The Seminar programme - Bok & Bibliotek

PHoTo: BaTsHeBa oKWenJe
PHoTo: lePoaRd FöRlaG PHoTo: PRiVaTe
THuRsdaY
Petina Gappah
eilieshi lema
Richard dowden
14
16.00–16.45 Code To1600.1
Maïssa Bey, Petina Gappah
Reflections
When Maïssa Bey started school, Algeria was still
a French colony and schools taught French, which
became her writing language although she normally
speaks Arabic. The novel Bleu, Blanc, Vert, pub lished
now in Swedish translation, mirrors the conflict of
her own generation between tradition and modernity,
and how the fresh belief in the future after independence
in 1962 was obscured by the terrorist
acts of the 1990s. Petina Gappah from Zimbabwe
takes the reader to another country in crisis, in her
acclaimed debut book An Elegy for Easterly. In their
striving for a life of dignity, people continue to stubbornly
pretend that everything is as normal even
while the country collapses around them. Both Bey
and Gappah reflect the great in the small, society in
family life, the global in the local, and power and
politics in the struggles of everyday life.
Moderator: Mikela Lundahl, lecturer in the history
of ideas, School of Global Studies, University of
Gothenburg.
Language: English and French (translated)
In coop with Africa 2010, Tranan Publishing House and Albert Bonniers Förlag
16.00–16.45 Code To1600.2
Ismail Serageldin
Bibliotheca Alexandrina – a sensation
In the city founded by Alexander the Great, the
Bibliotheca Alexandrina – the intellectual centre of
the ancient world for six centuries – was founded
in 288 BC. Today the Library of Alexandria commemorates
the Library of ancient days, as well as acting
as a modern centre both for scholarship and to
further dialogue between cultures and peoples. The
director of the Library, Dr Ismail Serageldin, talks
about how one can drive an inheritance of openness
and intellectual creativity further, and discusses the
importance of the library for culture, research and
free speech with Carl Tham, Ambassador.
Language: English
In coop with Africa 2010
16.00–16.45 Code To1600.9
Richard Dowden
Where is Africa headed?
Richard Dowden has lived and travelled in Africa for
three decades and constantly listened, learned and
valued the knowledge encountered there. Over the
years, he has not only met many political leaders, but
also been eyewitness to many dramatic events. Now
Dowden has written Africa: Altered States, Ordinary
Miracles, a modern contemporary story about the continent,
which places people and events in their historical
and political context. The book also explains the
background to both the wars and catastrophes suffered
in Africa, and the progress achieved. Richard Dowden
is Director of the Royal Africa Society, and has been a
correspondent for The Times and The Independent,
and Africa Editor for The Economist. Dowden talks
with, Marika Griehsel, freelance journalist, former
Africa correspondent for SVT.
Language: English
In coop with Leopard förlag
16.30–16.50 Code To1630.5
Charlotte Rosen Svensson
Don't let your dictionary gather dust on the
shelf!
Modern English dictionaries are more than just
words. They can include pictures, video clips and
sound, and they’re available on computers and telephones
as well as your shelf. Find out how they can
help you with pronunciation, writing, and even to
understand YouTube. Participant: Charlotte Rosen
Svensson, English language consultant for Pearson
Longman ELT.
Language: English
In coop with Utbildningsstaden/The Book Corner and Pearson Longman ELT
17.00–18.00 Code To1700.8
Advocates of the written word
Local book publishing on the African continent
is struggling. Who is buying books? How are they
distributed both within Africa and to the rest of
the world? Could digital developments provide a
solution? What might that mean for writers, journals,
networks, book publishers and readers? These
are just some of the many questions which will be
discussed by Akoss Ofori-Mensah of Sub-Saharan
Publishers in Ghana, Mary Jay of the African Book
Collective in England, Hilda Twongyeirwe of Femrite
in Uganda, Elieshi Lema, author and publisher
from Tanzania, Yohannes Gebregeorgis of the
reading movement Ethiopia Reads, Billy Kahora of
the arts journal Kwani? in Kenya, and Tolu Ogunlesi,
an author from Nigeria.
Moderator: Svante Weyler, publisher.
Language: English
In coop with Africa 2010, Karavan, Bokspindeln, Tidskriften 10TAL, Swedish Institute
and Tranan Publishing House
“Fantastic! The Göteborg Book
Fair is designed for the people,
concentrating on the public’s
needs, friendly and personal.”
desmond Tutu, south africa, 2007