There is no greater joy than losing and finding yourself within the pages of a book. However, life’s tough for any reader both offline and online and I’m setting the record straight on some comments/remarks/questions that I sincerely do not want to hear this year.

Oh, so you read that?

Yes, I read it. I will continue reading it and do me a favor, keep your nose in your book/phone/online profile and let me enjoy my reading time.

How do you manage to read so many books? Where do you get the time?

I can bend time, so instead of 24 hours, I get double that just to read, have you tried it?

Why would you review a book?

One, given the advent of social media, a review is currency gold for any author. I should know this because I have written a few books and it helps having someone say “your book was recommended by so and so,” and they go ahead and buy it.

Two, every book is an experience and instead of posting a #selfie I would not mind telling you about this world I traveled to.

Three, if I love a book, I’m not going to keep quiet about it.

You ask for free books to read?

Yes! I do. There’s this site called Netgalley. I signed up simply to read books by authors who are trying to navigate the web and get the attention of readers who are lured in by millions of other things.

So, yes…if I am intrigued by the blurb, author, or sometimes the cover of a book, I’ll request to read it, preserve the content, respect the author’s copyright and read a review.

Romance, seriously?

Have you read any romance novel of late? I can recommend a gallery of them if you do mind. I understand that the plot is predictable and you are guaranteed a happily ever after conclusion or sometimes it’s delayed until you’ve read three or four books of a series, but romance is interesting.

Well, you should read more African books

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” – Dr. Seuss

I am African and my reading has been largely influenced by masterpieces like Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Grace Ogot, Azenath Bole Odaga, Okot pBitek, Chinua Achebe and so with this, I have no qualms save for it not being the only goal or genre aspect that I have to adhere to.

If I’m intrigued by it, I’ll read it.

For how else would I know that most books written by Irish authors make me both nostalgic and melancholic? Or how delicious British humor is, or how in-depth Caribbean writers can get.

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Those are some of the comments I really hope I never get to hear again this year but all in all, have an awesome year, and I hope you read a book or books.