Nigeria Content Online

If you love
reading this is a great time to be alive. Thanks to technology, pretty
much anything these days is a book. There is always something to read.
The democratisation of reading is happening at a time when it appears
that people have lost interest in reading anything that doesn’t chant
“Amen!” at them.

Today, there are
homes that house no books. Unfortunately, there are children in those
homes. That is child abuse. A child should be immersed in all sorts of
books. I know, I know, I have said that the book is dying a long slow
death. A house should be slaphappy with books and ideas. Look at it
another way: This is a great time to buy books because no one wants
them anyway. Buy them and leave them lying around the house. A child
may just read them.

I have enjoyed
reading many African writers. The younger ones tend to be enthusiastic
and eager to be published. Many are good at what they do, but if I had
to give advice, I would suggest that many of our writers would improve
their craft if they spent more time reading than writing.

Read, read, and
read. You will be surprised at how much it improves on your muse’s
judgment. What do I read? People regularly send me books from Nigeria.
I stalk used bookshops thrift stores, and yard sales. You would be
surprised what Americans will give away for pennies. I trek the
Internet buying the books of my childhood. If you really want to see
how the Internet is fueling the renaissance that is African literature
today, google “African writing”, kick back with a good glass of
something red, luscious and bold, and enjoy yourself.

There are blogs,
websites, and Facebook pages out there devoted to some pretty good
writing. Google Nnorom Azuonye and his ‘Sentinel Poetry Movement’ and
you will be love-struck. Jeremy Weate, (who with Bibi Bakare-Weate
publishes Cassava Republic) owns ‘Naijablog’, a brilliant blog that I
am fairly addicted to. Read Molara Wood’s ‘Wordsbody’, Chuma Nwokolo’s
‘African-Writing’, and Sola Osofisan’s ‘Africanwriter.com’ and
‘Nigeriansinamerica.com’. And of course, for home grown investigative
reporting, late breaking news, literature and some pretty strong
opinions, you should visit Sowore Omoyele’s inimitable
‘Saharareporters’ and Philip Adekunle’s bustling ‘Nigeria Village
Square’.

The irrepressible
writer and poet, Ob Iwuanyanwu (Obiwu), manages a small group of top
notch Nigerian writers on the list-serve ‘Ederi’. The poet,
Amatoritsero Ede, edits ‘Maple Tree Literary Supplement’ and manages
the list-serve ‘Krazitivity’. Indeed, many of today’s Nigerian literary
stars cut their teeth on ‘Krazitivity’ under the watchful eyes of
griots like Obiwu Iwuanyanwu, Tade Ipadeola, Pius Adesanmi, Molara
Wood, Chika Unigwe, Olu Oguibe, Afam Akeh, Lola Shoneyin, Chuma
Nwokolo, EC Osondu, Jude Dibia, Tolu Ogunlesi, and Victor Ehikhamenor.
Shola Adenekan runs ‘The New Black Magazine’. Kola Tubosun blogs his
escapades in America and elsewhere in ‘ktravula’. Chielozona Eze
connects the lush dots of African Literature in his blog ‘African
Literature News and Review’.

Google the
Zimbabwean writer, Ivor Hartmann of ‘Storytime’, and be enthralled. Do
not die until you have read Ainehi Edoro’s blog, ‘Brittle Paper’. Edoro
is enigmatic, witty, brainy and just plain fun. Binyavanaga Wainana is
the brainy godfather of them all, spewing his brilliant rage on our
e-conscience. The uber-smart Petina Gappah blogs (too occasionally
lately, alas) on ‘The World According to Gappah’.

Oh, if you are on
Facebook, please visit my favourite, Auntie PJ’s page, ‘Let’s Talk
About It’. The sum total of our sexuality is on full luscious display
right there in all its glory. It is not literature as we know it, but I
highly recommend it. There are also many groups and pages on Facebook
devoted to literature and writers. I am friends with several African
writers on Facebook and they are an invaluable source of manuscripts,
stories, leads, books, etc. They tend to accept you as a friend once
you request, don’t be shy.

When I read books,
I take copious notes along the margins of the books. The notes are
usually my observations about many aspects of the book I am reading. At
the end of the reading, I always go back and compile all the notes and
it never fails, strong opinions always result from the compilation. I
invariably always publish the opinions for what they are worth.

If I like a book,
I say so. If I don’t, I say so. It is really nothing personal. And
please do not take me too seriously; I am just an opinionated consumer
that has been fooled by America into thinking he is always right. I am
a consumer, I paid for the damn book, and I am right. Deal with it.

So tell me, I
really would love to hear from you. Where do you go to for the
literature of our people? I am thinking of compiling a digital reading
list that I would share with the world. Send me your favourite digital
site and I will put it out there for the world to see and enjoy.