I took a “traveling” break for Booker season, but we’re back to “Tommi Reads the World” – we’re still in the C’s!!! Country: CameroonTitle: Days Come & GoAuthor: Hemley BoumLanguage: FrenchTranslator: Nchanji NjamnsiPublisher: Agence littéraire Astier-Pécher (2020), Two Lines Press (2022) I was a bit bummed when my copy of Hemley Boum’s Days Come & GoContinue reading “DAYS COME & GO – Hemley Boum”
Tag Archives: Tommi Reads the World
SLANTING TOWARDS THE SEA – Lidija Hilje
Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – we’re still in the C’s!!! Country: CroatiaTitle: Slanting Towards the SeaAuthor: Lidija HilgeLanguage: EnglishTranslator: N/APublisher: Simon & Schuster 2025 “Back home, all things slant towards the sea.” “I can’t remember the last time someone said I had potential. But the thing about potential is that it doesn’t goContinue reading “SLANTING TOWARDS THE SEA – Lidija Hilje”
THE BOOK OF RECORDS – Madeleine Thien
“It is late and, in these hours, the Book of Records always takes on a new form. The train continues, a sound that blurs into the tide of water against the shore.” “The boy turned the page of his book. ‘I’m counting the hours until we get to the ocean. My mother and aunt sentContinue reading “THE BOOK OF RECORDS – Madeleine Thien”
CO-WIVES, CO-WIDOWS – Adrienne Yabouza
Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – we’re still in the C’s!!! Country: Central African RepublicTitle: Co-Wives, Co-WidowsAuthor: Adrienne YabouzaLanguage: FrenchTranslator: Rachael McGillPublisher: First published in Mali, 2015; Dedalus, 2021 Co-Wives, Co-Widows is the first book from the Central African Republic to be translated into English. The self-educated Yabouza fled the country in 2013, seekingContinue reading “CO-WIVES, CO-WIDOWS – Adrienne Yabouza”
TOLD BY STARLIGHT IN CHAD – Joseph Brahim Seid
Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – we are now in the C’s!!! Country: ChadTitle: Told by Starlight in ChadAuthor: Joseph Brahim SeidLanguage: FrenchTranslator: Karen Haire HoenigPublisher: Africa World Press 2007 (originally published in 1962) The options for English translations of works from certain countries are extremely limited, and I had very options for aContinue reading “TOLD BY STARLIGHT IN CHAD – Joseph Brahim Seid”
THE MADWOMAN OF SERRANO – Dina Salústio
Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – we are now in the C’s!!! Country: Cape VerdeTitle: The Mad Woman of SerranoAuthor: tLanguage: PortugueseTranslator: Jethro SoutarPublisher: Spleen Ediçũes (1998), English translation Dedalus (2019) The Mad Woman of Serrano was the first novel by a female author to be published in Cape Verde, and the first toContinue reading “THE MADWOMAN OF SERRANO – Dina Salústio”
SO DISTANT FROM MY LIFE – Monique Ilboudo
“My mind ran off as soon as I opened my eyes. I have always had a vagabond mind.” Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – this marks the last of the Bs. Country: Burkina FasoTitle: So Distant from My LifeAuthor: Monique IlboudoLanguage: FrenchTranslator: Yarri KamaraPublisher: Le Serpent á Plumes, 2018 English translation published byContinue reading “SO DISTANT FROM MY LIFE – Monique Ilboudo”
SMALL COUNTRY – Gaël Faye
“I was born with this story. It ran in my blood. I belonged to it.” Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – we’re still in the Bs. Country: BurundiTitle: Small CountryAuthor: Gaël FayeLanguage: FrenchTranslator: Sarah ArdizzonePublisher: Éditions Grasset 2016; English translation published by Hogarth 2018 Bordering Rwanda, Burundi is a small African country embroiled in politicalContinue reading “SMALL COUNTRY – Gaël Faye”
TIME SHELTER – Georgi Gospodinov
“Now, there’s everything you need to for a true beginning – bad dreams, war, and a headache.” “I had already lived through what was to come.” Current installment of Tommi Reads the World – we’re still in the Bs. Country: BulgariaTitle: Time ShelterAuthor: Georgi GospodinovLanguage: BulgarianTranslator: Angela RodelPublisher: Liveright Publishing Company 2022 (originally published 2020) Georgi Gospondinov’sContinue reading “TIME SHELTER – Georgi Gospodinov”
WRITTEN IN BLACK – KH Lim
“There’s a Malay word called geram, and it describes a feeling that no English term I know could properly communicate. Imagine the worst itch in the world, an itch one hundred times worse than the itchiest bite that the itchiest mosquito could ever give you, but that it’s inside you, stirring up all your internalContinue reading “WRITTEN IN BLACK – KH Lim”
A Girl Named Tommi 