Category: Most Popular

Zayni Barakat

The Egypt of the Mamluk dynasty witnessed a period of artistic ostentation and social and political upheaval, at the heart of which lay the unsolved question of the ruler’s legitimacy. Now, in 1516, the Mamluk reign is coming to an end with the advance of the invading Ottomans. The numerous narrators, among them a Venetian traveler and several native Muslims, tell the story of the rise to power of the ruthless, enigmatic, and puritanical governor of Cairo, Zayni Barakat ibn Musa, whose control of the corrupt city is effected only through a complicated network of spies and informers.

Arrow of God

The second novel in Chinua Achebe’s masterful African trilogy, following Things Fall Apart and preceding No Longer at Ease

When Things Fall Apart ends, colonial rule has been introduced to Umuofia, and the character of the nation, its values, freedoms, religious and socio-political foundations have substantially and irrevocably been altered. Arrow of God, the second novel in Chinua Achebe’s The African Trilogy, moves the historical narrative forward. This time, the action revolves around Ezeulu, the headstrong chief priest of the god Ulu, which is worshipped by the six villages of Umuaro. The novel is a meditation on the nature, uses, and responsibility of power and leadership. Ezeulu finds that his authority is increasingly under threat from rivals within his nation and functionaries of the newly established British colonial government. Yet he sees himself as untouchable. He is forced, with tragic consequences, to reconcile conflicting impulses in his own nature—a need to serve the protecting deity of his Umuaro people; a desire to retain control over their religious observances; and a need to gain increased personal power by pushing his authority to the limits. He ultimately fails as he leads his people to their own destruction, and consequently, his personal tragedy arises. Arrow of God is an unforgettable portrayal of the loss of faith, and the downfall of a man in a society forever altered by colonialism.

Kenya Most Popular

A grain of wheat

Ngugi wa Thiongo, a writer from Kenya, depicts some of the dilemmas that face an emerging nation in this novel in
whicha village prepares for the coming of independence.

The years of childhood

The evocation of the wonder of a child’s discovery of the world and his place in it.

Oeuvre Poétique

Oeuvre Poetique (1990) was originally published as Poèmes (1964) bringing together Chants d’Ombre (1945),
Hosties Noires (1948), Ethiopiques (1956) and Nocturnes (1961). In his poems Senghor explores the mythic origins
of the African persona.

Lesotho Most Popular

Chaka

The central figure in this historical novel written in Sesotho, is Chaka Zulu. Mofolo (1876-1948) explores the theme
of power and its effect on those who have too much.

Egypt Most Popular

The Cairo Trilogy

The Cairo Trilogy is a panoramic three-part work written to explain the sensitivity and mentality of the people who
lived in Cairo from the 1900s to the 1940s. Palace walk (1990), Palace of desire (1991) and Sugar street (1992) each
gives a rich description of their daily lives while portraying a wider historical process.

Algeria Most Popular

L’Amour, La Fantasia,

The novel describes the conquest of Algeria and the war of
independence from a woman’s perspective.

The African Origins of Civilization:Myth or Reality,

Post author By afrikanseries
Post date June 19, 2020
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This book presents Diop’s main thesis that historical, archaeological and anthropological
evidence supports the theory that the civilization of ancient Egypt, the first that history records, was actually Negroid
in origin.

Nervous Conditions

The first novel of this Zimbabwean writer portrays an African society whose younger
generation of women struggle with varying degrees of success and failure.