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Accra books and things Weblog (33 unread)

February 26, 2010
20:42
Children’s reading in Ghana
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

A couple of items caught my attention recently: one a campaign to get children to read, and the other a blog on reading done by Ghanaian children. The first has actually been on the radio, specifically on JoyFM for the last couple of weeks or so, only because I don’t listen to the radio at work, [...]
February 24, 2010
20:28
Commonwealth Writers’ Prize regional winners’ shortlist includes two Ghanaians!
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I feel proud to say that I have read both of the works written by Ghanaians which have been included in the 2010 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize regional shortlists. These are: Ayesha Harruna Attah’s Harmattan rain, which is shortlisted for the Africa regional first book, which I mentioned earlier. Nii Ayikwei Parkes’ Tail of the blue bird, which is [...]
January 22, 2010
21:10
Reading challenges?
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I’ve been reading about Reading challenges and wondered whether I should take part in one. It is a kind of measurement – which I do already, to a certain extent, in that for the last ten years or more I have actually been noting down the titles of the books which I completed. No comments [...]
January 01, 2010
22:32
My reading for December 2009
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Since I’ve been on holiday for almost two weeks, I was able to finish a few more books than I would have done if I had been going to work. As usual a mixture of the slightly literary with the slightly less serious…, interspersed with dipping in and out of some cookbooks, though not [...]
December 23, 2009
21:53
BarCamp Ghana 09
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I won’t even attempt to give an overview of what happened at the latest BarCamp Ghana 09 which took place on Monday 21 December 2009 at MEST here in Accra. This year there seems to have been a lot more blogging immediately after the event, with a large number of tweets using the hashtag [...]
December 14, 2009
12:20
2009 GLA Seminar and AGM
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

On Friday 20 November 2009 I spent the whole day out of the office, attending the 2009 Ghana Library Association (GLA) Seminar and Annual General Meeting (AGM). For some reason while I was at British Council I didn’t make a very concerted effort to attend these annual events, except when they took place at [...]
December 01, 2009
20:56
November 2009 reading
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I think I need to remember to take a photo of each of the books I read, mainly because I feel slightly odd about linking to a site such as Amazon all the time. After all how many of us in Ghana are buying our books from there? So here goes for the month of November [...]
November 18, 2009
20:58
How can I have ONE favourite book????
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Tomorrow I have to talk about my “favourite” book, and I am still mulling over what to say! What an impossibility was my first reaction; after all I have been reading for rather a lot of years – well actually since I was about four or five, I think! So what do I say? I [...]
November 15, 2009
20:40
Kathy Knowles and community libraries in Ghana
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I went to the latest NAWA (North American Women’s Association) meeting a few days ago (feeling slightly guilty that I hadn’t been to the previous month’s gathering) partly because there were going to be traders there, but mainly because I was interested to hear Kathy Knowles speak. I had originally met her sometime in 2008 at [...]
November 14, 2009
21:22
Books from the Ghanaian diaspora – at last!
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Diasporan Africans, including Ghanaians, are certainly writing, and getting reviews. The frustration here in Ghana is actually getting copies of their books to either read or buy. I mention two specific examples: one I borrowed a copy from a fellow member of the Accra Book Club, while the other finally landed in EPP [...]
November 11, 2009
20:11
Photos, or the lack thereof…
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I really, really must remember to not only take my camera with me wherever I go, but also to use it, especially when there is anything that relates to books and information! I always, always, always seem to forget, and then remember when I thinking about what I should write about. This past weekend was [...]
November 05, 2009
20:02
Ghana International Book Fair 2009
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Somehow I thought the Ghana International Book Fair was starting on 2 November, so I braved the traffic and headed for the National Theatre at the beginning of the week, only to discover that this was the setting up day! Sigh… I went back again on 3 November, and sad to say I was again [...]
November 01, 2009
20:46
Books read in October 2009
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Quite a few more books read in October 2009, not sure why, but I guess they were probably on the lighter side? 1. Dan Brown’s The lost symbol: what can I say? I enjoyed it, but was constantly thinking about the film that would be made based on the book! I can already see the [...]
October 11, 2009
20:07
Achebe and Adichie – 50 years apart?
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

This month (October 2009) members of the Accra Book Club are supposed to finally discuss Chinua Achebe’s seminal work, Things fall apart, with those of us who feel adventurous reading Dambisa Moyo’s controversial assessment of aid, Dead aid. I re-read Achebe’s book earlier this year, so I just need to quickly refresh my memory, but [...]
October 06, 2009
20:27
Who wants to read “The lost symbol”?
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I did finish Dan Brown’s The lost symbol relatively quickly – that is, in less than a week – which is not too bad, given that there was work to go to, and other matters to deal with, such as traffic while getting to and from work. Now I need to find someone to pass it [...]
September 27, 2009
19:56
Going for the inevitable
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I didn’t know whether any of the bookshops in Accra would have copies of Dan Brown’s The lost symbol on the day it was officially released, so I decided to wait a little bit until Vidya’s got their supply. So last Friday I went by there on the way back to work from the bank, and met the [...]
September 20, 2009
19:52
Kwame Nkrumah and books
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Members of GhanaBlogging are supposed to have been talking/writing about Kwame Nkrumah over the last week or so, as part of the centenary celebration of his birth, which is officially celebrated on 21 September. This is definitely belated, but will just have to do. Certainly Kwame Nkrumah wrote books, and he respected them, and their [...]
September 05, 2009
22:00
A Kindle – finally!
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I forgot to mention that I finally saw a Kindle at the recent Web 2.0 for libraries workshop which I attended earlier in the week. It was one of the several “gadgets” (as we like to say here in Ghana) on display. I wish I could have really looked at even more but others [...]
September 04, 2009
15:55
Forthcoming Ghana Book Fair in November 2009
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I hear that this year there will be another Ghana Book Fair, even though there was one last year. Apparently there is a shift to a yearly event. Dates from what I can remember are: 2-7 November 2009, and the venue is the National Theatre, as it was in 2008. The Ghana Book Publishers Association doesn’t seem [...]
September 03, 2009
19:01
Web 2.0 for librarians workshop
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I attended a presentation cum workshop on Web 2.0 for librarians at the US Embassy Information Resource Center here in Accra. All part of the continuous professional development offered to members of the Ghana Library Association. [Apologies for not putting up a link to the GLA website, but this is under review and reconstruction, to [...]
August 29, 2009
20:17
Reading for the month of August 2009
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

So far, I’ve read seven books in August – a fairly usual mix for me of the literary and the lighter stuff. I did read Elizabeth Hay’s Late nights on air, for the Accra Book Club. It was recommended by one of the Canadian members, and though it is not something I probably would have [...]
August 18, 2009
20:36
Personal reactions to first edition of “TimeOut Accra”
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I finally got a copy of the slick new magazine “TimeOut Accra” and am still pondering about my reactions to it, and its content, and in some cases lack thereof. On the surface, it is very slick, with high quality paper, printing and photographs. So kudos on that score for those who put it together, not [...]
July 04, 2009
21:55
Ordering books in a Ghanaian bookshop
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Despite its appearance as a modern bookshop, the Silverbird lifestyle store in the Accra Mall still does many things in what I would call a fairly old fashioned way. Recently I had asked if they had a particular book in stock, and unfortunately the young man at the counter was not able to get anything [...]
June 27, 2009
21:46
Reading of “Harmattan rain”
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Last weekend I went to the second of the literary events organised by Franka Andoh at Cuppa Cappucino. I missed the first one, as it took place a day or so before I travelled (not much of an excuse, I know) but actually met the author/reader featured (Mohammed Naseehu Ali, who wrote The prophet of [...]
June 24, 2009
12:04
Holidays are definitely over!
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

My holidays were, not surprisingly, too short, but I could only take four weeks off work, and even that was using up my full entitlement, plus some carry-over from last year! I did manage to hit a few bookshops/bookstores, and decided that rather than paying a lot for overweight luggage I would mail the books [...]
June 05, 2009
15:56
Holiday reading
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I’ve been on holiday/vacation since Mother’s Day (10 May), so haven’t been reading as much as I would normally. But by some standards, I wouldn’t be called totally idle. I had heard of all the controversy about Stephanie Meyer’s vampire series, and I just couldn’t resist buying and reading a copy of Twilight, the first book. [...]
April 28, 2009
10:32
News about African writing and prizes
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I just read from one of the lists which I follow that Penguin South Africa will be launching the Penguin African Writers Series. Good news, as many of us here have missed the old Heinemann series being updated. I can’t say that the Heinemann African Writers Series has been totally defunct, though, as I have certainly [...]
April 12, 2009
18:26
Book meme from Accra – part 1
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I do follow some blogs, though not as many on books as I would like, but enjoyed the Boston bibliophile’s book meme . Because of the local situation it has been adapted and I will probably post in two parts: 1. Hardback, trade paperback or mass market paperback: anyone I can get, preferably paperback. 2. Barnes [...]
April 01, 2009
19:48
Science fiction
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Not long ago I was browsing in the Silverbird bookshop, which is actually called Silverbird Lifestyle (or something like that) when I came across a real classic in the science fiction section: William Gibson’s 1984 novel Neuromancer. Looked at the blurb and realised that I had never actually read it – somehow there wasn’t very much [...]
March 22, 2009
21:24
Georgette Heyer books in Accra!
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

Today I am talking about a real link to the past – my daughter had spoken not so long ago about completing her set of Georgette Heyer Regency romances through eBay. The older meets the new in the third generation! I think I brought quite a few of them which had belonged to my mother [...]
March 13, 2009
21:23
What to read on a long trip?
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I have already started thinking about what I should read on my forthcoming holiday. It is a while since I’ve been on one, but suffice it to say that I don’t go on any trip without a supply of reading material – usually in excess, unless I am sure I will be somewhere where I [...]
March 08, 2009
20:48
African writers
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

When I look back at my reading over the last few years, I realise that I probably read an average of at least one African writer or book on Africa every month. Some months it is more; some less, and has very much depended on what was available – initially through the British Council [...]
20:37
Discussion of John Berendt’s “The city of falling angels”
» ‎ Accra books and things Weblog

I last wrote briefly about the anticipation of a monthly book club meeting. I should have written about it much earlier, but was trying to finish the book! So guilty as charged of doing what one is not supposed to do in a book club – ie not read or finish the book. OK, [...]