Skip to main content

African Literature > Generic Literature

I believe as Africans, we ought to embrace every aspect of our culture, down to the littlest things. We, as Africans, tend to disregard anything that is affiliated with Africa and this has generated stereotypes that define us till this day.
African Literature to me is a form of art that deserves all the laud and appraisal it is currently not receiving.
Below is a list of reasons why African lit will forever have a special place in my heart.

  1. It is very relatable . 
  2. It depicts Africa as the giant it is and it blots out the false perception the rest of the world has about Africa.
  3. It is unconventional 
This post was inspired by Chimamanda Adichie's interview with The Atlantic, which I came across a few months ago on Brittle Paper . The award winning author's interview talks about stereotypes and what makes them problematic. The interview was designed as an animation and she did the voice-over. It was so brilliant. It's like she took the words right out of my mouth and she has such an awesome sense of humour! I swear I can listen to her voice 24/7.
If you'd like to watch the animation, you can check it out here .

PS: Check out my favourite quotes page xx

Comments

  1. Demilade 3 September 2017 at 08:55

    African literature is my favourite type of literature hands down, I love how relatable it is. We need to do more to promote it. Thanks for sharing the link to the animation, would love to check it out. xx
    Coco Bella Blog

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chiamaka Amonye5 September 2017 at 20:49

      Yes, you're right. We definitely need to promote it more. Thank you for stopping by <3

      Delete
  2. literature-critic27 December 2025 at 07:35

    We definitely need to promote it more. A lot is going on, though. I also run a bustling Medium blog for serious literary discourse and book reviews: https://medium.com/@emerencia.nwapa

    Tell me hwich books you want me to review.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE FULANI CREATION STORY

    Right from the moment Mr.Salami -my social studies teacher in year 8- taught us about religion and what different ethnic groups in Nigeria believe the true creation story is ;according to their norms and traditional orientation. I took a  particular interest in one story , which was The Fulani peoples' story.      I guess my reason was because it was so different from all the other stories. I was captivated by how they incorporated different elements of life ; how it was presented in  poem form ,but it isn't a poem lol. Let me spare you the detail . Here is a brief history of the Fulanis , for those who aren't too familiar with who they are and what part of Nigeria they hail from. Fulani, people of Africa numbering about 7 million and dispersed in varying, often sizable, concentrations throughout the grassland areas of West Africa from Senegal and Guinea to Nigeria , Cameroon, and Chad. Their Fulfulde language is closely relate...
9 comments
Read more

REVIEW: A COWRIE OF HOPE

Author : Binwell Sinyangwe My Rating : 3 Stars Genre : Fiction/ Literature Year Published : 2000 ISBN : 9780435912024 Number of Pages : 152 Date Read : 03/12/2017 SUMMARY 'These were the nineties,' reflects the narrator of A Cowrie of Hope , and for the young widow Nasula they are years of relentless economic hardship and privation. She dreams of a better life for her beautiful daughter, Sula, free from poverty and independent of marriage. But when Nasula finds herself unable to pay for Sula's education, her hopes seem to have been extinguished - until a friend advises her to go to Lusaka and sell her last sack of highly sought-after Mbala beans. Nasula makes the journey, but in the city she finds herself exposed to new, and predatory, dangers. MY THOUGHTS The author's writing style was pretty basic. The plot was kind of predictable, nothing mind-blowing, but pretty decent. I especially loved how the story gave me Joys of Motherhood vibes....
Post a Comment
Read more

REVIEW: THE WOMAN NEXT DOOR

Author : Yewande Omotoso My Rating : 5 Stars Genre : Fiction Year Published : 2016 ISBN : 978-978-54604-2-1 Date Read : 18/01/2018 SUMMARY Hortensia and Marion are next door neighbours in a charming, bougainvillea-laden Cape Town suburb. One is black, one white. Both are successful women with impressive careers behind them. Both have recently been widowed. Both are in their eighties. And both are sworn enemies, sharing hedge and hostility pruned with zeal. But one day an unforeseen event forces the women together. Could long-held mutual loathing transform into friendship? Love thy neighbour? Easier said than done. MY THOUGHTS   The story is centered around Hortensia James and Marion Agostino; two women who appear different on the outside, but who have quite a number of startling similarities. The first thing, other than all the mini instagram reviews I read of this book, that drew me to it was the fact that the protagonists were elderly. I recall th...
6 comments
Read more