Minnesota Black Authors Expo

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On November 18, many roads led to North Minneapolis, where the Minnesota Black Authors Expo was taking place. I was there, as one of 40 authors presenting their works. It was the dream of De'Vonna Pittman and Jasmine Boulah to organize and host such an event to showcase Black writing. Working hard for four months, these dynamic ladies  pulled off a feat that impressed the many people who attended the Expo.

This event was well planned and seamlessly carried out. The picture on the left is the cover of the Expo brochure, which contained information about authors and their books.







Here De'Vonna is seen speaking, with Jasmine at her side.














Then it was Jasmine's turn to speak. These two hostesses warmly welcomed the guests and kept us engaged the whole time. There was music most of the time, performed by saxophonist Antonio Jackson.














People started coming to the Expo as soon as it was opened. if not earlier. I saw them when I arrived. I have participated in many books fairs, but the Minnesota Black Authors Expo was the one I liked the most.










What appeared to be space limitation actually fostered lively interaction among all of us. The sheer numbers of people talking simultaneously at the various tables, in seeming competition with the background music, produced an animated, delightful babel of voices which reminded me of  the typical African market as I describe it in my book, Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences:

Crowded and noisy, the African market displays the vitality and exuberance of African life. The language of the market place is vibrant and full of humour....Like many other contexts and situations in Africa, the market is a place for building relationships (p. 95).

That African spirit of the Expo really warmed my heart.

The conversations I had with people touched me very much. These people genuinely wanted to know about the work I do relating to Africa and the African Diaspora. Several of them, upon seeing my Notes on Achebe's Things Fall Apart, told me they had read Achebe's novel.

One lady told me that she wanted to go and live in Africa. At first I thought she was just talking, but I quickly realized that she meant what she said. She wanted to move to Africa next year, and wanted me to tell her what she should do to realize her dream. I gave her some advice, including information about African Americans who have settled in countries like Ghana, Senegal and Tanzania. I promised to connect her with people who can help her further.









Here I am, at my table, with several of my books.
















Here I am with De'Vonna, who had come to my table and told me she wanted my "Africans and Americans" book.















This lady exemplified very well the spirit I witnessed during the Expo. She was eager to know about all the books I displayed and was genuinely interested in what I was saying. She bought a copy of Matengo Folktales which she is proudly displaying here.














Though I spent most the time at my table, of course, I did get to meet and talk with other writers. Here on the left, I am with Cavis Adams, author of Granddaddy, his first novel. We had an interesting conversation about our common desire for an Afrocentric focus in our works.

 Here is Penny Jones-Richardson, whose table was next to mine. We talked a great deal, having discovered that we had common interests, she being a life coach and I an educator and cultural consultant. She is the author of Thirty Days of Motivation: A Guide to Reaching Your Goals and Staying Focused.

Here I am with Rita Apaloo, author of African Women Connect, which describes how she formed and ran a networking group of African immigrant women.

My daughter Zawadi joined me at the Expo. She started accompanying me in these events from an early age. She knows what I do and is able to represent me when I am not around.

























At one point, Zawadi spotted in the crowd a lady she recognized as her older sister Assumpta's friend. She approached her and brought her to our table where she introduced us. Her name is Cali Bianca. We enjoyed our meeting.

The Minnesota Black Authors Expo was a great experience for me as an African who eagerly seeks to learn about African Americans. Teaching at St. Olaf College, a predominantly white institution, I decided, long ago, to broaden my American experience by reaching out to the African American community. I thank De'Vonna and Jasmine for helping me on that quest.

Interview on Writing and Publishing: Bukola Oriola and Joseph Mbele

A Sequel to My "Africans and Americans" Book

I am working on a sequel to my book, Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences. This is partly in response to inquiries and request from my readers and partly because I have known for a long time that I needed to keep writing, given the breadth and complexity of the topic of the first book, not to mention its dynamism.

On the tenth year anniversary of the book, I publicly declared that I was working on a sequel. I have to fulfill the promise, mindful of the Swahili proverb, "Ahadi ni deni," A promise is a debt. This second book will contain a number of short essays I have published as well as revisions of talks I have given to various audiences. I hope to finish and publish it before the end of the year. I already have the title for it, but I want to keep it as a surprise.

I thank my readers very much for their responses to my Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences as I did in the following video commemorating the book's tenth year anniversry.

Reflections on The 2013 Twin Cities Book Festival

The Twin Cities Book Festival on October 12 in St. Paul, Minnesota, was another memorable, successful event. In order to be on time for the opening of the Festival, I left early, at 8:00am, arriving at 9:00am. As I was setting up my table, many other exhibitors were doing the same.


I had paid $80 for a half table, and was assigned table number 12. I had registered my exhibition under the name of Africonexion, a little company I own and run, which publishes my books and coordinates my seminars, workshops, and  presentations. The focus is the challenges and opportunities presented by cultural diversity.





As usual, people started arriving early, and when the doors opened, the exhibition hall became a hive of activity. It was heartwarming to observe so many people moving from table to table, talking with authors, booksellers, and publishers, browsing through books and buying books. 

I hear much about the declining fortunes of the book and the book industry as we know it, but being in an event like this festival makes you forget completely that there is such a decline. The number of publishers alone, and the many many titles on display, is enough to give you second thoughts.






Above all, none of these people seemed despondent. On the contrary, they exuded good cheer and optimism. The large number of readers and book buyers underlined the point, at least for me, that the book is here to stay.

Because I was at my table the whole time, I did not get the opportunity to hear the guest writers and observe other programs which were part of the Festival. But this could not be avoided, and it did not diminish the fullness of my satisfaction.



I met and had conversations with a good number of people, and was pleased to see them browse though my books, giving me an opportunity to talk about my work. I cannot express well enough how humbled I was when the people who bought my books asked that I sign them.

It was another very memorable Festival, thanks to the hard work, diligence, and commitment, of Rain Taxi and the many volunteers who worked hard and cheerfully, throughout the day answering questions and helping anyone who needed help. I look forward the 2014 Festival.

Twin Cities Book Festival, October 12

The Twin Cities Book Festival, the biggest book festival in the upper Midwest, USA, is here already. It will be held tomorrow, October 12, at the State Fairgrounds in St. Paul. An annual event, this Festival brings together thousands of book lovers, writers, editors, publishers, booksellers, illustrators and critics.

I have participated in a number of these festivals, and I am ready for tomorrow. I look forward to talking with many people, sharing ideas and experiences about writing, publishing, and related subjects. As usual, I will be exhibiting my books. In the video below, you can hear me talking briefly about my most popular book: Africans and Americans: Embracing Cultural Differences



 

My Arusha Readers

Visiting Arusha is always a treat. There are many people to meet, places to visit, and things to do. One of my joys is meeting my readers. There are quite a few: Americans, Europeans, Tanzanians, and others.

This summer, I spent several days in Arusha. I met my friend, Thomas Ratsim. He and J.M. Tours, the company he works for, have been steadfast fans of my Africans and Americans book. Many American travelers with J.M. Tours have heard about this book from Thomas.

The guys in the photo, taken in the Tarangire National Park during my Hemingway course, summer of 2008, were all with J.M. Tours. They had read Africans and Americans, and they regaled me with tales of how it helps them deal with tourists.

I visited the Arusha Times, which once carried an excerpt of my book. I met Linda, an American fan of the Africans and Americans book, whom I have known for some time, and who offers cultural orientation for foreigners in Arusha. Knowledgeable and experienced, she urged me to write a sequel. Thanks to readers like her, I am working on one.

I met Ingrid, a European teacher I did not know before. She works with school children and likes story telling. She was familiar with my Africans and Americans and Matengo Folktales, and she shared some interesting perspectives on both teaching children and cultural differences.

There are other places I would have liked to visit, and other people I would have liked to meet, if I had more time. One is the Peace House School, where I once gave a talk on the issues I raise in the Africans and Americans book. There, Africans and Americans work side by side. The director thought it would be a good idea for them to have on-going book discussions as a way of learning about their cultural differences.

I would have visited the office of the Global Service Corps, an American organization that sends volunteers to Tanzania and recommends Africans and Americans on its website. I have visited their office several times in the past and seen copies of the book there, for volunteers.

I wish to thank all my readers. Their continuing engagement with my work both inspires and sustains me.

My Nebraska Readers

On June 9, 2010 I was in Amsterdam for several hours, on my way from Minneapolis to Dar es Salaam. As we were standing in the long, packed queue, proceeding to the boarding gate, a lady approached me confidently and asked me to sign a copy of my Africans and Americans book.

I did not know the lady, but she had the book in her hand. As she was handing me the pen and the book, I humbly asked for her name, and she told me to write Charlotte and Aimee. I asked where she was from and she said Nebraska, adding that she and several other people were on their way to Arusha, Tanzania, on a mission trip. Such mission trips are now very common among U.S. Lutherans and other Christians.

As Charlotte and I talked, we discovered that we have a mutual friend, Pastor Martin Russell, who is a seasoned leader of mission trips to Tanzania. I have never met him, but we are connected on Facebook. As we were getting connected on Facebook, Pastor Russell told me that he constantly recommends my book to mission trip participants. That is how Charlotte got to know about it.

During the flight, a young lady came to my seat and declared that she was Charlotte’s daughter and excitedly started praising my book, saying it “really nailed it.” Other people sitting nearby heard her. I was humbled. She asked if I would pose for a photo with her group later, and I gladly agreed.

When the plane landed at the Kilimanjaro International Airport in Arusha, I joined the group in the back of the plane and Charlotte took the photo shown here.













Such encounters with my readers have become quite common during flights between the USA and Tanzania. I am easy to recognize because of the photo on the back of my book, and I know that wherever I go, I cannot hide.