What have you all been reading? Due to my busy schedule, I’ve only managed to finish reading: The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy and Someone Birthed Them Broken by Ama Asantewa Diaka. I rated them were both 4 stars, but Diaka’s book is leaning more towards 4.5 stars – it’s very Ghanaian, in all (fantastic) ways!
I’ve been perusing the book streets lately and found 21 books super compelling – with respect to their synopses, and book cover designs. Most of these books are/will be published this year (2026) and some were published last year. I’m especially looking forward to new work from Zinzi Clemmons, Jessica George, Imbolo Mbue, Edwidge Danticat, Ayesha Harruna Attah, Tayari Jones, Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah and Deesha Philyaw and Naima Coster. I’ve read and reviewed work by most of these writers, so reading their new work will be very exciting! Those reviews can be found here on this blog, or on my Goodreads.
What books have you read so far this year? What new books have you added to your TBR?
African Book Addict! 
Hi, I don’t usually pay attention to posts about forthcoming books, I like to wait until someone I know has read and reviewed them:)
But African books are different because they tend not to get as much air as they deserve, and I’m particularly interested in the ones where the author is actually living in-country and not an expat. So Someone Birthed Them Broken interests me because the author actually lives in Ghana. I’ll be going through all the others you’ve listed to prioritise which ones interest me most.
So thank you!
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Hi Lisa! The books displayed are not all forthcoming. Some were published a year ago. I’m just highlighting BLACK books with compelling blurbs and cool book covers that I have added to my TBR. The post isn’t meant to be a book review of any of the books. I’ve used this platform (12 years this year!) to highlight BLACK books with and without reviews.
‘Someone Birthed Them Broken’ was a 4.5 stars read for me. As a Ghanaian who lives in Accra, it felt like home for many reasons – the writing, the characters, the dialogue, the visceral mannerisms etc etc. I don’t think I’ll be reviewing books as often as I used to… maybe a couple here and there. Life is too hectic for me right now (I’m a dentist and always tired lol).
Thanks for stopping by, as always.
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I’ve only read five books from Ghana: Changes by Ama Ata Aidoo, Faceless by Ama Darko, some poetry by Celestine Nudanu, and Water Wahala (2011), by Isaac Neequaye in an anthology called African Roar which I read for Ghanaian Literature Week when Kinna used to host it. Since she stopped posting on her blog, I’ve found it much harder to know about books written by authors resident in African countries.
Most recently I read His Only Wife (2020), by Peace Adzo Medie, which was excellent, so I’m always on the lookout for more. I read the Johannesburg Review of Books but they do more excerpts and interviews than actual reviews, and then of course there’s always the problem of getting a copy here in Australia.
(Mind you, I’ve got a good few on the TBR so I should read them first!!)
I do value your reviews, but I understand the pressure of trying to review while also working. I did it for about six years, and then I retired and it was so much easier!
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