Great African Reads discussion

The TBR Takedown list:
Ready for a fresh start with the 2021 TBR Takedown list:

Jan: 21 √ On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe
Feb: 5 √ The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta
Mar: 24 David's Story by Zoë Wicomb
Apr: 1 Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi
May: 8 Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
June: 18 Welcome to Lagos by Chibundu Onuzo
July: 23 The Madonna of Excelsior by Zakes Mda
August: 3 The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma
September: 11 The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna
October: 16 A Girl Called Eel by Ali Zamir
November: 4 Africa 39 ed. by Ellah Wakatama Allfrey

Extra (read):
19 Looking for Transwonderland: Travels in Nigeriaby Noo Saro-Wiwa

1 Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
2 The Curious Case of Dassoukine’s Trousers by Fouad Laroui
3 The Fishermen by Chigozie Obioma
4 Africa 39 ed. by Ellah Wakatama Allfrey
5 The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta
6 Ripples in the Pool by Rebeka Njau
7 No Sweetness Here and Other Stories by Ama Ata Aidoo
8 Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
9 Arrows of Rain by Okey Ndibe
10 The Radiance of the King by Camara Laye
11 The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna
12 The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin
13 We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo
14 Discovering Home by Binyavanga Wainaina
15 Happiness, Like Water by Chinelo Okparanta
16 A Girl Called Eel by Ali Zamir
17 I Do Not Come to You by Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani
18 Welcome to Lagos by Chibundu Onuzo
19 Looking for Transwonderland: Travels in Nigeriaby Noo Saro-Wiwa
20 The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes
21 On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe
22 The Queue by Basma Abdel Aziz
23 The Madonna of Excelsior by Zakes Mda
24 David's Story by Zoë Wicomb

What an interesting list! I loved The Memory of Love and plan to read Happiness in 2021. I've also got Welcome to Lagos on my 2021 list. Our local Sunday newspaper has a little section each week on the headlines of 50 years ago and the story that inspired Madonna of Excelsior was featured a few weeks ago in that section. It's been on my TBR for ages. I've started a project to read a work by each of the authors featured in Africa39. I've managed 5 so far, so still a way to go.

This was a difficult year of reading for me, too. This is why I am really looking forward to reducing my TBR with the help of this challenge! Your list has some really interesting titles I have not heard of (so much for reducing my TBR :))) and some titles familiar to me so I am looking forward to your thoughts!!

Thank you for cheering me on :) It's a mix of things I acquired when travelling to places with a different selection, stuff that is easily available at my local library and stuff I bought on Kindle either on offer or because I intended to read it for the 50 African Women - or some other interest... I guess that's how reading lists compile most often :)
My 2020 list went fine for the first 5 months, then I choked on The Tuner of Silences by Mia Couto (the general 2020 craziness made reading sparse). But I look forward to catch up on some reading soon :)

Anetq wrote: "Thank you for cheering me on :) It's a mix of thing I acquired when travelling to places with a different selection, stuff that is easily available at my local library and stuff I bought on Kindle ..."

No Sweetness Here and Other Stories took me three months in the 2020 madness and it is not long or difficult, I think we all struggled to keep to our plans this year.

I've finished up my list, and my first read will be:
21 On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe

ONE DOWN!! I finished On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe 2/1 and what a book...
Short-ish review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

This title has been all over the place - it is definitely on my TBR in the near future! Thanks for the review!

Same here, I'd like to get to it some time this year.

Anetq wrote: "ONE DOWN!! I finished On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe 2/1 and what a book...
Short-ish review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."

Off to a great start! I enjoyed that one. It came up on my list last year.

I also read On Black Sisters Street last year as part of this TBR takedown challenge, and I was really impressed by this great book.

I finally finished The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta - the receipt from the university library reveals that I took it out in feb 2019(!) so it was about time. Excellent book, even if the content pisses me off royally... More here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I need to get to this one.

Carolien wrote: "I need to get to this one."
It's very good, and because of that very infuriating! But yes, I recommend it!

Not on this list, but I am weeding out 'things from the university library, which I have had for too long, and really should just read', and therefore I've finally read Batouala by René Maran. Up next - some of the Adichie I'm behind on, or two other long term loans: Njau's Ripples in the Pool and Chaka by Thomas Mofolo

Anetq wrote: "I finally finished The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta - the receipt from the university library reveals that I took it out in feb 2019(!) so it was about time. Excellent book, e..."

This sounds utterly depressing... Thanks for sharing your thoughts!!!