The Lord of Anomy

The Lord of Anomy
Author: Basil Diki
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 136
Release: 2009-05-15
Genre: Drama
ISBN: 995671772X

In 1875 the Rozvi Kingdom, now in present day Zimbabwe, is indistinctly besieged from within by the convergence of a missionary, Rev. Holbrook, a militant British bourgeoisie aspiring for knighthood, Sir Crowler, and an immorally amorous war emissary allegedly from King Cetshwayo of the feared Zulu Kingdom. The Zulu ambassador uncompromisingly makes painstaking demands. While Rev. Holbrook is earnest in his endeavours, Sir Crowler is adamant the natives are enemies of both God and Britain meant for annihilation. The elders cannot consult the oracles; all diviners having fled before the arrival of the foreigners. An enigmatic and malicious hermit comes to the fore in the calamitous confusion that ensues. But nobody can tell with certainty if the hermit is messianic or anarchical.

Rock of God

Rock of God
Author: JK. Bannavti
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 114
Release: 2010
Genre: Drama
ISBN: 9956616052

Rock of God is a masterful stroke of dramaturgy that compresses both time and situation to enhance its own structural credibility.

A Legend of the Dead

A Legend of the Dead
Author: Linus Tongwo Asong
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 260
Release: 2009
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9956558702

When the admirable Kevin Beckongncho becomes the new Paramount Chief of the much-coveted throne of Nkokonoko Small Monje as well as its new DO, Chieftaincy could finally be said to have been redeemed. But he quickly becomes a marked man, as he runs into fatal collision with an unscrupulous governmental system with which he cannot co-exist. How this great man suddenly dies, and why his people must not mourn for him, is the unresolved mystery with which Asong closes both the book and his trilogy that includes The Crown of Thorns and No Way to Die.

Rock of God

Rock of God
Author: K. Bannavti
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 114
Release: 2010-01-01
Genre: Drama
ISBN: 9956716766

Rock of God centres on a significant war that Nso fought with Bamoun in the 1880s, and which war resulted in a devastating defeat for the Bamouns. During this war, a major Nso combat rule was broken: the Sultan (king) of Bamoun was decapitated. Both local story tellers and historians have indicated that the Sultan was only supposed to be captured alive. The play explores some very compelling reasons for this violation. It mocks any attempt at categorization because the events involved are as historically relevant as they are anthropologically profound; as literarily dense as they are linguistically compelling. It surely stands on its own because it clearly combines concepts of docu-drama, morality play, classical theatre, historical drama, and much more. But beyond all else, it is great artistry that demonstrates the genius of experimentation.

Voicing the Voiceless

Voicing the Voiceless
Author: Walter Gam
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 202
Release: 2010-04-01
Genre: History
ISBN: 9956717878

The history of the subalterns, also known as the history of the voiceless, took currency in the early 1980s in South East Asia and has been dominated by scholars from that region. Despite its popularity, the history of the voiceless has not gained the attention it deserves in Cameroon historiography. In other parts of Africa and beyond this type of history has already taken root and animated scholarly production and debate. Cameroon history has been replete with studies that focus mostly on political history and the actions and intentions of top politicians of the day, with scant regard for the historical importance of the everyday life of ordinary Cameroonians as makers and breakers. This book takes a bold step in the direction of subaltern studies in Cameroon, and makes a clarion call for the institutionalization of voicing the voiceless. Nkwi - innovative and stimulating in his blend of history and ethnography of the everyday - offers fresh insights into the contextual understandings of subaltern Cameroon between 1958 and 2009. This is a welcome contribution to closing gaps in social history, from a leader amongst a budding new generation of historians of Cameroon and Africa.

The Call of Blood

The Call of Blood
Author: John Nkemngong Nkengasong
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 70
Release: 2010
Genre: Drama
ISBN: 9956616117

"Dramatization of evil ... including teachery, infidelity, greed, hypocrisy, double-crossing and vaulting ambition in a postcolonial society ..."--Page 4 of cover

The Crown of Thorns

The Crown of Thorns
Author: Linus Asong
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2009-07-15
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9956716820

Chief Nchindia held the Elders of his Council in total contempt, inwardly vowing to disagree with them at every point where disagreement was possible. What starts like a big joke develops into grim tragedy: the statue of the god of Nkokonoko Small Monje is discovered to have been stolen and sold to a white man! The tradition demands instant execution of the culprits. Was their Chief involved in the theft? What was worse, the crime or the punishment? Linus Asong was born in the South West Region of Cameroon in 1947. With a combined B.A honours in Education, in 1980 he entered the University of Windsor in Canada whence he graduated with a terminal degree in Creative Writing. He holds an M.A and a PhD in Comparative Literature from the University of Alberta, in Edmonton Canada, and is presently Associate Professor of Literature and Creative Writing at Ecole Normale Superieure Bambili (University of Yaounde 1). Asong is a stand-up humorist, a consummate portrait painter, an accomplished literary scholar, and a celebrated prolific writer with over a dozen novels to his credit.

Anomie

Anomie
Author: Marco Orru
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Total Pages: 205
Release: 2024-05-01
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 1040029833

First published in 1987, Anomie examines essential moments of Western thought, tracing the complex concept of anomie. The Greek origin of the term (a-nomia, absence of joy) relates it to the notions of disorder, inequity and anarchy. 20th century sociology has long called into question an over simple dichotomy between law and the absence of law. The book shows that this questioning is not new. It has its roots in Ancient Greek thought and in the founding texts of the Judeo-Christian tradition. It appears in the legal and religious states of the English Renaissance, and in the emerging sociology of 19th century French, where Orrù opposes the collectivism of Durkheim to the individualism of Jean-Marie Guyau. The latter’s thought, little recognized at that time, finds an echo in contemporary sociology, notably in American sociologist R. K. Merton. To write the history of the concept, to account for the fluctuations in meaning that it undergoes in the changing prism of diverse societies, to uncover the subterranean continuities between yesterday and today: this is the aim of the book. This book will be of interest to students of history, sociology, literature and philosophy.

The Earth Mother

The Earth Mother
Author: Kehbuma Langmia
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 70
Release: 2010
Genre: Bali (African people)
ISBN: 9956616486

"We can only reminisce in this beautiful drama, and hope that while the audience enjoys itself, it is called to sympathize and take a peek at the turbulence that once rocked the peaceful life of a strong traditional society." Lillian Fomunung, University of Tennessee, USA.

Folktales from the Moose of Burkina Faso

Folktales from the Moose of Burkina Faso
Author: Alain-Joseph Sissao
Publisher: African Books Collective
Total Pages: 118
Release: 2010
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 9956616559

The Moogo, the region of the Moose known as Mossi in ancient literatureóoccupies the entire central zone of Burkina Faso. It is divided into several kingdoms, the principal one comprising todayís capital of Ouagadougou. Along with the singing griots, the evening storytellers pass on the ancestral word during the evening gatherings where they provide the group with models to follow. The folktale is the most appropriate form for teaching young children to express themselves, to structure their thoughts, and to reason. The tales portraying familiar animals will be reserved for the group of youngest children. The legendary gluttony and foolishness of Mba-KatrÈ, the hyena, in contrast with the cunning and finesse of Mba-So'mba, the hare, will interest above all children from 10 to 12 years of age. The stories describing the origin of things, the reason for various social taboos, the legitimacy of social functions and structures, as well character flaws that need correcting, are reserved as a priority for adolescents.