On the 9th of August, book lovers in Gaborone will be treated to the second Gaborone Book Festival (GBF) Trust quarterly book night session, which will also be used to announce the main book festival authors, venues and programme.
The book night will feature celebrated authors, Zukiswa Wanner who is based in Kenya and Niq Mhlongo based in South Africa. The two are currently on a tour across the continent to promote their 2018 book releases – Hardly Working-A travel memoir of sorts and Soweto Under The Apricot Tree. On the 11th August, Zukiswa and Niq will also conduct a free workshop for a limited number of writers.
From the local front, newly published authors, Bongani Malunga and Monirul Bhuiyan will engage in a book chat. Bongani’s book is titled ‘Why an African team may never win the world cup’ and explores factors why African teams have struggled to perform well at the World Cup. Malunga is a Sports Editor at Botswana and an experienced football analyst amongst other things.
Monirul Bhuiyan is the founder of Botswana’s first news photo agency, PRESS PHOTO. He sees photography as a tool that can be used to contribute in the development of the society. His book is titled “Khama through the lense,” featuring 10 years of Botswana’s immediate past president in pictures.
Co-founder of Gaborone Book Festival Trust, Kenanao Phele further said, “We are excited to be hosting these authors. Three out of four of our platforms are free and accessible to all readers and to keep this status quo, we are still appealing to individuals, families, companies and different entities for sponsorships, support and partnerships to stage the quarterly book night and the upcoming and inaugural book festival in September, a platform which doesn’t exist at the moment in our city.”
The Gaborone Book Festival (GBF) Trust’s main mission is to foster a love for reading among Batswana and residents of Botswana.