Uwem Akpan is now one of them...

"Now, let's hope that literary agents and editors will begin to consider our manuscripts seriously," writes Chielo Zona Eze, author of The Trial of Robert Mugabe, in his comment about the new Oprah Book Club selection, Say You Are One of them by Nigerian author and Jesuit ordained priest Uwem Akpan. Eze makes a great point here, since publishing is driven by these kinds of market forces, and it goes without saying that Oprah is a big force in the publishing industry.

I am happy that Akpan's stories (set in Africa) will gain greater exposure now...; and yes, quite a few important people in the American book world will notice more such works as this one. The book was published by Little, Brown & Company, a company that knows how to market its books. I bought my copy of Akpan's book three weeks ago at Barnes and Noble where it was on a special display with other African books.

I am currently reading another of Little, Brown's latest African publications, The Boy Next Door by Zimbabwean author Irene Sabatini. I don't see anything stopping this book from appealing to English readers of diverse backgrounds; it's one of the most accessible books that I have ever read, yet it still manages to portray the distinct details of what most American readers would see as a different culture.

It's a happy hour for African literature, and as Chielo says, it's time to give more African manuscripts a serious look....

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