Africa Reading Challenge - reviews

Well, with two days to go I finished book six and hence the Africa Reading Challenge. The night before the year's last night I cannot help but thinking of the year that's soon behind us, though, and I think it's extra accentuated by the choice of my books. Sudan, Zimbabwe, Congo, Palestine, my heart goes out to the millions suffering, again and again. I crank Atari Teenage Riot and wish myself out of here.

Scroggins, Deborah: Emma's War (Sudan)

I didn't like this book at first. It couldn't find it's own identity, but alternated constantly between biography, history and fiction and just simply couldn't make up its mind. But slowly a story emerged, and once finished, I'm glad I read it. It gave me insight to a Sudan I only briefly knew and I grew to appreciate the voice of the story and the relation I gathered from the story and Emma's position. It's a unique insight for a reader and it comes off as a recommend.

Courtemanche, Gil: A Sunday at the Pool in Kigali (Rwanda)

Before, or shortly after, I cannot remember which, I read this book, I watched Hotel Rwanda, and it was fascinating to read and see two views of the same story. It was a grim picture Mr. Courtemanche painted, so more sad to know that it's a true one.

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi: Half of a Yellow Sun (Nigeria)

"Finally" a book that wasn't all hardship. I find it hard to relate to the main figures at first, but as I delved deeper I got to know, understand and appreciate them. I wonder, though, is that how a typical person (me?) would respond to hardship? The main characters are strong, stronger than I could ever wish to be.

Coetzee, J.M.: Waiting for the Barbarians (South Africa)

The book echoed of other books I've read, most notably Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness and Cormac McCarthy's Blood meridian, or, The evening redness in the West. I enjoy good travel fiction and this was certainly it. It was also a relief, I must admit, to read something that doesn't painfully resemble reality, but was mere a mirror of it.

Coetzee, J.M.: Foe (South Africa)

I confess to reaching the end of 2008 here, and started to chose books that I wanted to read, but also had the extra benefit of being short. After having just read a brilliant book I was brought back to what I felt was a really immature author, a student to become an author really. It felt like I was reading a school exercise, and even though I could catch glimpses of an author to be I fail to see the greatness of either the author or the book.

Coetzee, J.M.: Age of Iron (South Africa)

This book really echoes the last. In the beginning. This is a work by a dawning author, not by an established one, and I'm astonished by the fact he won the Nobel Prize a few years back. Give the price to Auster or Murakami or deLillo or Glass or someone much more accomplished, and give Mr. Coetzee 20 more years or so. I found it extremely hard to relate to the main character, although I attribute that more to the fact how different we are, me being a young male and she an old woman, with vast different life experience than my own.