Five books of joy in a difficult World
I generally think we deserve to be happy. I am a very happy person. It does not mean I don’t get depressed in the face of rape, war, insurgency, bomb blasts at airports, evil, injustice, and deceitful characters all over the world but I still find joy in a lot of things; in the smell of a rose, the smell of the first rain, the toothy smile of a child, kindness in the most unusual places, unending love and a happy crowd. Some of my greatest joys are my family, a good book and good food in that order. In spite of all the challenges in the world, I would like to share today some of the books that have given me the greatest joy all these years.
1) Isabel Allende’s Aphrodite: This book which is the history of food, love and aphrodisiacs, brings me to tears all the time. This is a book that gives us education on different cultures concerning foods that are aphrodisiac. Isabel tells us about the memory of food. She lets us into the story of how she remembers fresh plums. She remembers it in a very special way because her first kiss by a boy when she was very young was on a boat with fresh plums all around. So every time she has plum she remembers that moment. The book also contains recipes by her mother. I loved my late mother’s cooking and really everyone loves his or her mother’s cooking, so a book that combines mother’s cooking, the memory of food and food as aphrodisiac is a book of great joy. Isabel is a wonderful writer. Her novels are phenomenal as are her nonfiction books but the one that gives me the greatest joy is Aphrodite.
2) Choose Joy by Kay Warren: In this inspiring book, Kay Warren reveals the truth to finding lasting joy even in the toughest times. In this book, she shows that joy is a lot more accessible than we might think it is. Choose Joy is an unputdownable book recommended particularly if you have a patch of sorrow.
3) Any early African novels, So Long a Letter-Mariama Ba, A Man of the People by Chinua Achebe, Mine Boy by Peter Abraham. The Trials of Brother Jero by Wole Soyinka. These books and several others in the African Writers Series brought me some dollops of joy as a young girl. It is my belief that anyone who gets copies and can still find them should read them again and if you have never read them, begin to search for them. The beauty of writing, the diverse cultures of our people and the characterisation is a joy to behold. African writers continue to make us proud even the contemporary ones. Buy an African novel today.
4) Any book about fashion: I am a fashionable person without being a slave to fashion. I love to wear African fabrics, the adire, the mud cloth from Ivory Coast is called Bogolan, the ankara print, our embroidery and the boldness of our fashion. Sometimes on the international runways you also see the motifs of the tropics, the animal print, tiger, leopard skin and all the colours of the rainbow found in Africa. A book to read would be any book about African fashion and how it has impacted international fashion. By the way we are very fashionable people.
5) I love biographical books. I particularly like the ones about how man can surmount their challenges. Nelson Mandela, African Americans like Alex Haley and his incredible books Roots. I also love to read about women conquering the world, the story of Margaret Thatcher, Women warriors of Africa, Princess Inikpi of Igala land, Madam Tinubu of Lagos, the role of Michelle Obama in the Obama series, the German chancellor and most powerful woman in Europe Angela Merkel. Stories of life struggles and how they are conquered. Biographies and autobiographies are some of the first books to go to for joy. Always there is something positive to take away. Biographies are books that once you buy them you never give them away. You borrow them out cautiously because in some instances you will never find them again. Generally you will continue to consult them for life. So go out there and get a biography or autobiography that will give you something to think about and give you great joy no matter how sad you are. The conquest in biographies are always something to be thought about. Life stories, life’s troubles, how many conquered them.