Great African Reads discussion

Tahir has written a lot of books! I'm pretty sure he would be happy to discuss any of them with members here at any time!

Here is his profile at goodreads and get ready to feel overwhelmed by all the books you will now be adding to your TBR (assuming they aren't already there):

Tahir Shah

Marieke wrote: "Tahir has written a lot of books! I'm pretty sure he would be happy to discuss any of them with members here at any time!

Here is his profile at goodreads and get ready to feel overwhelmed by all ..."

Thanks so much for adding this thread, Marieke! I welcome any questions that readers might have. My upcoming book, Timbuctoo, is also about Africa.

Hello! I don't want to be salesy, but my new novel, Timbuctoo, is coming out soon, and I'm giving away 6 copies in the UK (http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho...) and 6 copies in the US (http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho...). Thought other members of this group might be interested, as much of it is set in Africa...and it's a chance to win a free book. Sign up for a chance to win. Thanks!

Tahir, this is the thread where you can and should be salesy! We do like to restrain self-promotion in the other threads but here is definitely where you can shamelessly self promote. :)

Perfect, thanks! That's good to hear. I knew better than to post that elsewhere, but still wasn't sure about this thread, since I'm new here. :)

Ideally I want these author threads to generate good discussion and interaction between readers and writers, but they are also intended to create space for writers to give us their news and promote themselves without spamming threads, irritating other members, or causing themselves anxiety about breaking rules. :)

This is probably the best solution. Good planning!

Where there is a need, we devise a solution! We kind of made things up as we went along, beginning in the summer of 2008. Hopefully most have been happy with how we have done/do things.

Tahir, I see the link for the UK giveaway, but not the US.

Sorry about that. This is the US link: http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho..., however the US contest has not yet started. And this is the UK link: http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho.... Thanks!

Thanks, I'll watch for it. Meanwhile, I inaugurated my new Nook with Trail of Feathers: In Search of the Birdmen of Peru.

What an honour! Hope you enjoy it.

Just wanted to let you know that I've arranged for a Goodreads Author Q&A from July 1-15. I'd love to see you there!!

http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/7...

Tahir, in "The Caliph's House" you buy and renovate a house in Morocco. Do you still own that house? Or how long did you live in it? Just curious if you ended up finding it a permanent home or if you eventually moved on?

Hello Andrea! Thanks for your question. We still own Dar Khalifa and live there. I occasionally share photos of it on my Facebook page, if you want to see what it actually looks like: https://www.facebook.com/TahirShahAuthor. I've also done video tours of the house on YouTube.

Your FB page is great, Tahir! I just watched your CNN link. Ever since this stuff started happening in Mali, i've had Bamiyan in my mind. Tragic. I can't even express it.

That BBC show sparked many comments from people who drew the connection between Mali and Bamiyan. I haven't had news from Mali regarding the manuscripts in many weeks now...hoping they are hidden safely.

I'd like to offer a special giveaway for Great African Reads members: I'll send a Kindle or Epub copy of my new book Timbuctoo to the first 10 people to send me a private message with their email address. Please don't forget to specify which format you prefer. Thanks!

Thanks, Tahir. Much appreciated. I picked up a new copy of In Search of King Solomon's Mines as a way to meet your generosity with an economic return.

Hi Tahir--i was just setting up a thread for a new member-author and realized i had not come back here after reading Timbuctoo. i think i still also need to write my review. Please forgive me! i am so behind on so many things. :/

But i do want to say that i really enjoyed it. But as an American, i think there were some things that were a bit lost on me in terms of the personalities of the British aristocracy/upper classes of the time. I noticed that some reviews had congratulated you on how well you had captured those personalities so i felt a little sad at being a clueless American. :)

But i'm curious...this is your first work of fiction, yet i got the sense you did travel as part of your research AND it is historical fiction, so i was wondering how different this experience of writing a novel was for you compared with writing your previous books...and do you have a preference now between writing fiction and non-fiction? are you planning to write another novel any time soon?

Osho wrote: "Thanks, Tahir. Much appreciated. I picked up a new copy of In Search of King Solomon's Mines as a way to meet your generosity with an economic return."

I just saw this...many thanks for reading, Osho!

Marieke wrote: "Hi Tahir--i was just setting up a thread for a new member-author and realized i had not come back here after reading Timbuctoo. i think i still also need to write my review. Please forgive me! i am..."

Marieke, no worries. I do look forward to reading your review, though! Timbuctoo was a project that had been on my mind for many, many years. So it was very different from my other books. My next release will be fiction (a collection of stories called Scorpion Soup), and I'm currently working on another non-fiction book for release early next year.

A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Blues, will be out this year as well.

I've just set up a UK and US contest for 6 limited edition hardcovers of Scorpion Soup here on Goodreads, and they should go live in the next couple of hours.

I'd also like to offer a special giveaway for Great African Reads members: I'll send a Kindle or Epub copy of my Scorpion Soup to the first 10 people to send me a private message with their email address. Please don't forget to specify which format you prefer. Thanks very much!

Congratulations, Tahir. Since my reading is backed up, I'll leave your generosity for others who might be able to read it sooner. I bought a Kindle copy.

Osho wrote: "Congratulations, Tahir. Since my reading is backed up, I'll leave your generosity for others who might be able to read it sooner. I bought a Kindle copy."

Thanks very much for buying Scorpion Soup! I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for reading.

I should set aside a month just to read my Tahir books.

Most of my backlist will be re-released as ebooks this year, starting very soon. We're just working on the cover art, and then the files will be ready. That might make reading easier!

Mr. Shah, I think it is wonderful that you are being so accessible to your readers through this thread. Thank you for taking the time!

I read In Arabian Nights while traveling overland through Morocco during November 2011. It quickly became one of my favorite books. I enjoyed the format and the inspiration you took from storytellers to shape your own story. Was it challenging to write in this way - small snippets that seemed open-ended while still keeping them attached to one another? Was there a method you came up with to work in this style or did it come easily/naturally to you?

I totally want to read Timbuctoo. Preferably as I'm going on vacation there. Studying it has made me obsessed.

Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Blues, will be o..."

I just purchased it on Kindle a few days ago while looking for The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca. I look forward to reading it!

Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Blues, will be o..."

Hi Tahir, I'd love a Kindle copy if you're still giving away your new ebook. I have two ebooks myself; I'll gift you Sundagger.net or Dreamers in return. Let me know! Thank you.

Margaret wrote: "Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Bl..."

Thank you Margaret! Could you please send me a message here on Goodreads or an email at tahirshahwork@gmail.com, so I can email the files to you? Thanks for your generous offer.

Margaret wrote: "Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Bl..."

Thank you Margaret! Could you please send me a message here on Goodreads or an email at tahirshahwork@gmail.com, so I can email the files to you? Thanks for your generous offer.

Margaret wrote: "Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Bl..."

Thank you Margaret! Could you please send me a message here on Goodreads or an email at tahirshahwork@gmail.com, so I can email the files to you? Thanks for your generous offer.

Diane wrote: "Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Bl..."

Thank you for reading, Diane! I hope you enjoy it.

Margaret wrote: "Tahir wrote: "A quick update to mention that my latest book, Scorpion Soup, has been released as an ebook. The limited edition hardcover will be out by the end of March. My next book, Casablanca Bl..."

Thank you Margaret! Please send me a message here on Goodreads with your email address, or email me at tahirshahwork@gmail.com

Hello everyone! I see that you're visiting Mali this month on your tour. If anyone is interested in reading more about Mali, parts of my 2012 release Timbuctoo were set there.

I also wanted to let you know that I'll be holding another Q&A on Goodreads on June 5th: http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/7.... I'd love to see you there! You can post questions at any time, and I'll be online on June 5th to answer them. Thank you!

I haven't read Timbuctoo. I'll see if my library has it.

Hi Tahir, some members are reading The Caliph's House: A Year in Casablanca as part of our "visit" to Morocco. If you have time, it would be great if you could join us. I will also DM to see what your schedule is like/what works for you.

The discussion thread is here:
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...