Mirth and Motivation

“To read a book is to hold an entire world in the palm of your hand. That world is unique to you; no two readers can ever inhabit the same world.” Arthur Schopenhauer

Motivation Mondays: Authors & Books From Around The World

Until the lion learns how to write, every story will glorify the hunter.
He who has not traveled thinks his mother is the best cook
When an old woman dies, a library burns to the ground
A path is made by walking. African Proverbs

Motivation MONDAYS: Authors & Books From Around The World

Do you know how many countries make up our world? Recently, I was scrolling through the Internet when my eyes fell on a post listing books from around the world. It wasn’t a complete or comprehensive list, but it got my mind ticking. Any time I am stuck at home in bed, I love to find books to read or look through my files for something that would keep me captivated for a few hours. The list gave me the idea for this post and, believe me, it hasn’t been an easy task.

As I went digging for information, I quickly found out that it wasn’t so simple. Why? Because there are 193 official countries and 195 countries recognized by UN members: Vatican City and Palestine. If you add to that number the so-called dependent territories or non-sovereign states, the number jumps quickly to 195+28. However, the exact count can vary between 193 and 205 depending on political recognition and how a country or territory is defined.

Political land grabs and complicated designations aside, I plan to introduce you to as many male and female authors from nations around the globe. The list will be made up of authors from the countries listed and one of their books, so keep in mind this is NOT, unless noted due to reasons out of my control, a list of books written by non-natives about another part of the world. I am curating my list in real time to find one popular male and one popular female author from as many parts of the world as possible, and to add their names and books next to their country.

Please keep in mind that since this will only accommodate 1 of each, I can’t include all the wonderful authors you’d like to see on the list. I entreat you to add their names, countries, and book titles in the comments. How many of these nations do you remember? How many can you place correctly in their subregions? Come back later to check out all the authors and books as I continue to update the list.

Here’s the breakdown:

54 countries are in Africa
48 in Asia
44 in Europe
33 in South/Latin America and the Caribbean
14 in Oceania
2 in North America

AFRICA HAS 54 COUNTRIES

Nigeria Western Africa – Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart/ Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Half of a Yellow Sun
Ghana Western Africa – Ayi Kwei Armah, The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born/ Ama Ata Aidoo, Changes: A Love Story
Côte d’Ivoire Western Africa – Ahmadou Kourouma, The Suns of Independence/ Tanella Boni, The Future Has an Appointment with the Dawn.
Niger Western Africa – Boubou Hama, Kotia-Nima/ Hawad*, Caravane de la soif*
Mali Western Africa – Yambo Ouologuem, Bound to Violence/ Aïda Mady Diallo, Kouty, mémoire de sang
Burkina Faso Western Africa – Nazi Boni, Crépuscule des temps anciens/ Monique Ilboudo, Le Mal de Peau
Senegal Western Africa – Ousmane Sembène, God’s Bits of Wood/ Mariama Bâ, So Long a Letter
Guinea Western Africa – Camara Laye, The Dark Child/ Nimrod, L’Or des rivières**
Benin Western Africa – Olympe Bhêly-Quénum, Snares Without End/ Adélaïde Fassinou, Yêhoussi
Togo Western Africa – Tchicaya U Tam’si, Le Mauvais Sang/ Kangni Alem, Cola Cola Jazz
Sierra Leone Western Africa – Syl Cheney-Coker, The Last Harmattan of Alusine Dunbar/ Ishmael Beah, Radiance of Tomorrow
Liberia Western Africa – Wilton Sankawulo, The Rain and the Night/ Helene Cooper, The House at Sugar Beach
Mauritania Western Africa – Moussa Ould Ebnou, Barzakh/ Aïcha Mint Ahmedou, Les Hommes qui meurent
Gambia Western Africa – Lenrie Peters, The Second Round/ Janha Ousman Sallah, Harvesting Pearls of Wisdom
Guinea-Bissau Western Africa – Abdulai Sila, The Ultimate Tragedy/ Odete Semedo, Entre o Ser e o Amar
Cabo Verde Western Africa – Germano Almeida, The Last Will and Testament of Senhor da Silva Araújo/ Vera Duarte, A Candidata

Ethiopia Eastern Africa – Dinaw Mengestu, The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears/ Maaza Mengiste, The Shadow King
Tanzania Eastern Africa – Abdulrazak Gurnah, Paradise/ Shafi Adam Shafi, Vuta N’Kuvute
Kenya Eastern Africa – Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, A Grain of Wheat/ Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, Dust
Uganda Eastern Africa – Moses Isegawa, Abyssinian Chronicles/ Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, Kintu
Mozambique Eastern Africa – Mia Couto, Sleepwalking Land/ Paulina Chiziane, Niketche: A Story of Polygamy
Madagascar Eastern Africa – Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo, Presque-Songes/ Michèle Rakotoson, Elle, au printemps
Malawi Eastern Africa – Jack Mapanje, Of Chameleons and Gods/ Shadreck Chikoti, Azotus the Kingdom
Zambia Eastern Africa – Dominic Mulaisho, The Tongue of the Dumb/ Ellen Banda-Aaku, Patchwork
Somalia Eastern Africa – Nuruddin Farah, Maps/ Nadifa Mohamed, The Orchard of Lost Souls
Zimbabwe Eastern Africa – Chenjerai Hove, Bones/ Tsitsi Dangarembga, Nervous Conditions
Rwanda Eastern Africa – Benjamin Sehene, Le Piège Ethnique/ Scholastique Mukasonga, Our Lady of the Nile
Burundi Eastern Africa – Roland Rugero, Baho!/ Ketty Nivyabandi, Selected Poems
South Sudan Eastern Africa – Francis Mading Deng, Seed of Redemption/ Stella Gaitano, Edo’s Souls
Eritrea Eastern Africa – Haji Jabir, Black Foam/  Sulaiman Addonia, Silence Is My Mother Tongue
Mauritius Eastern Africa – Ananda Devi, Eve Out of Her Ruins/ Shenaz Patel, Sensitive
Djibouti Eastern Africa – Abdourahman A. Waberi, In the United States of Africa/ Amina Saïd, Feu d’oiseaux
Comoros Eastern Africa – Ali Zamir, Anguille sous roche/ Soeuf Elbadawi, Un dhikri pour nos morts
Seychelles Eastern Africa – Antoine Abel, Coco Sec/ Sonia Grandcourt, Reflections

Egypt Northern Africa – Naguib Mahfouz, The Cairo Trilogy/ Nawal El Saadawi, Woman at Point Zero
Sudan Northern Africa – Tayeb Salih, Season of Migration to the North/ Leila Aboulela, Minaret
Algeria Northern Africa – Mohammed Dib, The Great House/ Assia Djebar, Fantasia: An Algerian Cavalcade
Morocco Northern Africa – Tahar Ben Jelloun, The Sand Child/ Leila Slimani, Lullaby
Tunisia Northern Africa – Albert Memmi, The Pillar of Salt/ Fawzia Zouari, Le Corps de ma mère
Libya Northern Africa – Ibrahim al-Koni, The Bleeding of the Stone/ Najwa Bin Shatwan, The Slave Yards

DR Congo Central Africa – Valentin-Yves Mudimbe, Before the Birth of the Moon/ Fiston Mwanza Mujila, Tram 83
Angola Central Africa – Pepetela, Mayombe/ Ana Paula Tavares, Ritos de Passagem
Cameroon Central Africa – Mongo Beti, Mission to Kala/ Werewere Liking, The Amputated Memory
Chad Central Africa – Nimrod, Les Jambes d’Alice/ Koulsy Lamko, La Phalène des collines
Republic of the Congo Central Africa – Alain Mabanckou, Broken Glass/ Henri Lopes, The Laughing Cry
Central African Republic Central Africa Pierre Sammy Mackfoy, Mille saisons en enfer/ Adrienne Yabouza, Co-épouses et Co-veuves
Gabon Central Africa – Laurent Owondo, Au bout du silence/ Justine Mintsa, Histoire d’Awu
Equatorial Guinea Central Africa – Donato Ndongo-Bidyogo, Shadows of Your Black Memory/ Trifonia Melibea Obono, La Bastard São Tomé & Príncipe Central Africa – Alda Espírito Santo, É Nosso o Solo Sagrado da Terra/ Conceição Lima, A Dolorosa Raiz do Micondó

South Africa Southern Africa – J. M. Coetzee, Disgrace/ Nadine Gordimer, July’s People
Namibia Southern Africa – Joseph Diescho, Born of the Sun/ Neshani Andreas, The Purple Violet of Oshaantu
Botswana Southern Africa – Unity Dow, Far and Beyon’/ Bessie Head, Maru
Lesotho Southern Africa – Thomas Mofolo Chaka, Masechele / Caroline Ntseliseng Khaketla, Mosali eo u mo ratang
Eswatini Southern Africa – James Dlamini, A Swazi Boy/ Sarah Mkhonza, Weeding the Flowerbeds.

ASIA HAS 48 COUNTRIES

India Southern Asia – Salman Rushdie, Midnight’s Children/ Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things
Pakistan Southern Asia – Mohsin Hamid, The Reluctant Fundamentalist/ Bapsi Sidhwa, Cracking India
Bangladesh Southern Asia – Zia Haider Rahman, In the Light of What We Know/ Tahmima Anam, A Golden Age
Iran Southern Asia – Sadegh Hedayat, The Blind Owl/ Shahrnush Parsipur, Women Without Men
Afghanistan Southern Asia – Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner/ Homeira Qaderi, *Dancing in the Mosque
Nepal Southern Asia – Samrat Upadhyay, Arresting God in Kathmandu/ Manjushree Thapa, The Tutor of History
Sri Lanka Southern Asia – Michael Ondaatje, Anil’s Ghost/ V. V. Ganeshananthan, Brotherless Night
Bhutan Southern Asia – Karma Ura, The Hero with a Thousand Eyes/ Kunzang Choden, The Circle of Karma
Maldives Southern Asia – Abdullah Sadiq, Dhon Hiyala and Alifulhu/ Aminath Faiza, Dhoapatta

China Eastern Asia – Mo Yan, Red Sorghum/ Can Xue, Love in the New Millennium
Japan Eastern Asia – Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood/ Yōko Ogawa, The Memory Police
South Korea Eastern Asia – Hwang Sok-yong, The Guest/ Han Kang, The Vegetarian
North Korea Eastern Asia – Bandi, The Accusation/ No confidently verified selection
Mongolia Eastern Asia – Galsan Tschinag, The Blue Sky/ Oyungerel Tsedevdamba, The Green-Eyed Lama

Indonesia South-Eastern Asia – Pramoedya Ananta Toer, This Earth of Mankind/ Ayu Utami, Saman
Vietnam South-Eastern Asia – Bảo Ninh, The Sorrow of War/ Dương Thu Hương, Paradise of the Blind
Philippines South-Eastern Asia – José Rizal, Noli Me Tángere/ Jessica Hagedorn, Dogeaters*
Thailand South-Eastern Asia – Chart Korbjitti, The Judgment/ Veeraporn Nitiprapha, The Blind Earthworm in the Labyrinth
Myanmar South-Eastern Asia – Thein Pe Myint, The Modern Monk/ Nu Nu Yi, Smile as They Bow
Malaysia South-Eastern Asia – Tash Aw, The Harmony Silk Factory/ Hanna Alkaf, The Weight of Our Sky
Cambodia South-Eastern Asia – U Sam Oeur, Sacred Vows/ Vaddey Ratner, In the Shadow of the Banyan
Laos South-Eastern Asia – Outhine Bounyavong, Mother’s Beloved/ Bounthanong Xomxayphol, title to verify
Singapore South-Eastern Asia – Goh Poh Seng, If We Dream Too Long/ Suchen Christine Lim, Fistful of Colours
Timor-Leste South-Eastern Asia – Luís Cardoso, The Crossing/ Maria Ângela Carrascalão, Timor: Antes do Futuro
Brunei South-Eastern Asia – Muslim Burmat, Hadiah Sebuah Impian/ Norsiah Gapar, Pengabdian*

Turkey Western Asia – Orhan Pamuk, My Name Is Red/ Elif Shafak, The Bastard of Istanbul
Iraq Western Asia – Ahmed Saadawi, Frankenstein in Baghdad/ Inaam Kachachi, The American Granddaughter
Saudi Arabia Western Asia – Abdelrahman Munif, Cities of Salt/ Rajaa Alsanea, Girls of Riyadh*
United Arab Emirates Western Asia – Sultan Al Owais, Collected Poems/ Noura Al Noman, Ajwan*
Jordan Western Asia – Jamal Naja, Season of Martyrdom/ Fadia Faqir, Pillars of Salt*
Syria Western Asia – Nihad Sirees, The Silence and the Roar/ Samar Yazbek, The Crossing*
Azerbaijan Western Asia – Akram Aylisli, Stone Dreams/ Banine, Days of the Caucasus*
Yemen Western Asia – Wajdi al-Ahdal, A Land Without Jasmine/ Nadia Alkokabany, My Sana’a*
Israel Western Asia – Amos Oz, A Tale of Love and Darkness/ Ayelet Gundar-Goshen, Waking Lions*
State of Palestine Western Asia – Mahmoud Darwish, Unfortunately, It Was Paradise/ Susan Abulhawa, Mornings in Jenin*
Lebanon Western Asia – Amin Maalouf, The Rock of Tanios/ Hanan al-Shaykh, The Story of Zahra*
Oman Western Asia – Zahran Alqasmi, The Water Diviner/ Jokha Alharthi, Celestial Bodies*
Kuwait Western Asia – Saud Alsanousi, The Bamboo Stalk/ Layla al-Othman, The Woman and the Cat*
Georgia Western Asia – Aka Morchiladze, Journey to Karabakh/ Nino Haratischwili, The Eighth Life*
Qatar Western Asia – Abdulaziz Al-Mahmoud, The Corsair/ Kaltham Jaber, From the Eyes of the Heart*
Armenia Western Asia – Hovhannes Tumanyan, Anush/ Zabel Yesayan, The Gardens of Silihdar*
Bahrain Western Asia – Qassim Haddad, The Book of the Sea/ Fawzia Rashid, The Transformation*
Cyprus Western Asia – Costas Montis, Closed Doors/ Nora Nadjarian, Ledra Street*

Uzbekistan Central Asia – Hamid Ismailov, The Railway/ Zulfiya Isroilova, Selected Poems
Kazakhstan Central Asia – Abai Qunanbaiuly, The Book of Words/ Aigul Kemelbayeva, The Nanny*
Turkmenistan Central Asia – Magtymguly Pyragy, Selected Poems/ Towshan Esenova, The Daughter of a Millionaire
Kyrgyzstan Central Asia – Chinghiz Aitmatov, The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Year/ Chinara Kalybekova, The Day the Mountains Fell*
Tajikistan Central Asia – Sadriddin Ayni, The Sands of Oxus/ Gulrukhsor Safieva, Selected Poems*

Read more…