Happy midweek everyone! Wow. We are already halfway through the week. How time flies. How has the year been going for you so far? I hope that the year has been kind to everyone. If not, I hope you will experience a reversal of fortune in the coming months. More importantly, I hope everyone is happy and healthy, in body, mind, and spirit.

With the midweek comes a fresh WWW Wednesday update, my first this year. WWW Wednesday is a bookish meme hosted originally by SAM@TAKING ON A WORLD OF WORDS. The mechanics for WWW Wednesday are quite simple, you just have to answer three questions:

  1. What are you currently reading?
  2. What have you finished reading?
  3. What will you read next?
www-wednesdays
What are you currently reading?

After spending nearly a month and a half reading the works of African writers, I am finally moving to another part of the literary world that I have rarely explored: South American literature. If my memory serves me right, I hosted a South American month just once previously. But with my reading challenge backlogs and the year slowly drawing to a close, I don’t think I will be staying long in this part of the literary world. To a minimum, I will be ticking off books from the aforementioned reading challenges, such as Laura Esquivel’s The Law of Love, a book that is part of my 2023 Beat the Backlist Challenge.

I acquired the book way back in 2017. However, I ended up reading the Mexican writer’s popular novel, Like Water for Chocolates ahead of The Law of Love. This makes The Law of Love – which also happens to be her sophomore novel – my second novel by Esquivel. It is an interesting book as it fuses different elements, such as history, mythology, magical realism (which is a staple in South American literature I guess), and science fiction. Not to be outdone, the book has graphic novel sections and even some music; unfortunately, the copy I obtained had its CD ripped off. The book is a 180-degree pivot from Esquivel’s debut novel although both books had romance at their core. The Law of Love also has several philosophical intersections. I am just a couple of pages away from completing the novel and while it can be quite disconcerting at times, it is a compelling read.

What have you finished reading?

The second to the last book that concluded my foray into African literature was Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah’s debut novel, Chain-Gang All-Stars. In case you are wondering, while Adjei-Brenyah’s nationality is American, he was born to Ghanaian parents who migrated to the United States; the Kwame in his name was a giveaway. Anyway, it was while searching for books to include in my 2023 Top 10 Books I Look Forward to List that I came across Adjei-Brenyah and his debut novel. It was ubiquitous in similar most anticipated 2023 release lists, hence, it was a no-brainer for me to include the book in my own.

Chain-Gang All-Stars is a work of dystopian fiction. It introduces Loreta Thurwar, the star of the titular Chain-Gang All-Stars Battleground, a battleground broadcasted on the Criminal Action Penal Entertainment (CAPE) channel. It is somewhat akin to the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) although it involves prisoners and is more barbarian, reminiscent of the gladiatorial battles in Rome’s Colosseum. It is a fight to the death. A grand prize awaits those who are able to survive three years at the Battleground: freedom. The average life span was about three months. Thurwar was just two weeks away from being tagged as Freed. But this is also entertainment. It doesn’t take much of a genius to figure out that her last two weeks are going to be tumultuous. After all, Thurwar is CAPE’s top drawer and they are not going to release her as easily as that. With a tension-filled atmosphere, Adjei-Brenyah’s debut novel is an insightful examination of America’s penal system, racism, and racial injustices. It also exposes our unchecked consumption of violence. Overall, Chain-Gang All-Stars is a compelling and explosive debut novel from a

Wrapping up my journey across African literature is another writer from Nigeria; Nigeria is my most explored African literature. It was back in 2019 when I was first introduced to Chigozie Obioma. His sophomore novel, Orchestra of Minorities was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. While I was not entirely convinced by the book, I was willing to make concessions. When I encountered The Fishermen during the Big Bad Wolf Sale, I didn’t hesitate to buy the book. A couple of years later, it formed part of my 2023 Top 23 Reading List.

Set in the 1990s, Obioma’s debut novel transported readers to the city of Akure in Nigeria. We meet four brothers born into a middle-class family: Ikenna, Boja, Obembe, and Benjamin. They have two younger siblings. Their father, because of his work, had to move to a different city although he occasionally goes home. Taking care of the siblings was their mother. Despite being forbidden to do so, the four oldest siblings went fishing on Omi-Ala, a river near their home. During one of their fishing excursions, they encountered Abulu, the village madman who shouted a prophecy that challenged the relationship between the brothers. They used to be a tightly knit unit but the prophecy exposed the cracks that have long existed between the brothers. It is a coming-of-age novel where the brothers have to cope with the harsh realities of the world on their own. Details of Nigeria’s political landscape were also astutely woven into the story. The Fishermen, which was also shortlisted for the Booker Prize, is an evocative story about family dynamics and politics, riddled with rich details of folklore and history.

What will you read next?