Great African Reads discussion

Set up your own African reading challenge!

What do you want to aim for this year? Set up your thread below with your own personal challenge and share what you read as you read along - here are some ideas, if you don't have a plan already:

New Countries:
Read authors from 3 / 5 /10 new-to-you countries (pick your own number)

African Reads:
Read authors from 3 / 5 /10 African reads (pick your own number)
- if you want you can limit yourself to books from the regional reads?

African Women:
Read a number of books written by African women
It could be from the 50 Books By African Women That Everyone Should Read

List reading:
Read a number of books from one of the 'best of' lists:
https://africanarguments.org/2022/12/...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinema...

Pick your own!
Do you have something else in mind? Go ahead, we'll all cheer you on!

Or you can join one of our other challenges:

Challenge: 50 Books By African Women
Challenge: 50 Books By African Women That Everyone Should Read

African Reads 2024
My African Literature Goal for 2024
Set up a shelf and keep track of all your African reading.

African Lit TBR Takedown
Is your TBR way too long? Well here's a way to tackle it join the African Lit TBR Takedown challenge

Or you can set up or join a Buddy Read or simply join the Regional Reads.

Placeholder...

Sooo I'l kick this of myself!
I'll go for a mixed bag of African reading in 2023:

New Countries:
I wan't to read the 3 countries I haven't yet read:
Liberia, Comoros, Lesotho.

I want to read 3-5 more books in my 50AW-challenge

Random stuff:
Also I intend to join more group reads, which I didn't have time for in 2022. (unless everyone votes for the super long books :) )

Here goes:

Participate in 4-6 group reads during the year.

New countries
33 complete out of 54

I have one planned in Cote d'Ivoire -The Blind Kingdom
I have books available for another 10 countries.

Africa 39
I'm trying to read at least one work featured by each author in the anthology.
8 read/31 to go
Completed Sankofa

I have 2 scheduled - Sankofu and Half of a Yellow Sun

I could do another 5 based on available books.

Caine prize winners
Similar to above, I'm trying to read at least one book featured by each author who won the prize.

5 complete, 18 to go

I have one scheduled - When a man falls from the sky

I have four other works available

50 African Women challenge
I have read 17 of 50.

I have 2 scheduled - The Blind Kingdom and Half of a Yellow Sun

I have 7 other books available.

Random stuff
I should prioritise the following books which all meet more than one of the above challenges:

We need new names
The secret lives of Baba Segi's Wives
On Black Sister Street
Transparent City

I will also keep it simple this year after failing this group in 2022 :)

My aims:
- 3 group reads (no matter if regional, French or Portuguese (if available in a language I know :))
- keep on reading some works of Véronique Tadjo from my TBR (Queen Pokou, AMOUR: Fields of Battle, Fields of Love, In the Company of Men)
- simply see what's coming my way :))
- coming my way: Djaimilia Pereira de Almeida's Seebeben: Roman and Im Auge der Pflanzen

Yay, I hope we in the Portuguese group read a book that entices you!

Sooo last year was a bust, so I'm giving this another go...
I'll go for a mixed bag of African reading in 2024:

New Countries:
I wan't to read the now 2 countries I haven't yet read: Comoros, Lesotho.

I want to read 3-5 more books in my 50AW-challenge
It could be (but that may change)
2 Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 
13 Efuru by Flora Nwapa
18 I Do Not Come to You by Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani  
42 Ripples in the Pool by Rebeka Njau
More unread books in this (view spoiler)[
3 We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo
6 The Memory of Love by Aminatta Forna 
7 Dust by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor 
12 The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives by Lola Shoneyin
15 The Map of Love by Ahdaf Soueif 
20 Black Mamba Boy by Nadifa Mohamed 
21 The Spider King's Daughter by Chibundu Onuzo 
28 Butterfly Burning by Yvonne Vera
31 Everything Good Will Come by Sefi Atta
32 Patchwork by Ellen Banda-Aaku 
33 In Dependence by Sarah Ladipo Manyika (UPP)
41 Sundowners by Lesley Lokko 
43 Bitter Leaf by Chioma Okereke 
44 This September Sun by Bryony Rheam 
48 David's Story by Zoë Wicomb (hide spoiler)]

Random stuff:
I also intend to join more group reads, which I didn't have time for in 2023. (unless everyone votes for the super long books :) )

My 2025 African Reading goals are simple:
Read more than last year
Complete the African Bingo 2025 https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group...
And somewhere in that FINALLY read the last african country missing on my list to complete the set: Lesotho - I've had Chaka by Thomas Mofolo on my list for years!