AFRICAN PLAUDITS FOR ROGER MOORE

Roger Moore, the suave, debonair actor who breathed life into James Bond in a series of films mainly in the 80s died this week at almost 90 years old. Since his demise, countless stars etc have been coming out to pay tribute to this magnificent actor. And the same has been happening in Africa too.

Whilst Sean Connery had played Bond as a tough, wry, wise-cracking agent, Moore took over and emphasized playing the part as a sort of "spoof" - wise cracking, quipping, with lots of tongue-in-cheek nuances. In Africa, many actors including from the famed Nollywood stable have been praising Roger Moore the actor; with many of them stating how much he influenced them, and how they admired him since their youth. Some insisted that Moore should be immortalised, which in essence he has been, or already is anyway. Interestingly, some African writers have also insisted that they patently admired the late Roger Moore too.

For example, Chief O Bolaji, who started the famous "Tebogo Mystery series" which now has eight published volumes, said: "I loved the way Moore played Bond on screen, when I was young. A superb actor indeed. Always amusing and charming and a gentleman with women. I found myself incorporating many elements of the Moore persona into my own books on the Tebogo detective…”

Bolaji added: “As many pundits have pointed out over the years, (my) fictional Tebogo is a rather fine gentleman too, with a sense of humour, he actually hates violence and evil... Tebogo is so nice, actually weak with women - even if such women are killers! One critic pointed out that Tebogo is so weak and foolish with ladies that he is almost killed at the end of one of the adventures...(Tebogo's spot of bother)"

Another African writer and critic, Raphael Mokoena, said: "I think we can all learn from a sublime actor like Roger Moore. Even his quips have a lot of literary merit...well, sometimes. There is the sense of something positive and fair in Moore's character which I try to put into my own reviews and writings, my critical ‘scribblings’...being fair in whatever one critiques... I rather think African critics Mr Mzwandile Soqaga and Tiisetso Thiba are like that too...presenting positive images in their work…I mean, it's good to be good, eh? That sort of thing...may Roger Moore’s soul rest in peace"

Photos: 1. (top) Roger Moore
2. (centre) Bolaji's Tebogo and the Bacchae, part of the Tebogo Myster series
3. (above) Roger Moore, with co-stars Tanya Roberts and Grace Jones (A View to A Kill)

SHORT STORIES TO TANTALISE

Book: Free State Brewed Short Stories

Edited by P Lechesa

This anthology of short stories was published just a few days before Alice Munro was internationally announced as the 2013 winner of the Nobel award in literature. The blurb of this book states emphatically:

"Alice Munro, celebrated writer of fiction of the shorter variety describes a story as ‘a world seen in a quick glancing light’. In other words, every day events, gongs and tragedies are briefly illuminated in the best of short stories.

The stories in this collection – written by talented African writers - epitomize some of the best in recent writings...Enjoy the Cornucopia of stories!”

This new book, edited by Pule Lechesa, is a collection of interesting, wide-ranging short stories. At first brush one can see that the contributors to this work are essentially proficient wordsmiths, hence the fine quality of most of the stories published here. Indeed this is a cross-section of the contributors:

Charles Matorera

Already making his name as an astute writer of short stories. His story, Singwizi: The golden journey is already quite celebrated – hence its inclusion in this work. Matorera is working on his first full-length novel now.

Maxwell Perkins Kanemanyanga

An accomplished writer of short stories. He churns out such stories “with disarming fecundity”. He has already published three books – collections of short stories – Enemy of the State, How do I talk about my ordeal? and Chapindapasi (2013) Maxwell was featured in the book, Interviews with effervescent Writers (2012)

Teboho Masakala

Even in his late teens, he was tipped by literary pundits to take the literary world by storm. Since then he has remarkably been fulfilling his potential by publishing works like Mind, pen, paper and ideas (2010), Through it all (2011) and The fall of Marcus Desmond (2012) He has also published the book, Shout to the Lord (2013)

O Bolaji

Multi-award-winning author who has published fiction, literary criticism, poetry, drama, biographies etc. Author of novels like Impossible Love, The ghostly adversary, and People of the townships. Creator and writer of the “Tebogo Mokoena Mystery series” which now incorporates eight volumes (adventures)

Tseliso Masolane

Tseliso Masolane is the author of a rip-roaring Sesotho poetry book, Bo naka bo maripa; which the controversial critic Pule Lechesa described “as a must read, a page-turner, coherent, didactic and thought-provoking to boot.” This dynamic polyglot works as the Deputy Director at Bloemfontein based Sesotho Literary Museum which is the first in indigenous languages. He is also the founder of Motheo Award winning newspaper called Shwehwe and Qwaqwa community radio station.

Mathibeli George Rampai

Rampai is a skilled writer of fiction whose monumental work From Where I stand is still being celebrated liberally in many literary circles. Rampai came out tops as Author of the Year (2012) courtesy of the esteemed Mbali Literary Awards.

Teboho Letshaba (above)

A superb creative writer and journalist, author of a number of award winning works in the Sesotho language; his talent belongs to the top drawer.

     
     * Free State brewed Short Stories, edited by Pule Lechesa, is published by Mbali Press. Sponsored by the National Arts Council of South Africa 

Wole Soyinka's THE LION AND THE JEWEL

African Nobel Laureate in literature, Wole Soyinka, wrote this book when he was still a very young man, and the work showcased what a literary genius he already was. The ingredients that would make the playwright one of the most acclaimed in the world is present here, as well as the dazzling, rich language that taps into African lores so well. There are themes of mortality in this play, and the cunning of the king; contrasted with the impudence, naivety allied to arrogance of the youth. Soyinka explores these, and others here as (western) modernity is encroaching on a rural setting which however still has massive echoes of the past. This is a brilliant work that one can read again and again.
- Henry Ozogula

Tlhabane Ya Makgowa

Book: Tlhabane Ya Makgowa

Author: Tiisetso Thiba

Genre; Setswana novel

The author, South African fluent poet, Thiba wrote this book based on what is happening in the real life. And he takes us step by step through the life of hamlet lad Modisagaarekwe;  who was born in one of the village called Phaposane near Ganyesa  in North West Province. Modisagaarekwe was a young man who was collected, meek and very responsible from a tender age. And his parents raised him well that is why when he started working, and when he visited home, he was always handful. Because he used to come home with groceries and clothes for his parents from Gauteng where he was working in a post office, and that never changed when he got a lucrative job at Impala Mine in Rusternburg. Neighbours were pleased to see what this young man is doing for his parents, and they wished their boys could do the same as Modisagaarekwe.

Furthermore those neighbours were so hopeful that this lad will marry one of their beautiful daughters from his village soon. And things turned nasty when he went out and married drop dead gorgeous Gadifele from Gamanyai, just a few kilometres from Phaposane. After his cultural marriage in Phaposane when he greeted his neighbour none of them greeted him back, they were so jealous and full of loathing, wondering what does Gadifele has that their daughters don’t have.

The title of the book is a nick name of the Platinum city Rustenburg. Most of the guys who work in Rustenburg, when they visit their homes, wives and kids and parents, they used wear nice clothes and smell nice. And those unemployed guys back at home they were disliking them because they were getting lots of love from the ladies in the villages because they will always be cleaned, wearing flasham shoes, brandwood trousers, white shirt, and leather jacket when the weather is unfriendly cold while their fishtale cuts full of glycerine and when they pass the streets, others will call them “Makgowa” meaning a person who got money and style.

Modisagaarekwe was maturing very well and his parents were very proud of him, because swiftly they were blessed enough and had two sons with his wife Gadifele. While working in Rustenburg he got attracted to a cute lady called Kedisaletse. And Kedisaletse stolen Modisagaarekwe’s heart and managed to make him forgot his parents, his wife and sons. Though he promised his uncle Thulo that he will never change when he got to Rustenburg because he knows what he wants in life. Rustenburg girl Kedisaletse used muthi to make Modisagaarekwe to love her and buy her a house full of furniture, and a car. Take care of her daughter of not his. And make him marry her to take all his money from Impala and his assets as well. Kedisaletse managed this by help of her mother and sister, none of them were not married but they own a big house with the same trick they used to trap guys most especially from villages and makes them forget where are they coming from. Most of the ladies in Tlhabane Ya Makgowa apply that trick for guys and win their hearts and pretend to love them though they are in a mission to fulfil it. And you will be surprised to see young lady driving a German machine and she is single, though others are more educated and use their education to succeed in life with or without boyfriend or marriage. Modisagarekwe went back home with nothing after fulfil Kedisaletse’s mission and they had only one child together beside first born of Kedisaletse. He was forced out in his big house by police after Kedisaletse allegedly claimed that he had raped her, and after few days Modisagaarekwe spent in Jail her Rustenburg wife decided to drop the charges and asked the police to release him and never allow him to come closer to their house in Tlhabane as it was final that they are divorced. He arrived home in Phaposane with nothing to show that he ever worked a lucrative job. He was tattered like a web spider and smelly like a pig kraal. It was a shame and he was accepted back by his family and both his parents were late because of his unpleasant deeds and shame he put in his family. Gadifele and her sons never allowed their father to live with them again fearing the deceases and embarrassment. Modisagaarekwe sons were so successful in life. Modisagarekwe was regretting everything that happened in Rustenburg and wished he could be dead at once because he was now the laughing stock of the village, no longer smelling nice and dressing fine clothes like he used to be. What a pity!!