Book lovers now have a platform for relaxation and intellectual discourse in the Farafina monthly book discussion and review. The event, which made its debut on June 26, 2010 with the review of Nnedi Okorafor’s Zahrah the Windseeker, has definitely come to stay. Zahrah the Windseeker is a fantasy story of a young girl with superhuman abilities. While most Nigerian authors allow the political climate to inform their works, Nnedi ventures into a relatively unknown genre, fantasy fiction.
As Obidike Okafor of Next newspapers writes, “a forest with computerised flowers and a large, pink, talking frog are not things you will find in too many books; but discussing the relevance of living in a world of make-believe, and its relationship to African customs,” is what Nnedi does in Zahrah the Windseeker. ( full article appears in the July 8 edition of Next newspaper)
Participants in the discussion, which was moderated by on air personality, Tosin Bucknor emphasised the nexus between the genres of science fiction and fantasy to the African tradition. Many of them opined that the genre of fantasy came from Africa and as such should be explored in our books.
However, all came to the conclusion that what mattered the most, was the sincerity of the voice of the author.
In all, the book review was enlightening and a rewarding way to spend a Saturday.
Farafina Books 
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