By Tolulope Odebunmi

• Title: Tales of Mother
• Author: Dupe Kuku
• Publisher: Coal Media
• Number of pages: 124
• Year of publication: 2018
• Category: Memoirs (Short Stories)

In this collection of stories and reminiscences, Ms Kuku immortalises her mother, Mrs Kuku, through a recollection of fond and not so fond memories from the younger Kuku’s childhood and adulthood. In Dupe Kuku’s attempt to keep Aya Kuku’s memory alive, the younger Kuku shares personal stories about friendship, mentorship and parenthood (motherhood). The tales in this collection will be relatable for people who grew up in southwestern Nigeria, especially millennials. More…

By Timi Odueso

• Title: Path of Destiny: An Autobiography
  
• Author: Jimoh Mosobalaje Oyawoye
• Publisher: Bookcraft Ltd
• Number of pages: 571
• Year of publication: 2018
• Category: Autobiography

There are very few voluminous autobiographies in which the reader is able to decipher the tragic flaw of the author. This is so for a number of reasons. In the first place, many authors tend to proselytise. This makes their books unrealistic because, even though the author is writing about their personal experiences and how they overcame certain obstacles, they fail to understand that what works for Peter may not work for Paul. In the second place, many portray their personas as saintly. Where the subject is a prominent member of the community they often gloss over their faults in a bid to present themselves as infallible. But we are all flawed. A good example is Olusegun Obasanjo’s My Watch, where his faults are glossed over in order that he might portray himself as a saint. In Goodluck Jonathan’s My Transition Hours, the author opens himself up to the charge of naiveté in order to push the blame for his failings on to others. Jimoh Oyawoye’s Path of Destiny is different. More…

By Ekemini Pius

• Title: The Honking
  
• Author: Mulumba Ivan Matthias
• Publisher: Mattville Publishing House
• Number of pages: 311
• Year of publication: 2017
• Category: Fiction

Set in Uganda, Mulumba Ivan Matthias’s The Honking examines the breakdown in human relationships and social systems, and how this leads to failure in the lives of individuals, in particular, and society, in general. More…

By Ona Akinde 

• Title: Zura Maids
• Author: Apio Eunice Otuko
• Publisher: FEMRITE Publications Limited
• Number of pages: 300
• Year of publication: 2017
• Category: Fiction

When we tell our stories of Africa, we cannot do so without highlighting the reality of human trafficking, from slaves in Libya to girls sold into prostitution in Europe, with many drowning at sea in the process. It is clearly an ongoing reality. In Zura Maids, Apio Eunice Otuko’s debut novel set in Uganda, we follow the protagonist, Lena Ayugi, as she tries to gain justice for herself and save others from going through the same experiences that she did. More…

By Ofuonyeadi Chukwudumebi Mercy

• Title: locomotifs and other songs 
  
• Author: Tosin Gbogi
• Publisher: Noirledge Publishing
• Number of pages: 95
• Year of publication: 2018
• Category: Poetry

Africa being a continent that is inhabited by a large percentage of people with dark skin pigmentation, the continent is also one that is rich in cultural norms, values and traditions. African literature, without a doubt, is deeply rooted in African culture. This is because the people’s customs, values, norms and traditions are basically the issues that form the content of African literature. More…

By Omotola Otubela

• Title: Tech Explorers League: Rise of the Robot
  
• Author: Paul Kisakye
• Publisher: Aniseeker LLC
• Number of pages: 188
• Year of publication: 2016
• Category: Children

‘Do you have a story burning to be told? Do you have a voice that must be heard? Then write. Because writing is no small calling. Otherwise, get back to your normal day job and save us the agony of watching our time being flushed down the toilet.

I’ve written some stories that haven’t gone down well with some Christian friends of mine. But God liked them. And that’s what really matters’. – Paul Kisakye

Tech Explorers League is a series of science fiction novels for children. It comprises three books: Rise of the Robot, Hacked! and Farming Fiasco. The author, Paul Kisakye, is an unapologetic Christian; he often refers to himself as a ‘Christian Writer’. He has to his credit another book, Prodigal Love: Embracing God’s Outrageous, Unconditional Love, which explores how most people think about their relationship with God. His short story, ‘Emotional Rollercoaster’ was also shortlisted for the Writivism Short Story Prize in 2013. From all indications, it is clear that he knows his onions when it comes to creative storytelling. More…

By Nureni Ibrahim

• Title: Lil’ Kanji and the Falling Sun
• Author: Mwangi Gituro
• Publisher: Lesleigh Limited
• Number of pages: 47
• Year of publication: 2015
• Category: Children

One of the cultural practices of Africans is narrating stories in their various indigenous tongues to children in social gatherings. From mythic tales that recount the origins of the human race to proverbs and wise sayings that teach wisdom, storytelling takes a focal position in social and educational enterprises, with both aesthetics and didacticism being emphasised. However, narrating folktales under the moonlight has metamorphosed into a significant part of what is referred to, today, as African Children’s Literature. More…

By Munah Nicola Tarpeh

• Title: Wrecked
  
• Author: Dumebi Ezar Ehigiator
• Publisher: Winepress Publishing
• Number of pages: 208
• Year of publication: 2016
• Category: Fiction

By remembering me you remember all those innocent victims. Moving forward and forgetting what happened is forgetting me. Then there will be no reason for me to live. I live to bear witness, to tell my testimony. Once I was wrecked, maybe I still am, but now I have hope. As for my son, if there is something that tortures me, it is the tomorrow of my son.

Wrecked is the story of five remarkable women who represent a large percentage of women in Nigeria, damaged by circumstances that were set in motion before they were born, circumstances that shape what they become, some with devastating effects. More…

By Veronica Elias Ugian

• Title: Crocodile Girl
• Author: Sam Omatseye
• Publisher: Parrésia Publishers Ltd
• Number of pages: 276
• Year of publication: 2017
• Category: Fiction

Crocodile Girl by Sam Omatseye brings out the bold and unique storytelling abilities of the author and attests to his experience as a renowned columnist. The novel explores the history of slavery, witchcraft, love and bravery through the character of Alero. Although considered one of the most beautiful women in Orogun, she is called ugly and evil on suspicion of killing unsuspecting strangers. Believing her to be cursed, she and her family are ‘inxiled’ by the community, but in an unexpected twist an American by the name Tim Forester, the descendant of a family of slave traders with roots traceable to the village, turns up and alters her destiny. More…

By Ekemini Pius 

• Title: Den of Inequities
  
• Author: Kinyanjui Kombani
• Publisher: Longhorn Publishers
• Number of pages: 188
• Year of publication: 2013
• Category: Fiction

Den of Inequities is a subtle satire that interrogates the problems of Kenyan society, just like Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s excellent novel, Wizard of the Crow. Kinyanjui Kombani weaves this story around the lives of three characters – Omosh, Gosti and Aileen – through whom we are made to understand the lives of the ordinary people of Nairobi and the failure of the Kenyan government on different levels. One reason Kombani deserves a lot of praise for this historical novel is because this is exactly the kind of blazing attack on the government that forced Ngũgĩ into exile when Kenya was still under a dictatorship. Even though this novel was published in 2013, when Kenya had transitioned to a democracy and writers who criticise the government are not persecuted as fiercely as before, it takes some guts to attack a powerful government with literature. More…