Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme started by @Lauren’s Page Turners but is currently hosted by Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog. This meme is quite easy to follow – just randomly pick a book from your to-be-read list and explain why you want to read it. It is that simple.

This week’s book:

Necessary Fiction by Eloghosa Osunde

Blurb from Goodreads

What makes a family? How is it defined and by whom? Is freedom for everyone?

In Necessary Fiction, Eloghosa Osunde poses these provocative questions and many more while exploring the paths and dreams, hopes and fears of more than two dozen characters who are staking out lives for themselves in contemporary Nigeria.

Across Lagos, one of Africa’s largest urban areas and one of the world’s most dynamic cities, Osunde’s characters seek out love for self and their chosen partners, even as they risk ruining relationships with parents, spouses, family, and friends. As the novel unfolds, a rolling cast emerges: vibrantly active, stubbornly alive, brazenly flawed. These characters grapple with desire, fear, time, death, and God, forming and breaking unexpected connections; in the process unveiling how they know each other, have loved each other, and had their hearts broken in that pursuit.

As they work to establish themselves in the city’s lively worlds of art, music, entertainment, and creative commerce, we meet their collective and individual attempts to reckon with the necessary fiction they carry for survival.

Why I Want To Read It

Happy Monday, everyone! Technically, it is already Tuesday. I know—not many people get excited about Mondays (though I’m sure a few are out there). I, too, am not exactly a fan. Still, we push forward. After all, we’ve got to start somewhere, and Monday is one of those starting points. It provides us an opportunity to work on our goals; ironically, in any endeavor, the start is often the hardest part. Nevertheless, I hope everyone had a restful weekend and is ready for the week ahead. The weather here in the Philippines has been unpredictable. Today, the skies are clear, and the stifling Manila heat is back, although at a lesser degree than in the previous months. The holiday breeze is here to remind us that Christmas is just around the corner. As such, the cases of colds and coughs have also increased. With this, I hope everyone is doing well—mentally, emotionally, and physically—and that we all make it through (or survive) the workweek.

Time really does fly. Just like that, we’re already in the last month of the year. In a couple of days, we will be waving goodbye to 2026 and welcoming a new year. 2026 is just over the horizon. Despite the uncertainties the future holds, time keeps pressing forward—regardless of our readiness. While the future remains shrouded in uncertainty, there’s still much to look forward to. The new year brims with hope and fresh starts. I hope everything goes well for everyone in the remainder of the year. May the rest of the year be kind to us all and shower us with blessings, positivity, healing, and growth. I hope good news and kindness come knocking on your doors in the coming weeks. May you be rewarded for all the hard work you’ve put in this year. Wishing you continued success and happiness.

With the start of a new week also comes a new reading adventure, hence a fresh Goodreads Monday update. My venture into the vast landscape of American literature—and, by extension, African literature—is in full swing. This is in line with my goal of completing all my reading challenges and goals this year; the remaining books from these challenges were written by American and African writers. I am currently reading Jonathan Franzen’s The Corrections, one of the books on my 2025 Top 25 Reading List and on my 2025 Beat the Backlist Challenge. It has been nearly a decade since I acquired the book, so it has become imperative for me to read the book. It is the third book by the highly heralded American writer that I have read. It is also one of the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. I am literally hitting several birds with a single stone.

Anyway, back to what this weekly meme is about. With the year drawing to a close, literary pundits and prominent publications have been releasing lists of their best reads of the year. 2025 was yet another memorable literary ride. However, there are several 2025 releases that I look forward to reading. Among them is Eloghosa Osunde’s Necessary Fiction. I believe it was midway through the year when I learned that the Nigerian was releasing a new work. They first caught my attention with their debut novel, Vagabonds. It was an interesting story about their homeland, which they imbued with magic and folklore. It was easily one of my favorite reads in 2024. It also underscores my growing interest in works of Nigerian literature. Nigerian literature has surprisingly become one of my favorite literatures in the world.

The fantastical elements and my resolution to expand my Nigerian literary base are the main drivers for my interest in their sophomore novel. From the blurb, I can surmise several parallels with their debut novel. They transport the readers again to Lagos, the former Nigerian capital. I am looking forward to being embraced by the quality of their storytelling and writing once again. They write not only with elan, but with a lyrical quality that is both fascinating and breathtaking. I am pretty sure they will make Lagos come alive, while they introduce an eclectic cast of characters who are, individually, the embodiment of every facet of modern Nigerian society. Necessary Fiction has certainly gotten my attention. I hope I get to read it before the year ends.

How about you, fellow readers? How was your Monday? What books have you recently added to your reading list? Drop your thoughts in the comments. For now—happy Monday, and as always, happy reading!