[REVIEW] The Hundred Wells of Salaga, Ayesha Haruna Attah

⭐⭐⭐⭐(4/5) ⠀ (Buy it HERE.)⠀ ⠀⠀💧Wow, where do I even begin? I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like this before, even though all of the elements of it are familiar. There’s a misfit princess, warring nations, a beautiful foreign slave girl, and strange visitors from a faraway land. Characters struggle with unrequited love,Continue reading “[REVIEW] The Hundred Wells of Salaga, Ayesha Haruna Attah”