A Conversation with Enna Neru

I was thrilled to receive Enna Neru's book, An African Tale, which arrived all the way from Botswana!  Some readers of my blog already know that I am absolutely intrigued by this African country.

1) Welcome, Enna! Thank you so much for sending me your wonderful book, and for answering some questions.  Please tell us a bit about your background, and the inspiration behind An African Tale, which I've just read.

EN: I run a camp on the edge of the Okavango Delta. This camp started off very humbly about 17 years ago with just a camp site and outside ablutions, we didn't even have electricity or phones, (no cell phones in those days). Over the years it has grown into quite a substantial business.

Village close to Maun is a mix of traditional  thatched huts and modern brick buildings.

Along the way I have been doing a lot of work with the communities that live in the Delta, taking tourists out to do "mokoro" (dug out canoes) trips with them. The idea was also to try and slowly bring the rural communities into the modern world of business without handouts so that they would have something substantial to build on. Spending time out there in that changing but unchanged world, sometimes not very far from town, is probably where I started to dream up this story.

Mokoro rides in the Gotomi River.

2) Africa has a long tradition of folktales, populated by semi-gods and animals with human (speaking) and magical powers (flying, changing size), which you incorporate into your story.  I envision parents reading this book to children, a chapter or two each night before bed.  Were folktales recited to you as a child, did you read them in books, or both?

EN: I wanted to write a story for African children using the old and the new and trying to show them how a balance is needed between the two. A lot of times when kids leave their rural homes for school and the modern world they disregard what they have left behind describing it as backward. I grew up with a father who had many traditional tales in his head and it was always a nighttime treat, some of it passed down, a lot just made up on the spot. Some of what I have used is taken from traditional material but a lot is just fantasy.

3) Although An African Tale is a children's book, there are important messages in it about the conservation of natural resources.  How has the modernization of Botswana helped and hurt this African nation?

EN: Botswana started out life after independence in 1966 as one of the poorest nations in the world and is now thanks to the discovery of diamonds one of the wealthiest ones. It is a very peaceful and well run country and its people are prospering. The downside is that it is built on Kalahari sand and most of the country is semi-desert which means a lot of thought needs to be given to the environment. Overdevelopment is going to put a huge strain on this.

4) Because I'm not that familiar with African names, which are quite lovely and lyrical, your list of Setswana names for the creatures and characters in your story at the back of the book helped me to keep track of them and learn their meanings.  How important are names in Africa? Does Enna have a special meaning?

EN: Names are very important in Botswana and I would say generally in Africa. The more pleasant ones such as Lorato and Lesedi are used a lot. Enna is actually Anne backwards as you guessed!

5) As a tea drinker, I became interested in rooibos, or red tea, as a result of reading Alexander McCall Smith's The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series, where tea is a central part of daily life.  Do you drink tea, and if so, what kind?

EN: I drink Rooibos, love it. It comes from South Africa. Not everyone likes it here but they do like tea and it is normally drunk in a very large mug with plenty of sugar.
 
(I also enjoy red tea. There are so many varieties, such as Botswana Blossom and Good Hope Vanilla, that I'd like to try.)

6) What do you enjoy doing when you're not writing?  Do you have any interests you'd like to share?

EN: Well, I haven't done a lot of writing, this book took ages and then I had to build up the courage to let someone read it! I did write a play which got onto the BBC and helped build a bit of confidence. What I am doing at the moment is getting a project together to work with underprivileged kids in the art world, dance, music, etc.. There is enormous talent out there and the education here tends to concentrate more on the academic side of things.
 
(That sounds very worthwhile, Enna. Many of these children are probably quite gifted in the arts and need some opportunities.)

7) What, if anything, surprised you most after this book was published?  Is there another book in the works?

EN: It has all been rather exciting because people read it and come back with constructive feedback. I haven't actually finished this tale as Lesedi needs to go to the big city and work things out with Lotobo and we need to do something about that evil character in The Hills. So let's see!

Enna, I'm happy to hear that there may be a continuation to this story! Thank you so much for the interview and photos.  It's been a pleasure.

As always, reader comments are welcomed.

Mailbox Monday

When I received a package from Botswana today, practically covered with colorful stamps, I knew in a flash that I had to do a Mailbox Monday post.  Every week Marcia from The Printed Page hosts Mailbox Monday.  I've never done this meme before, although I've often commented on others' Mailbox Monday posts.

In the package was An African Tale, which was sent to me by the author, Enna Neru.  I've been intrigued by Botswana ever since I started reading The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.  The other book, Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, which I'd ordered from an Amazon.com marketplace seller, also arrived today, and has been recommended to me by many.

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built and the HBO series

Reading Tea Time for the Traditionally Built was like slipping into a pair of comfortable shoes, soft and worn in all the right places. Once again, I found myself quickly immersed in the world of red tea, dramatic African scenery, and a familiar cast of characters, made even more familiar by the HBO series I've been watching on TV since it started on Sunday, March 29. The series is quite charming and makes me appreciate the books even more.

"She finished her tea and began to walk back into the house. There is plenty of work for love to do. Yes. There was breakfast to be made, and letters to be answered, and the problems in clients' lives to be sorted out. There was quite enough to do without worrying about the sun consuming the earth. Yes, one should not worry too much, and then she looked at her van and thought: How long will I keep you going? One more day? One more week? And then how are we going to say goodbye, after so many years? It would be like losing a best friend, a faithful companion--it would be every bit as hard as that."
~Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, Alexander McCall Smith

In the newest book, "traditionally built" Mma Ramotswe is troubled by the fact that her beloved, tiny white van is on it's last legs, while Mma Makutsi, her assistant, is troubled by a glamorous rival from her days at the secretarial college, Violet Sepohotho, who seems to be trying to lure away her fiancé, Rra Phuti Radiphuti. The detectives also have their hands full with a seemingly impossible case to figure out for Mr. Molofololo: why can't the Kalahari Swoopers win any more football matches, and who is to blame for this? There's also the case of the woman with multiple husbands--what is the best way to deal with her?

Tea is, of course, an integral part of this book by Alexander McCall Smith, and the traditional way of life in Botswana. I've been partaking in this tradition and drinking my fair share of red tea while watching the show (which I look forward to all week) and during reading. I finished reading Tea Time for the Traditionally Built in about two days, with a hint of sadness to be done. However, I'm happy to hear that there will be more books in this series, and on Sunday night, I'll watch the next episode of The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

Tonight's the Night

Tonight I'll be relaxing in Botswana with a cup of steaming rooibos. The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency movie series, based on the books by Alexander McCall Smith, debuts tonight in the U. S. on HBO at 8 PM PDT (please check your local listings as times may vary). I can't wait to see it at last! I expect it to be wonderful. For a peek at the show, you can watch The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency trailers.

I've read all of the books in this series, with, of course, the exception of the new one, Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, which is due out next month, and which I look greatly forward to reading.

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

I can't believe what I stumbled upon tonight on Amazon! Tea Time for the Traditionally Built (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Book 10) by Alexander McCall Smith will be released on April 21, 2009. I didn't know there was another book in the works. This is great news for fans of this series, such as myself. It's time to pour a cup of tea and celebrate!

But there's more terrific news! The two-hour pilot of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, directed by Anthony Minghella, will premier in the United States on HBO on March 29, 2009, and six additional weekly episodes will follow on Sunday nights. This series stars actress and singer Jill Scott as Mma Precious Ramotswe, Anika Noni Rose as Mma Grace Makutsi, Mma Ramotswe’s quirky secretary, and Lucien Msamati as Mr J.L.B. Matikone, Mma Ramotswe's love interest. It's the first movie series filmed in Botswana, and I'm really looking forward to watching it.

The Miracle at Speedy Motors: Tea and Rain

"Oh, the thinks you can think!"
~Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel, 1904-1991)

I wonder if Dr. Seuss was referring to one of the benefits of drinking tea? There's nothing quite like a pot of tea to set your thoughts in order, to help discover new ways of thinking about things and solutions to troubling matters. In The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of books, tea helps the detectives and other Batswana think things through and come up with the best solutions to perplexing cases and problems; perhaps that is why they partake in this tradition so frequently, "to think better thinks".

Tea cup and tissues by my side, I've just finished reading the ninth and last book in this series, The Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith. I 'm sad to depart from Botswana but am very satisfied with the ending of the book and series, which leaves readers hopeful and optimistic, as does the miracle of rain in this sun-parched nation:

"Two days passed--two days in which more rain fell, great cloudbursts of rain, drenching the length and breadth of Botswana. People held their breath in gratitude, hardly daring to speak of the deluge lest it should suddenly stop and the dryness return. The rivers, for long months little more than dusty beds of rust-colored sand, appeared again, filled to overflowing in some cases, twisting snakes of mud-brown water moving across the plains. . . . The bush, a dessicated brown before the storms, turned green overnight, as the shoots of dormant plants thrust their way through the soil. Flowers followed, tiny yellow flowers, spreading like a dusting of gold across the land. Ground vines sent out tendrils, melons would grow in abundance later on, as an offering, an expiation for the barrenness of the dry months that had gone before."
~The Miracle at Speedy Motors, Alexander McCall Smith

The tea cup is half-full.

Botswana Day is celebrated on September 30th, the day that this nation, which has achieved great economic growth within the past forty years, became independent from the British.

The Miracle at Speedy Motors: More Tea Talk

I don't want my African adventures to end. I may try and make this one last, the final book in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, The Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith. On the other hand, I may just have to read this book at my normal speed, because it's so absorbing. In this book, there are many things to be pondered. At the detective agency we meet Mma Sebina, who wants to find out who her family is, no easy feat. Associate detective Mma Makutsi, who scored a 97 percent at the Botswana Secretarial College, gets a fancy new bed, but is not getting any sleep. There's also the matter of a miracle cure for Motholeli, who uses a wheelchair--is it too good to be true? And how many cattle constitute a fair dowry or bogadi? (Even Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, who hold traditional Botswana values, think it would be better if a man did not have to pay for his wife, because a wife is not a thing to be bought or possessed.) I'm not quite half-way through The Miracle at Speedy Motors, and am once again enjoying the company of Mma Ramotswe and her entourage. With each book, the characters become more real, more fleshed out, showing their various human strengths and shortcomings. It must have been rather challenging for the author to write a series of nine books without boring the reader--just from blogging about them I face a similar challenge to a much lesser degree--but these books remain intriguing because the characters are more fully developed, and you really care about them. You also care about something important to them which they drink quite frequently, tea:

"Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni smiled. They were always having tea, as far as he could work out. There was the first cup, served shortly after they arrived in the office in the morning, and then there was the ten o'clock cup, which was sometimes taken at nine thirty in the hot weather. That was followed by the tea which was brewed at eleven thirty (the mid-morning tea), and of course there was tea immediately after lunch and again at three in the afternoon. He thought it was a good thing that the red bush tea contained no caffeine, or Mma Ramotswe would surely find it difficult to get to sleep at night, with all that caffeine in her system. Yet Mma Makutsi drank ordinary tea, which had ample quantities of caffeine in it, he believed; indeed he thought that this might explain why she was sometimes so tetchy with the apprentices, especially with Charlie. Mind you, anybody might be forgiven for being irritated by Charlie, with his constant boasting and that endless silly chatter about girls; even one with no caffeine at all in his system could find himself snapping at such a young man."
~The Miracle at Speedy Motors, Alexander McCall Smith

Just as a good TV series eventually must end at the right time, so must this series of books, I suppose, although I certainly wouldn't object to a tenth book. I will greatly miss this fine cast of characters, beautiful Botswana, and all the references to tea. Even when they sit around drinking tea, or perhaps especially when they sit around drinking tea, their world is warm and inviting.

The Good Husband of Zebra Drive

I never regret time spent in Botswana, in the serene world of Mma Ramotswe, a place of hope and good values, even as this African nation copes with modernization. In the eighth book of The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, The Good Husband of Zebra Driveby Alexander McCall Smith, the agency investigates an errant husband, three mysterious deaths at the Mochudi hospital, as well as a case of suspected employee theft at a printing company. Three main characters, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, Mma Makutsi, and the older apprentice, Charlie, become restless and yearn for "greener pastures"; each seeks work outside of their chosen professions. Of course, the head detective remains calm and thoughtful, and while the others are like characters in the Wizard of Oz, seeking their fortunes on new paths, Mma Ramotswe grants them this freedom to explore--like a good mother. Will they return "home" ("there's no place like home"), which in this case is The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency in Gaborone, Botswana? I'll not reveal what happens here!

I read this book quickly, enjoyed it thoroughly, and even started the last book in the series, The Miracle at Speedy Motors last night. I'll be sad when I'm finished with the series, but know that I can always reread these beautiful books. I'm also trying to get the series on DVD; if anyone knows how I can do that please contact me. After I finish reading the ninth book, I may have a party to watch the show with friends and family, where I'll serve red tea and cake, and perhaps some African appetizers.

In The Company of Cheerful Ladies: A Mysterious Pumpkin, and Red Tea

The New York Times Book Review called this book, "A literary confection of . . .gossamer deliciousness. . . ." I've just started reading another very enjoyable tale set in Botswana, In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith. Super sleuth Mma Ramotswe has a mystery in her own life right now--who left the delectable pumpkin on her porch? (That shouldn't spoil too much of the story for you should you decide to read it!) As with all the books in this series, the beginning chapter summarizes events from the previous books, so readers don't need to read each one to know what's going on, although I've made the choice to read each book of the series, in order.

Last night I had to pick up a few groceries and found a container of rooibos, the ever-present tea in the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, to enjoy at home. I was tempted to buy a red tea with the enticing name of "Botswana Blossom", but decided to get the plain red tea instead, as I'm a bit of a purist. Red tea is an indigenous herb of South Africa called rooibos (ROY-boss). It's supposed to be very healthy, loaded with polyphenols and flavonoids which help protect against the onset of aging and disease. Red tea apparently has all the benefits of green tea, without the caffeine.

I'm thrilled to report that I've been getting more international traffic to Suko's Notebook--from at least 16 countries--including numerous guests from Gaborone, Botswana, the setting for The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency books! Of course, I also greatly appreciate my visitors from the United States. As always, I welcome your comments, and pertinent questions may be emailed to me--I usually respond within 24 hours. One remarkable thing about the internet is that it brings people from all over the world closer together. As we conduct searches and research from our homes, offices, libraries, and schools--or anywhere else with an internet connection--we connect with people world-wide and learn about other cultures--and seem a bit closer to peace on earth.

On this seventh anniversary of the horrific events of Sept. 11th, please take at least a few moments to remember the victims, as well as the many heroes of that day.

Beautiful Botswana

It's difficult to write about The Full Cupboard of Life, or any book for that matter, without revealing too much of the plot. It's much better to read the book for yourself and see how events unfold. So, I'll write a few words instead about the beautiful country that intrigues me, the African nation of Botswana, as depicted in The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of books by Alexander McCall Smith. In The Full Cupboard of Life, the main character, the head detective herself, Mma Ramotswe, describes Botswana this way in her thoughts:

"There was a country so large that the land seemed to have no limits; there was a sky so wide and so free that the spirit could rise and soar and not feel in the least constrained; and there were the people, the quiet, patient people, who had survived in this land, and who loved it. Their tenacity was rewarded, because underneath the land there were diamonds, and the cattle prospered, and brick by brick the people built a country of which anybody could be proud. That was what Botswana had, and that's why it was a fortunate country."
~ The Full Cupboard of Life, Alexander McCall Smith

Mma Ramotswe's pride in her country is palpable and contagious; I picture the incredible expansiveness of both land and sky. I've included a map and flag of Botswana from (wonderful) Wikipedia; stunning photos of Botswana can be found on Technorati.