Great African Reads discussion

Hey everybody,

in order to get a bit more organised about our shared readings, it's probably not a bad idea to start selecting and voting earlier in the preceding month. Then everybody can start organising their copy well in advance. As suggested (thanks green!), we might stick to some fixed dates, makes it easier for everybody. how about the 15th of each month as the cut-off-date for voting?

So, here's a selection of books on Angola (they're linked to the book page, so just click on them for more info) for December. Please feel free to post any other suggestions to do with Angola (especially since the non-fiction books are by non-Africans)!! I'll create a poll in the next few days, so we can start voting too.


Fiction
* Sousa Jamba A Lonely Devil
* Pepetela Mayombe


Non-fiction
* Fred Bridgland Jonas Savimbi: A Key to Africa
* Ryszard Kapuściński Another Day of Life
* John Stockwell In Search of Enemies: A CIA Story


Also, how do people feel about reading just one shared book during December/January? I was just thinking that with Christmas and holidays it might get too busy for two books?? Happy to read one in December and one in January, or space one out over two months and get back into the monthly book club in Feb??

My vote is for Pepetela's Jaime Bunda Secret Agent, translated by Richard Bartlett published by Aflame Books ISBM: 0-9552339-1-7. Good holiday reading.
Manu

I would love to have a book for December as well as a book for January. Like green said, that time of the year is when I have the most time to read!

Thanks for your suggestion, Manu, I've added it to the poll!!

Here's a link to the book by Pepetela Jaime Bunda, Secret Agent

I'd be very happy to read one book in Dec and one in Jan too, I'll be on holidays for a few weeks so will have plenty of time. :)

I would like to read one in Dec and one in Jan too.

me too.

alright, i propose then that we'll continue with the monthly reading over Dec/Jan, since everybody will have soooo much time on their hands!! :)

Ok, voting for December's book (Angola) finished on Sat 15 Nov and it was a bit of a close call between the two Pepetela's books. The winner is ...

Pepetela Mayombe


I do hope that everybody will be able to get a copy of the book from somewhere because, I think, it's out of print. but after quick search on the internet, there seem to be a lot of second-hand copies floating around. Looking forward to lively discussions! :)

muphyn

I checked on Amazon and there are copies available on there, although I am a bit surprised at the price. The book has only about 215 pages and the new copies (in paperback) are selling for US$32.90. That seems a bit steep for a paperback, but maybe it is due to limited quantities . . . ? The used copy is classified as a "collector's edition" so if even more exensive. If anyone finds copies w/ a better price, please let us know.

So when do we start discussing "Last Summer of Reason"? I just finished it a couple of days ago. If I write a review in my regular profile, does that show up in the group and become a spoiler?

hi barbara, i think you can mark your review as one containing spoiler material...so if you want to write your review before you forget your thoughts (like i would) you should feel free to do so...

apologies, i'm forgetting what the general consensus was on discussing...i think there should be two threads per book -- one for people who want to discuss while reading and one for those who want to wait until they are done (will definitely contain spoiler material)...is that right, group?

Wendy, yes, I found some steep prices on amazon too (they even go up as far as 50 euros!), that's why i figured it must be out of print and those booksellers who have a few of the new copies can charge excessively. However, have a look at abebooks.com, they've got a range of much cheaper second-hand copies - you might be able to find some bookseller who ships to the US. i think marieke has had a good experience ordering through them. i'm lucky, the book's at my uni library!

Barbara, yes, go ahead and start discussing! if you want to discuss spoiler material, go right ahead. just make sure you start a new thread that says clearly that it contains spoiler stuff, so that people who don't want to have their reading spoiled won't read it. :)

For anyone using a public library in the U.S., ask your librarian if they have some kind of cooperative loan agreement. My local public library is able to get books from many other libraries in the state, including universities. It doesn't cost me anything.

Thanks, Andrea! I will give that a try.

Has anyone managed to get their hands on the elusive Mayombe by Pepetela? I've had some difficulties, but I'm hoping to pick up a copy this afternoon. it will be my third try! i'm hoping three times is really the charm...

Happy December (whether we get to read our selection or not) !!

I haven't had a chance to try to track down a copy yet. If it gets to be too complicated and/or too expensive then I may sit this month out.

I got mine! Phew. Wendy, do you have access to a university library, maybe via inter-library loan? I really enjoy your comments and insights. I would hate for you to be sidelined. Not to put any pressure on you!!
I was just reading the translator's note and the very first page (I have a lot of work to do but could not wait!) and I think this book is going to be extremely interesting. If there are any members with good knowledge of this period of Angolan history, please don't be shy. I am sure many participants will be craving background information. I'm unabashedly nerdy and would be grateful for any thoughtful reading suggestions like journal articles. I know very little about Angola.

I'll be reading "Mayombe" in the next week or so because I've actually got to return it to the library by the end of next week. i do hope though that there'll be plenty of other folks wanting to discuss it???!!!

Though I totally understand if it's too complicated for you to get your hands on "Mayombe", Wendy, but I just want to say that I also really enjoy your comments/insights!! so, discussion wouldn't be much fun without you!! :)

I'd better admit it straight away, i figure, but I know zero about Angolan history - Portugal = former colonial power (right?). well, that's about as far as my knowledge goes. :( I think i might have to take a dip in The Fate of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence to get just a little bit more clued up.

I've got a copy coming from interlibrary loan. The access to copies is a major issue in reading African authors, but maybe we should consider that we are generating a demand and thus helping the supply to increase?

Is anybody actually reading Mayombe except for me? :)

I started it and plan to finish it. My supervisor gave two African history books to refer to but I haven't had a moment just yet to cram. But I have questions for the group about names of characters and if they have any special significance...

yes, I thought you were reading it too, marieke! :) looking forward to some lively discussion of this war-type novel.

I just got my copy of Mayombe today and will be reading it in the next week.

Muphyn wrote: "Is anybody actually reading Mayombe except for me? :)"

I'm reading it! I got it a few days ago through interlibrary loan. I hope I'll be able to finish it this weekend and thus be able -- finally -- to join the discussion!

Marieke wrote: "I started it and plan to finish it. My supervisor gave two African history books to refer to but I haven't had a moment just yet to cram. But I have questions for the group about names of character..."

Hi Marieke,

I have almost zero knowledge of Angolan history, but I spent a few years (combined) in Zimbabwe and South Africa. In Zimbabwe, it was not unusual for fighers in the independence struggle (1970s) to take "combat names". I think this was true in South Africa, too, while they were fighting against apartheid. I've assumed that this is what's going on in Mayombe.

hi katy, thanks...unfortunately i forgot to bring my copy of Mayombe to work with me...but my hunch is what you described. Some characters' names are English (translated from Portuguese i assume) but are not words we usually think of as names...like "Struggle." However, other characters have African names. I do not know anything about the languages spoken in Western/Southern Africa so the names are just pretty sounds to me...i wonder if they have significance the way "Struggle" likely has, and if they do, what is the significance. Also, i'm curious if there is a reason why the author gave some of the characters these European words as names and others have African names. Any ideas, anyone?

oh...i meant to share the names of the books my supervisor gave me to use as reference: "African History" by Philip Curtin, Steven Friedman, Leonard Thompson, and Jan Vansina; and "A History of the African People" by Robert July.

hey green, get NoIsY!!! :)

i'm so glad to see quite a bit of interest in discussing this book. this group is the greatest ever.

Katy wrote: "Muphyn wrote: "Is anybody actually reading Mayombe except for me? :)"

I'm reading it! I got it a few days ago through interlibrary loan. I hope I'll be able to finish it this weekend and thus ..."


I'm hopint to get ahold of it anyday...I found it in a nearby "big city" library where a friend of mine has a card and she's promised to check it out for me, but she's not real organized and quick, so I'm hopeful maybe in the next couple of days.....then I'll read fast!

A question out of pure curiosity, since this book was somewhat difficult to acquire for many of us...where were your copies published? Mine is from the Zimbabwe Publishing House in Harare. It was also printed in Zimbabwe.

My copy was published in the Popular Republic of Angola by "agreement between the Author, the Union of Angolan Authors and the ENDIAMA-UEE to be used as an offer by the three entities, with no commercial purposes." I got it on loan from a university library. And the print, by the way, is tiny!

Marieke wrote: "A question out of pure curiosity, since this book was somewhat difficult to acquire for many of us...where were your copies published? Mine is from the Zimbabwe Publishing House in Harare. It was a..."


Interesting! The copy I've got is from Heinemann, published in London, as part of their (former) African writers series.

I haven't got past the first eight or so pages yet, but I'm hoping to really get into it later in the week.

Muphyn wrote: "Marieke wrote: "A question out of pure curiosity, since this book was somewhat difficult to acquire for many of us...where were your copies published? Mine is from the Zimbabwe Publishing House in ..."

I may have the same edition that Marieke has. Mine is also from Heinemann, a paperback published in 1996.

Andrea wrote: "My copy was published in the Popular Republic of Angola by "agreement between the Author, the Union of Angolan Authors and the ENDIAMA-UEE to be used as an offer by the three entities, with no comm..."

The print in mine is tiny too!!

Spoiler:
I'm not sure if this is where I can comment on the book or if there is another thread, but I finished Mayombe. I was thinking about the various narrators and the way the author illustrates that each sees the situations through the lens of tribalism. But then, there is the omniscient narrator also, who clearly presents Fearless as the hero of the novel. And I'm wondering, if we come to see all the "character" narrators as biased and only partially reliable, do we also view the omniscient narrator's view as partial? That is, maybe the omniscient narrator sees Fearless' actions as selfless and heroic in all circumstances, but is that the "truth"? There's some truth in each character's view. I don't like to beat up on Kingsolver, but I think Pepetela makes the multi-narrator technique more complex. Has anyone else finished?

is andrea the only one who has finished? i'm hoping to finish this weekend. the book *appeared* short and i mistakenly thought i'd be able to read it quickly. i have not been able to read it quickly but i really enjoy when i do find a block of time to sit with it. i agree with you, andrea, that pepetela's technique is much more complex. his use of religious themes is also much more complex than kingsolver's. i wish i knew more about tribalism in angola, however. i think if i had a better grasp of tribal prejudices i would have a much deeper understanding of the tensions in the story. regardless, i think his treatment of tribalism, political systems, and religion...not to much human interaction, is very sophisticated and i think there's a lot to discuss in this book.

I haven't finished Mayombe either but am still trying to get somewhere with it - it turned out to be a much slower read than I thought and Christmas and New Years completely swamped me with family time. But time for reading should be more available now, so I'm hoping to finish it soon and also discuss it a bit. As you, Marieke and Andrea, said, Mayombe is quite complex - not the easy peasy read that the Poisonwood Bible was! ;)

I don't know a lot about tribalism in Angola, either, but it was fascinating how the author managed to show the lens that prejudice casts on one's experience. Once one expects a certain stereotyped pattern of behavior from someone, everything that person does confirms the stereotype. I think it's why simply working with or living with people of an "other" group isn't always as effective as one might expect at breaking down stereotypes.