UNDER THE TREE OF TALKING, LEADERSHIP FOR CHANGE IN AFRICA
Onyekachi Wambu (ed.)
Foreword by John Githongo
Contributors: Chinua Achebe, Taddy Blecher, Jean Bosco Butera, Chukwu-Emeka Chikezie, Martha Chinouya, Chinweizu, Eva Dadrian, Wangui wa Goro, William Gumede, Parselelo Kantai, Susan and Juliet Kiguli, Ali A. Mazrui, Kimani Ngoju, Ndidi Nwuneli, Marianna Ofosu, Paul Tiyambe Zeleza. Onyekachi Wambu provides an introduction and a chapter on Africa and China
In this collection of thought-provoking essays, Onyekachi Wambu and 18 distinguished thinkers and leaders reflect on the failure of leadership at all levels in large parts of the continent, and propose positive solutions to inspire a new generation of African leaders. Effective and inspiring leadership at all levels is increasingly recognised to be the key to positive social and political change. Under the Tree of Talking testifies to hope on the horizon for African societies
LORD LUCE - A very remarkable book [which] gives African views rather than European views on how they can and want to best solve their problems
The Rt Hon. NEIL KINNOCK - I firmly recommend this strong volume of essays by a wide range of African writers - some are very established authors like Ali Mazrui and Chinua Achebe and others are new young voices. Two features of this book make it truly different and important: first, the theme of leadership which it addresses is a vital consideration for African development that is led by Africans. Second, it is a book about Africa which - unlike most books about the continent - is written by Africans. A bit like a poem, it examines leadership: from the beginning; from the top down; from the bottom up; from the present to the future; from the outside looking in; from the inside looking out. All of those characteristics make this collection of essays a rare and significant achievement. So if you take this book, if you absorb what it says, you will join me, I'm sure, in being enlightened and encouraged by the candour, constructiveness and courage of the authors. 'Under the tree of talking' there is knowledge and wisdom to be found
DIRAN ADEBAYO - A must-read for all those, global Africans and others, who care about the continent's future. Wambu has assembled a great heavyweight cast to shed light on a matter that probably more than any other has affected Africa's fortunes these last 50 years: leadership
SAMUEL NUAMAH, GHANAIAN TIMES - An ambitious anthology of leadership in Africa, it is a bold call to action for leaders in all walks of life to build towards Africa’s renaissance with confidence and unity
DENNIS BANDA - A timely book with wide ranging issues that must be read by those who hope for a better Africa
Counterpoint - WEL (hardback, paperback, anthology, electronic) ; BookBlast Ltd - All other rights
Non fiction. September 2007 paperback original 292 pages £11.99 ISBN 0 86355 586 1
THE DEMENTED DANCE
Mounsi
Awards: Prix Malek Haddad–Fondation Nourredine Aba ; Prix France-Maghreb Afrique-Méditerranée ; Prix Radio-Beur ; Inaugural 3AM Good Sex Prize 2004
TANIA GLYDE, TIME OUT (Book of the Week) - The Demented Dance (La Noce des Fous) was first published in 1990, predating Irvine Welsh and the 'keeping it real' writing boom that came after. Tarik, an Algerian boy from a shantytown in the Parisian suburbs, watches helplessly as his unemployed alcoholic father declines into madness. When Tarik is taken into care, he learns to hustle. After being implicated in a murder, he is sent to borstal, and then descends through thieving and prostitution to tragedy. It's easy for the comfortable reader to make a fetish of others' deprivation, but this book demands more from its audience. What elevates The Demented Dance above similar stories is the interior life of the narrator. Even as he is written off by his teachers, Tarik remains aware of his own oblivion, thereby keeping himself alive. And the ending is a shock, an undeserved but somehow inevitable fate. Mounsi, 'the Hubert Selby Jnr of contemporary French writing', has won many prizes in France, and first appeared in English in the ground- breaking XCiTés anthology of new French writing in 1999. Born in Algeria, he moved to Nanterre aged seven, where he fell quickly into 'the life'. For reference, think La Haine; think the Cités - the concrete Parisian suburbs we only hear about when there's rioting. Nowadays it's hard to refer to anyone as an 'outsider' without instantly reducing their difference to a brand. So check out Mounsi's writing for yourself: it's a true lesson in walking in another's shoes
HARRIETT GILBERT, BBC WORLD SERVICE - Mounsi is an extraordinary French novelist whose life was completely turned round by a book [Villon's The Ballad of the Hanged Man] when he was in prison as a teenager ... In his novel The Demented Dance, Mounsi uses almost mythic language, imagery and rhythms to tell the essentially brutal story of young Tarik struggling to survive among the ugly shantytowns, immigrant outskirts, wasteland and tower blocks that circle the Paris of tourist brochures ... One thing which is very striking about his writing is that he doesn't write in Berber, his mother tongue, or in the French slang of the streets like so many other Maghrebi writers, but in a very pure, very correct, very elegant, one almost might say stately French ... The hero of the novel, Tarik, when he is just 13, is a thief, is violent, has been implicated in a murder, and Mounsi persuades us that it is inevitable, given the life he has had, that he would go to the bad ...
This poor chldhood of Tarik's is one in which he finds his values are the opposite to those of the majority culture
SARAH CHAMPION, METRO MIDLANDS - My favourite book this year
SUNDAY GLASGOW HERALD - Mounsi’s tale of losing his immigrant father to poverty and alcoholism rings with a sense of truth and a lack of self-consciousness
SPIKEMAGAZINE.COM - The new Camus? OK, I'm being flippant, but Mounsi is Algerian and he does write for football anthologies...
THE BOOKSELLER - A gripping tale of brutalised youth suffused with a dark poetry
PUBLISHING NEWS - A powerfully written novel about outcast adolescents, a sort of Algerian Trainspotting
BANIPAL MAGAZINE OF MODERN ARAB LITERATURE - The Demented Dance with its raw and sensual descriptions of the young beur's squalid and hopeless life is a story that shocks and provokes the senses as much as the mind. An excellent translation from the French
BlackAmber/Arcadia, London – UK & Commonwealth ; Editions de l'Aube – French language ; BookBlast Ltd – All other rights
Fiction. 2003 PB original BlackAmber/Arcadia 224pp £7.99 ISBN 1-901969-16-9 Translated by Lulu Norman
This book is supported by the French Ministry for Foreign Affairs, as part of the Burgess Programme headed for the French Embassy in London by the Institut Français du Royaume Uni
DAYBREAK INTO DARKNESS, A TRUE STORY OF HAPPINESS AND HEARTBREAK
Rupert Bogarde
MAIL ON SUNDAY - Unsparing in its raw honesty
DAILY TELEGRAPH - A skilful memoir ... Bogarde’s writing is so good
INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY - A story that lingers in the reader’s consciousness, haunting through its wider possibilities
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH - An idyll that turned to a nightmare for a young couple making a new life in France
AMAZON.CO.UK - A powerful memoir about mental illness and the destruction of love ... This is an extraordinary story, told with the immediacy of first-hand experience
AMAZON.CO.UK/CUSTOMER REVIEWS: 15 July 2002 A reader from Cardiff, UK - It was the Bogarde name that drew me first, the author being the nephew of the late, great Dirk Bogarde. From such inconsequential associations are great discoveries made. A powerful book, and a 'schizophrenic' one too (no pun intended with regard to the subject matter): the first half starts as the usual, Brits-emigrate-and-build-a-home-and-aren't-the-locals-funny sort of tr avelogue, with only occasional glimpses of the horror to come, and once the second half kicked in, I was hooked. Not the best written book I've read, but certainly the most honest and heartfelt book I've had the pleasure of reading for a long time. Thoroughly recommended
25 June 2002 Emchi from Maidstone, Kent UK - I can't find the right words to express this book. Only that the cover was what initially caught my eye whilst looking for something new to read having read just about everything by all the authors I admire. I read the flyleaf and bought it thinking that it was A Year in Provence meets some kind of mystery thriller. It wasn't quite but it opens your eyes to how hard it is to deal with mental illness, not just in your own language but also from trying to gain support in another country and a totally foreign language. I felt a complete mix of emotions reading the book, from happiness to anger and sadness mixed in. The book has a way that it pulls you in and won't let you go until you've finished the last page. I'd just have to say Read It and form your own opinion of it, it's a good book
17 September 2002 A reader from Sandy, Beds, UK - Like a previous reviewer I thought this book was one of two halves with the second half stepping up the pace so much that I was unable to put it down until I reached the end. It reduced me to tears as I read of his struggles, not just for him but also his wife and children. Now even days after finishing it I am still haunted by the story which even in the 'good times' were also a terrible struggle and which only those of incredibly strong character could possibly endure. Not fantastically written, but nontheless a story certainly worth telling and even more worth reading
Pan Macmillan – UK & Commonwealth ; F A Thorpe Publishing – Large Print ; The Sunday Times – First Serial ; YOU magazine Mail On Sunday – extract & first interview
Biography. HB 2002 Pan Macmillan £16.99 ISBN 0333906454 392pp Illus
PB 2003 Pan Macmillan £7.99 ISBN 0330487892
XCiTés: THE FLAMINGO BOOK OF NEW FRENCH WRITING
Georgia de Chamberet (ed.)
STRAIGHT NO CHASER - The perfect Eurostar read
SUNDAY GLASGOW HERALD - French writing in translation by a new generation which aims to smash the sterotypes. Illustrating France's struggle to be pluralist, this book is an interesting insight into exactly where French culture currently stands
THE GUARDIAN - XCiTés bristles with aggression and energy … speed art
SCOTSMAN - A haven of enlightenment [and] a useful introduction to the more go-getting young Gallic authors
THE FACE - A collection of short stories by French writers exposing their country as a hotbed of sexual adventure, racial tension and club bedlam. Frédéric Beigbeder's Trashed sees lives s aved in a chic Parisian club; Virginie Despentes screws bald men in Fuck Me; and in Haiku Marie Desplechin exposes phoney liberalism on a blind date with a black man. Extracts from Michel Houellebecq's novel Whatever and the screenplay to La Haine lend gritty gravitas
NEW STATESMAN - A fascinating collection of essays, interviews and new fiction
MARIE-CLAIRE (AUSTRALIA) - A sizzling anthology of new French voices expertly translated ... XCiTés is a breath of fresh air in the stuffy lungs of French literary culture. Expect the unexpected and you'll be halfway there
AMAZON.CO.UK - This comes as a shock: the diversity of Georgia de Chamberet's much-needed collection reflects modern French life, multicultural, iconoclastic, energetically variegated, shot through with attitudes of resistance and rebellion. The witty angst of Desplechin and Desarthe, the virtuoso misanthropy of Houellebecq, the brutal vivacity of Despentes - these, among others, demonstrate the range and vitality of current French writing
INDEPENDENT - French society is diverse, richly multi-cultural - and the writing in this collection represents some of that diversity. If a writer is clearly wonderful - Waberi (originally from Djibouti) or Mounsi (Algerian) - then we want more. The last three inclusions - scenes from Mathieu Kassovitz's film La Haine, a piece on the house music scene by DJ Tov and an interview with Chelsea defender Marcel Desailly illustrate the point of this kind of new fiction which is to question traditional modes of publishing. The French are tired of their image
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY This collection of new French writing reveals some deep fissures in the ruling bourgeoisie: hostility toward immigrants, nihilistic youth enthralled by drugs and violence, and cultural insecurity over the country's exalted past. With excerpts from published works by energetic young writers who remain untranslated, de Chamberet, a literary agent who works both sides of the Channel, is determined to rescue French literature from 'cold cerebrality and self-indulgent navel-gazing'
Contributors include: Frédéric Beigbeder, Tonino Benacquista, Marcel Desailly, Agnès Desarthe, Virginie Despentes, Marie Desplechin, Ilan Duran Cohen, Michel Houellebecq, Mathieu Kassovitz, Mounsi, Vincent Ravalec, Abdourahman Waberi ...
Harpercollins publishers, London - World English Language. Distributed in the USA by Trafalgar Square
Literature & fiction. Trade PB 1999 Flamingo, Harpercollins £11.99 ISBN 0002259397 PB 2000 Flamingo, Harpercollins £7.99 ISBN 0006551912 288pp
EMPIRE WINDRUSH: FIFTY YEARS OF WRITING ABOUT BLACK BRITAIN
Onyekachi Wambu (ed.)
US edition: HURRICANE HITS ENGLAND: AN ANTHOLOGYOF WRITING ABOUT BLACK BRITAIN
Preface by E R Braithwaite
Selected as a key title in the 'Well Worth Reading' national scheme promoting literature in libraries in 1998-99
SUNDAY TIMES - Wambu's wide-ranging anthology celebrates the insemination, proliferation and cross-pollination of the black voice in British culture … passionate, funny and moving
TIMES HIGHER EDUCATIONAL SUPPLEMENT - Quite simply the best anthology of writing about the Black British experience to have appeared to date
IRISH INDEPENDENT - Heartfelt, extraordinarily vibrant and the authors form a roll call of black novelists who have enriched the country's literature
SPECTATOR - This thoughtfully edited anthology could hardly be bettered
LITERARY REVIEW - This book should be installed in every school library in Britain
BOOKSELLER - This book is ground-breaking, tracking how black men and women have made Britain their own
FINANCIAL TIMES - Some of the best writing about the Black British experience
Contributors include: Diran Adebayo, Jean Binta Breeze, Jan Carew, Merle Collins, Bernardine Evaristo, Beryl Gilroy, Paul Gilroy, Stuart Hall, Victor Headley, CLR James, Hanif Kureishi, George Lamming, S.I. Martin, Dervla Murphy, Grace Nichols, Ben Okri, Caryll Phillips, Salman Rushdie, Sam Selvon, Wole Soyinka ...
Orion Books - UK & Commonwealth ; Continuum International Inc, New York - US inc. Canada
Non fiction, history. Trade PB 1998 Victor Gollancz Ltd £10.99 ISBN 0575065990 PB 1999 Phoenix, Orion Books £7.99 ISBN 0753808390 HB 2000 Continuum Inter. Inc $49.95
ISBN 0826412629 PB 2000 Continuum Inter. Inc $24.95 ISBN 0826412610 448pp
LE FOOT: THE LEGENDS OF FRENCH FOOTBALL
Christov Rühn (ed.)
Ranked 6th in The Independent’s 'Top 10 Sports Books' listing of 5 June 2000 compiled by Sportspages Bookshops, London & Manchester
WATERSTONES ONLINE - With great dexterity and passion, the story of French football is vividly brought to life with this ambitious and impressive collection of disparate writers ... the time is right for a book as relevant to the English Premiership as it is to passionate Latin land across the channel
TOTAL FOOTBALL (Book of the Month) - The best value book to strut its way on to the football shelves for some time
AMAZON.CO.UK - A compelling mixture of analysis and insight tinged with the romantic flair evident in much of the best that French football has offered. Excellent
DAILY TELEGRAPH - Buy this book
FRANCE-FOOTBALL - Irresistible
TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT - A lively collection … there is much to enjoy in this Anglo-French venture
FHM (France) - This Anglo-French pot-pourri is the ultimate read to stimulate youthful passion
OBSERVER - One of the more intriguing books amid the deluge of soccer literature
INDEPENDENT - There are flashes of insight with the occasional incisive ball…
FOUR-FOUR-TWO - There is loads of good stuff in here
BOL.COM (Editor's Choice) - Impressive
SPORTSPAGES.CO.UK - Le Foot captures the essence of French football
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH - A celebration for France's new-found love for the beautiful game … the Frenchmen profiled here are a little less dim and arrogant than their British counterparts
From the Introduction by IRVINE WELSH - Le Foot is as diverse as French sporting tastes and is of Platini or Zidane quality, brilliant interviews with both of those masters featuring in its pages. Yes it's that excellent; it has the capacity to affirm, surprise and irritate. It's also not afraid to stray from well-worn Media Central routes, as in Tam Dean Burn's piece on Franck Sauzée ... Q's offbeat piece about the Nicolas Anelka transfer saga has achieved the near-impossible by managing to breathe new life into possibly the most played-out affair in the modern game. There's something for everyone and the standard of writing is very high
Contributors include: David Baddiel, Patrick Barclay, Will Buckley, Tam Dean Burn, Marcel Desailly, Charlie Hall, Amy Lawrence, Jean-Philippe Leclaire, Michel Platini, Ben Richards, Ian Ridley, Salman Rushdie, Philippe Tournon, Chris Waddle, Irvine Welsh ...
Time Warner UK - World Volume ; 84 editions, J'ai Lu, Paris - French language
Sport, literature & fiction. Trade PB 2000 Abacus, Little Brown UK £9.99 ISBN 0349112703 320pp ; 2002 PB éditions 84, J'ai Lu Paris 13 euros ISBN 2-290-32052-8 356pp
CHRISTOV RÜHN wrote Lost In Music, about French house and hip hop, for XCiTés: the Flamingo Book of New French Writing. He went on to edit Le Foot: the Legends of French Football. An avant-garde DJ and producer, he has worked with Mory Kante, Judge Jules and IAM and was one of the first DJs to introduce garage music to Paris whilst hosting regular clubs; spinning alongside Armand Van Helden, CeCe Rogers, Blade (Jestofunk) and Laurent Garnier.
BRITAIN'S SLAVE TRADE
S. I. Martin
Introduction by Trevor Phillips
THE TIMES - Three centuries before the abolition of the slave trade, an estimated 10 million Africans found themselves on ships bound for the New World. The records of such mass displacement, however, have remained unsresearched until now. This account shows the forerunner of the Industrial Revolution as a source of great power and suffering; an influence on diet, language and the attitudes that prevail today
THE GLEANER - If you missed the Channel 4 documentary series about Britain's participation in the world slave trade then here it is for you to read ... Britain's Slave Trade stands out as an outstanding presentation of Britain's ugliest hours ... highly recommended
AMAZON.CO.UK - Europe has reaped the rewards whilst Africa has suffered the costs of the slave trade ... S. I. Martin reveals how the slaving legacy extends to Britain's politics, to the industrial and architectural heritage, to high street banks and to the genetics of the current population. He does not shy away from slavery's shocking cruelty or from sensitive issues ... General historical background is combined with short studies of specific individuals and places, incorporating substantial quotations from Europeans and Africans - from historical figures, modern scholars, descendants of slaves and slavers. For a relatively brief book, Britain's Slave Trade provides wide coverage in both time and in its range of topics. It is concerned about the future as well as the past, offering a hope that a more complete awareness of the legacy of slavery may be a force for closer social unity. Highly readable
Macmillan Publishers Ltd, London - World Volume rights
Non fiction, history. HB 1999 Channel 4 Books/Macmillan £14.99 illus ISBN 0752217852 PB 2000 Channel 4 Books/Macmillan £6.99 illus ISBN 0752272519 176pp
S. I. MARTIN hit the scene with his landmark novel Incomparable World, based around the Black community living in Covent Garden in the eighteenth century. This was followed by Britain's Slave Trade which accompanied Trevor Phillips' series for Channel 4. Steve has written for various broadsheets, and has also compiled crosswords. He frequently participates in talk shows on BBC radio. His popular walking tours and boat trips visiting the historic sites of Black London are supported by the London Tourist Board.
