Zakes Mda and Somizi Mhlongo captivated the audience with their stories at the South African Book Fair.
The South African Book Fair (SABF), in association with the Fibre, Processing and Manufacturing (FP&M) SETA guest of honour, Prof. Zakes Mda reminded book readers of the origins of storytelling, which is rooted in African culture and tradition.
The Book Fair, which started on Friday 08 September until Sunday, 10 September at Museum Africa, Newtown has brought to light the importance of telling #OURSTORIES as Africans.
“The South African Book Fair is a celebration, firstly of a culture of reading, and secondly a culture of writing. The latter can only flow from the former. By a culture of reading I mean an environment where we have embraced the habit of reading in our personal lives and are intensely engaged with the written word in its diverse forms. Reading becomes a culture when it has been internalized into a way of life, and has become a popular form of family entertainment,” said Mda
He recalled how, by age 6 or 7, he was reading poems and short stories in isiXhosa.
“It was a passion that I wasn’t trained for. It all started with reading which is what we are here about. We used to improvise stories and we didn’t know we were actually being trained to be storytellers,” said Mda.
Hugh Masekela, who ended the day with Mda recalled the start of his journey as a lover of books.
“My parents were community workers and voracious readers. I went after knowledge and by age nine I knew I couldn’t get what I wanted, and I had to leave South Africa. What is missing today is the rural indigenous experience,” he said.
Authors including Deon Meyer, Ayòbámi Adébáyò, Lola Shoneyin, Fiona Melrose and Somizi Mhlongo all took a walk down memory lane to help them reconstruct the stories they have made and that have made them.
“We (black people) are constantly in denial of the sprits that guide us. When you are a spiritual person, you know when things will come to pass I am a perfect example that it is never too late to have your time to shine,” he said.
The relevance of this year’s theme #OURSTORIES was certainly validated today, as authors and attendees alike relished the words shared between them. The inspiration and emotion that filled each of the rooms nourished a human connection we rarely see today.
The South African Book Fair, this year, has been unequivocal in its aim to put more attention on African narratives as a relevant and proudly South African entity. This year serves to lay a foundation for all of us to build on with #OURSTORIES, year after year.
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