Namibian tweeps share some of their favourite books, old or new, of 2017:
@MelyissaIsrael: ‘No Longer Whispering to Power: The Story of Thuli Mandonsela’. Author: Thandeka Gqubule. The manner in which Madonsela comes to the aid of the weak and her constant fight for social services proved victorious in the face of adversity. You eventually win when you are guided by honesty.
@SugaryOblivion: Roxane Gay’s short story collection, ‘Difficult Women’. Her characters are flawed and original, and she writes about difficult topics with a refreshing honesty. One of the short stories, ‘North Country’, is easily the best short I’ve ever read. Overall a brilliant read! Another brilliant book I read this year was Jodi Picoult’s ‘Small Great Things’. It was an uncomfortable read at times, as she takes the reader right into the might of a white supremacist, but it’s topical and very interesting. Well worth a read!
@sutaonce: ‘Khwezi’ by RediTlhabi. A harrowing read that sadly not only rings true in South Africa, but also Namibia’s battle with gender-based violence.
@Oyenaana: An old book but still great… ‘Lord Of The Flies’ (by Nobel Prize-winning author William Golding).
@AndreIzaaks: ‘Infidel’ by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Ali’s perilous journey from childhood in Somalia to becoming an MP in Holland is quite extraordinary and riveting.
@EinoT1: ‘The Alchemist’, Paul Coelho. It’s about the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting. Maktub.
@MickeyNekomba: Trevor Noah’s ‘Born A Crime’. It addresses issues beautifully from internalised apartheid logic to his bittersweet family history. Ah, and his sarcasm is brilliant. Absolutely loved this book!
@shonatiger: ‘Stay With Me’, by Ayobami Adebayo. Really beautiful writing – and African! I felt like I was taking a long walk with the author through subjects and a culture I had not been familiar with, with her explaining all the way.
@ChrisCharamba: ‘The Fishermen’ – Chigozie Obioma. A beautifully written African tragedy covering a variety of themes such as family, mental health, religion and superstitions.
@ThePrimeTaoSoni: ‘From A to B’ by Bonang Matheba.
@Jade_Lennon: ‘The Agony of Truth’ by Samson Ndeikwila was my favourite read this year. The story vindicates the liberating power of truth-telling. It is rare to find such uncompromising moral courage and commitment to the historical truth in contemporary Namibian literature.
@CaptainMadz: ‘The True Believer’ by Eric Hoffer. Extremely relevant to today’s populist’s movements, a guide to the mind of the fanatic and the nature of mass movements.
@netmorris_: ‘Year Of Yes’ by Shonda Rhimes (of ‘Scandal’, ‘HTGAWM’ and, ‘Greys Anatomy’ – TV series). Realised I was an introvert too who’d say ‘no’ to almost everything out of my comfort zone. Changed my no’s into yes’s since. Plus, on page 51 she referred to Namibia’s Khoisan language. Love it.
@JagelloNorthman: ‘Born A Crime’ by Trevor Noah… ’cause it’s funny and serious at the same time… everyone can relate. Also because Bill Gates recommended it. ….
@RTimoteus: ‘The New Confessions Of An Economic Hit Man: The Shocking Inside Story of How America Really Took Over The World’, by John Perkins. It explains how the USA hires economic hit men to cheat countries around the globe out of trillion of dollars. “This is done through fraudulent reports, rigged elections, payoffs, extortion, sex and murder.” Long story short, if I had money I would buy this book for every African.
@bagsecured: ‘Never Give Up’ by Joyce Meyer. It teaches resilience, perseverance, strength and it really teaches one how to deal with life’s setbacks positively.
@Mulewa92: ‘A Continent For The Taking’ by Howard French. The book is brilliantly written, nuanced and full of context about key parts of recent African history that my formal history education and the news abysmally failed to contextualise.
@mosespius: ‘The Five Love Languages’, Gary Chapman. Needed to understand what love is, form, shape it is expressed in and felt.
@usiel09: ‘The Facebook Effect’, about Mark Zuckerberg. It’s so inspirational.
@NKondjashili: ‘The Confessions of An Economic Hitman’, John Perkins. Opened my eyes to the destructive capitalist economic machine that is the West. From the perspective of the people that were sent to destabilise our economies…
@Modern_Villager: ‘Persepolis Rising’ by James SA Corey (seventh book in the ecpanse series). Futuristic sci-fi novel set in a distant future where humanity has spread out into the solar system, tensions rise among the different factions and an old enemy returns from the darkness.
@immanuelhango: ‘The Art of Start’. Author: Guy Kawasaki.
@weldamouton: Trevor Noah’s ‘Born A Crime’. Such an authentic journey. Sad, funny and inspiring, touching on so many issues people can relate to.
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