PROMOTING QUINTESSENTIAL AFRICAN WRITING (2013)

Book: Promoting Quintessential African Writing

Author: Ishmael Mzwandile Soqaga

Publisher: Eselby Jnr Publications

Reviewer: Raphael Mokoena

I read this book quickly at one go; then later on in the evening I re-read it again. Soqaga is an author – as I have pointed out in an earlier  review – who does not compromise in any way when it comes to promoting what he believes is “African”. Inevitably he would step on some toes and probably irritate some in the process, but from the point of view of Black Africans (who for centuries have had a raw deal in world history) his commitment is very much welcome.

But what actually impressed me most is the last part of the book, where the author goes into details on “prolific African writers” over the decades, including many of the books they have published. This is very informative and timely, especially nowadays when younger African readers lack guidance in the world of literature; and many other general lovers of African writing are also in the dark too.

Hence this new work fills a gap, and the gap in question is not just a question of a few years, or a few countries. Soqaga compiles a list of many African writers who hail from all over the continent – from the vibrant west Africa; north Africa, East Africa (eg Ngugi, Meja Mwangi, and David Maillu) – to Southern African writers too. This is not only excellent as a guide for us all, but also for further reference and research purposes.

I have mentioned David Maillu above; (no, I must confess I did not really know about him before) as an outstanding and very prolific African author. But thanks to this new book, I can appreciate Maillu’s feats now. It is also encouraging to see that a number of prolific African female writers are included too, like Ama Ata Aidoo and Buchi Emecheta.

The reader of this book is also struck by the fact that the focus is Afro-centric; not local, regional or national. It appears that for Soqaga Africa is one; its travails and achievements, which includes arts and culture. Hence he even goes down memory lane to centuries ago when Sankori University was apparently very famous (that’s in current Mali, I believe)

Another thing is that Soqaga talks about Africans in Diaspora, including the millions of “blacks” in the USA who have never, and will never visit Africa – as if they were all authentic Africans. This can be a bit confusing a-times but the logic is understandable; Africans in Diaspora are largely offspring of African slaves whisked away overseas centuries ago. Hence Soqaga can boast about the contributions to literature by African-Americans like Du Boise, Ralph Ellison and Booker T Washington.

The overall picture that emerges is that it is unwise to undermine Africa, past and present where literature is concerned. The author is not even afraid to take on the late, illustrious Saul Bellow (Nobel Laureate in Literature) who apparently was no great fan of African Writing, among others. There is also an interesting Appendix, or rather “Further Reading” at the end of the book, which one would find useful if one could lay hands on some of these works!

As an Introduction to African writing especially, including key personnel in this wise over the decades, this is a work to be recommended for us all.