Village Rainbows

Tonight Its Poetry!!! And in Saskatoon – WOW! Great fun last night down at FLINT on 2nd Avenue with a packed house and standing room only. Four “emerging poets”,  including me, were the warm-up act for the main attraction, Lorna Crozier, who read from her most recent book. What a pro – she read with confidence and poise and drew us all into her vision. Quite magical.

The Tuesday night (Sept. 1) reading event at McNally Robinson in Saskatoon was a huge success. Special thanks to Nicole and her crew for promoting the evening. It was great to see so many people out, including former neighbours and friends from Maidstone; folks who have travelled to and worked in Ghana; a colleague from my days with the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations; and new friends who brought new insights and suggestions. Thank you, all.

Oh, and just a reminder to come down to Flint for “This is Poetry” on Sunday evening, Sept 13. See you there…

The book signing event was a great success at McNally Robinson. Thank you, Nicole for organizing it, and thank you to all the folks who came out to be part of the evening.

Lots happening yesterday. An interview with Garth Matire on Blue Sky during the noon hour radio show, followed by an interview on TV which aired during the evening provincial newscast. Thank you, CBC!!

On Thursday, August 27, I will be at the Maidstone Pharmacy on Main Street from 1:00 to 3:00 to sign copies of my book, Rainbow Round the African Sun. If you are in the area, be sure to come in for coffee and doughnuts, and pick up a signed copy of the book at the same time.

The following dates have been set for reading and signing of my collection of poems, Rainbow Round the Sun. As we say in Ghana, you are all invited…

Book signing: August 27, 1:00 to 3:00p.m. Maidstone Pharmacy, Maidstone

Reading and signing: September 1, 7:00p.m. McNally Robinson Bookstore, Saskatoon

Reading: September 13, 8:00, FLINT, located on 2nd Ave just north of the Galaxy Theatre, Saskatoon

Cover photo of the rainbow around the sun

Copies of Rainbow Round the African Sun are now available in Canada. Place orders on the internet from the Book Order page.

The event draws ever nearer, and preparations are coming together. In response to my reluctance to have a full blown book launch, my daughter has suggested and organized an event which she is calling Celebration of Creativity. It will provide a venue at the African Rainbow for artists and writers and performers to showcase their talent on Saturday evening, May 23,  and Sunday afternoon, May 24. The “outdooring” of Rainbow Round the African Sun, a collection of poems will be part of Sunday’s program, and various guests will be invited to read selections from it.

This will be the first of what is planned to be an annual event, and it promises to be a lot of fun. In the Western Region of Ghana, there aren’t any of such events to enable and encourage young creative minds, and this will be our effort to change that situation. Stay tuned for a review of the event next week in Village Rainbows.

Heads up, Folks!

It is hot off the press!! African Rainbow Round the Sun. Yes, my collection of poems has been published. It is an exciting time for me – my chance to share some of my writing with the the world in book form. After recieving a lot of encouragement from our friend,  Poet/Writer Janet Riehl (www.riehlife.com), I took the plunge and selected poems which represent my interpretation of changes which have been happening in Ghana over the past 37 years since I first stepped foot here.

African Rainbow Round the Sun is a modest effort with 16 poems in the collection, all but one written the past five years. They are my response to the changes that I have seen in Ghana caused by the forces of globalization and global warming. No one can be immune to these changes, and here in Ghana society copes by adapting as best as it is able. The results are demonstrative of the way in which cultures evolve – some effects are positive while others are quite destructive, representing the yin and the yang of universal forces.

There is no room for sentimentality and if we see changes that we don’t like then it is up to each of us to do something about it. It is easy to be distracted by our day to day activities of providing basic necessities  as a result, we do not see the bigger picture – we don’t take the actions that are needed in order to influence changes in more positive ways.

It is my hope that the poems in this collection along with the accompanying end notes may encourage readers to pause for a moment and consider their own surroundings. This applies to readers throughout the world, whether they be here in Africa or elsewhere. Remember – we are all in this together.

Stay tuned – the book is now available to be sent out by airmail from Ghana. Arrangements are in the works to enable online ordering and payment.