Ya Sankofa! By: Torrance R. Harvey M.S. ED. Sometimes I must move slowly like a cat... Sometimes I must move with dispatch. There are times I must be silent, unheard. Just like the morning spring sun shining over the harmonious tweeting birds. Then, there is that one moment in time I must ROAR loudly For everyone to hear and fear everywhere. Bringing their hearts and minds to understand ONE THING. I AM the TRUE Lion and the King! Ya Sankofa! is a literary journey of reflection. It is an artistic expression of cultural awareness in a contemporary sense from a historical lens in the form of a series of poems.

Ben Gracik is a troubled man, barely coping with life as he struggles to make sense of the death of his young daughter. It was accidental, yes, but the overwhelming guilt combined with his wife's absence makes it almost impossible for Ben to be a father to his two surviving children. Following his wife's untimely exit, Ben wrestles with unspeakable sorrow and anger-feelings that ultimately drive him to begin searching for her whereabouts. Thus begins a journey that forces him to face his painful past, a dismal present, and an uncertain future. He meets up with several people along the way-an anxious single mother, a kindly old man, an odd cemetery caretaker-all of which who play a part in the bigger picture. Finding truth and healing will take deep soul searching and a profound faith that Ben scarcely believes in. Will he finally come to understand the meaning of it all?

Winner of a Betty Trask Award Shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Commonwealth Book Prize Longlisted for the Desmond Elliot Prize The Spider King's Daughter is a modern-day Romeo and Juliet set against the backdrop of a changing Lagos, a city torn between tradition and modernity, corruption and truth, love and family loyalty. Seventeen-year-old Abike Johnson is the favourite child of her wealthy father. She lives in a She lives in a sprawling mansion in Lagos, protected by armed guards and ferried everywhere in a huge black jeep. But being her father's favourite comes with uncomfortable duties, and she is often lonely behind the high walls of her house. A world away from Abike's mansion, in the city's slums, lives a seventeen-year-old hawker struggling to make sense of the world. His family lost everything after his father's death and now he runs after cars on the roadside selling ice cream to support his mother and sister. When Abike buys ice cream from the hawker one day, they strike up an unlikely and tentative romance, defying the prejudices of Nigerian society. But as they grow closer, revelations from the past threaten their relationship and both Abike and the hawker must decide where their loyalties lie.

Last night Charlie went on a bender. Today he woke up with a tattoo of the mythical African sankofa bird on his right shoulder blade. The solid black tribal tattoo was probably too dark for his pale white skin, but he hadn't actually chosen the tattoo himself. The sankofa bird looked back over its shoulder as it flew forward justifying its meaning - one can not move intelligently into the future without paying attention to the past. Contrasting again with the too dark tattoo and the too light skin was the pretty brown face of the little girl peaking over her father's shoulder as he cradled her. What on earth was he going to do with this little life? Two days ago he didn't even know she existed. Yesterday he woke up with this strange tattoo. Today he decided to go to the hospital and take responsibility for his daughter. He didn't even know what the tattoo was and why those men had taken it upon themselves to have it given to him. Today it was just some dumb bird that he was contemplating having removed. It would be quite a while before he would find out why he had gotten it and what the significance of it really was. He repositioned her into his arms and tenderly kissed little Sankofa on the forehead. "We can do this."

A REESE WITHERSPOON BOOK CLUB PICK A BBC 2 BETWEEN THE COVERS BOOK CLUB PICK SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION FUTURES PRIZE AN AMAZON BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 'A captivating story about a mixed-race British woman who goes in search of the West African father she never knew' REESE WITHERSPOON Anna is at a stage of her life when she's beginning to wonder who she really is. She has separated from her husband, her daughter is all grown up, and her mother - the only parent who raised her - is dead. Searching through her mother's belongings, she finds clues about the West African father she never knew. Through reading his student diary, chronicling his involvement in radical politics in 1970s London, she discovers that he eventually became the president (some would say the dictator) of a small nation in West Africa - and he is still alive. She decides to track him down and so begins a funny, painful, fascinating journey, and an exploration of race, identity and what we pass on to our children. 'A real pleasure, it's funny, thought-provoking and holds a light up to everything from cultural differences to colonialism' STYLIST 'I LOVED Sankofa SO MUCH' MARIAN KEYES 'Slick pacing and unpredictable developments keep the reader alert right up to the novel's exhilarating ending' GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE DAY 'Onuzo's sneakily breezy, highly entertaining novel leaves the reader rethinking familiar narratives of colonisation, inheritance and liberation' NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW 'A really great book, very poignant' SARA COX