Welcome to Litsy!

“I am Princess Gie Gie. My kingdom…the African sky, so wide and so close. I can touch the sharp edges of the stars.”

In my classroom, this book could be used to discuss global citizenship, empathy, and the importance of resources, helping students understand cultural diversity and environmental issues.

The book was published in 2016 and received the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work for Children. It is a realistic fiction picture book about Gie Gie, a young girl in Africa who dreams of having clean water readily available but must journey long distances to collect it for her village. The story is inspired by the childhood experiences of model and activist Georgie Badiel and highlights the global water crisis.

3rd NYPL checkout = ✅ A comprehensive little book about a revolutionary giant who made enormous contributions to the struggle for African independence, unity and socialism.

A somewhat muddy novel. As the title indicates, the plot involves spies, some CIA, some from corrupt US shadow organizations, in Cold War Africa. Some brilliant writing but the time shifting tropes are needlessly confusing, and although Marie‘s back story is meted out in dribs and drabs, the real story isn‘t revealed until the last pages, leaving us wanting more, but not interested in going back to understand earlier plot lines. Disappointing.

And that's a wrap for #ReadingAfrica2022. Still some good books from other countries left, but not this year! A really interesting challenge, especially as my adolescent career goal was to spend my life somewhere in Africa teaching English. (I'm into my 50s and that worked out to be one week of tourism in Uganda.) A good mix of NF current politics and ancient history, award-winning literature, speculative short stories, a mystery, and a thriller.

This works for 2 challenges, since we can start the Americas early! Thrillers aren‘t my first choice, but this caught my attention because it emphasizes the politics of Burkina Faso, and the CIA‘s attempt to control the the Global South, including a main character who was a historical socialist leader and reformer. Also great balance between “spy” and personal life in 3 countries.
#ReadingAfrica2022 #BurkinaFaso
#ReadingAmericas2023 #Martinique

Last #Bookspin for 2022:
1. We Measure the Earth
2. Undala Trees
3. Seeing Ghosts
4. Mother Tree
5. New Jim Crow
6. The Tears of a Man
7. Wayward Lives
8. How Much of these Hills
9. The Savage Detectives
10. Sahara was Green
11. Dangerous Pursuits
12. Follow Those Zebras
13. Harnessed the Wind
14. Jade and Shadow
15. We Wish to Inform You
16. You are your best thing
17. Moonless Starless Sky
18. Rememberings
19. Grandmother‘s Hands
20. Matrix

A short book, we are already leaving #Ghana for #Togo, #BurkinaFaso, and #Niger. #readingafrica2022 @Librarybelle @BarbaraBB