Adventures in Teaching and Learning

Last Thursday was a very special occasion, since it was the official launch of Samson’s book, The Jive Talker or, How to Get a British Passport. This was published by Jonathan Cape (Random House) in the UK on 3 July, and will be published by Free Print (Simon and Schuster) in the USA and Canada on 12 August.

We had a lovely evening, hosted by Iniva (Institute of International Visual Arts) at Rivington Place. Samson installed 52 Holy Balls; to those who have already read the book, these hopefully made sense, and to those who have yet to read the book, their meaning will soon become much clearer! Those who bought Holyballist Bibles have had their numbers recorded in the Book of Life.

It was great to welcome so many people from so many different walks of life to the launch. There were family and friends from Scotland, old friends from Malawi, colleagues and curators from Nottingham, curators from the Netherlands and Belgium, teachers from London, people involved in publishing and in art from London and other places around the country. Many people bought books, even those who had one or more at home already, and Samson spent the evening talking to people and signing books.

I was sort of in charge of talking photos, at which I failed miserably. We had just bought a new flash which I didn’t know how to use, so for the first half an hour it was switched off altogether, and when Samson realised and turned it on, I still didn’t realise I had to give it a chance to charge up again between takes, so at least half the photos are either too dark or too yellow. My own camera was running out of battery - I kept expecting it to tell me to “change the batteries”, but I should really have made my own decision and done that earlier, then I could have taken lots of nice photos on a camera I know and understand! So that was a disappointment the following day, but fortunately it did not spoil the evening at all.

A couple of the special literary guests were Susan Williams, who wrote the excellent review in the Independent, and Steve Chimombo, a well known Malawian writer who also writes tirelessly about the arts in Malawi in order to promote them and who has therefore followed Samson’s work and written articles about him, for example in WASI and as the biography section in Black My Story, the book that went along with the exhibition of the same name at the Museum de Paviljoens in Almere, the Netherlands. I can’t begin to mention everyone else that came along to celebrate with us, including other artists and writers, but may I take this opportunity to say thank you to you all, and I hope you enjoyed the evening as much as I did!

I am about to add some photos below, but if you are interested in a more unbiased post on the launch, you can read a review in Cally’s Kitchen; the Dunadan has also written a review of The Jive Talker. (And it’s always nice to visit a different blog!)

Right. I am now about to find some photos to upload …

52 Holy Balls, Iniva

Installation at Iniva, Rivington Place

Another installation view of 52 Holy Balls and some Holy Bibles

Speeches during the launch

People with a Malawian connection

Exercises and Exorcisms at Rivington Place

Samson and I at the end of the evening

That is the question that Terry Freedman is asking on his blog, and he is asking bloggers / writers to complete a survey which can be found here, with their views on the difference. So first of all, I thought I’d put up the link in case any of my readers would like to complete the survey to help Terry with his research.

Anyway, it’s an interesting question. I enjoy blogging, but some of the topics I blog about aren’t exactly what I would choose to write about if I were writing fiction, for example. Last November I took part in NaNoWriMo, and the resulting writing was quite different from my posts here. A lot of stream-of-consciousness, for example, which, although I do a little of it from time to time here, might not always get across the main point or link that I want to share.

Also, Samson’s book is completely different from his blogging style. I’m sure there are many other people who would be able to give such examples. After all, the purposes of a book, essay, short story or blog can be very different.

I suppose for me, the big question in relation to Terry’s article is, what is a writer? What makes a writer different from a blogger? Is a writer a novelist, an author, a journalist, a blogger? Are they interchangeable? Am I blogger on here, but a writer when I’m taking part in NaNoWriMo? If my blog were more literary, would I be a writer who blogs, or still a blogger who writes?

Well, it’s getting late now and I wouldn’t want to reflect too much this late at night! But I would look forward to any responses … (That could be another difference … a blogger should be able to get quicker feedback, presumably? If we have any readers? Whereas a writer might have to wait for longer and look for letters in the feedback pages of newspapers or hold their breath for reviews?)

As a Haringey teacher, it was about time I visited this local celebrity of a shop. And I was not disappointed! Although the space is small, there is a lightness, openness and friendliness about it that means I am looking forward to going back. Made a nice change to the huge superstores that most bookshops are today (although I have to confess, I like those too!). Anyway, it felt a bit like visiting a friend, which was a bit bizarre since I have never met Tim or Simon, the owners, before, but I had seen photos on their Facebook site and on their blog, and since our superb librarian is also connected to them, I feel as if I am part of the Big Green Bookshop family. So, having bought a book (the Freedom Writers’ Diary, since you ask), I am now devoting a whole post to this special Wood Green bookshop. Please follow the links above to find out more! (And, if you’re near North London on 9 August, I’m sure Tim and Simon would be delighted to see you at their Levi Roots Reggae Reggae Cookbook party … See the Facebook group for more details!) (And I should also point out that there is handy parking nearby, as long as there are spaces, of course, but you should take some cash with you for the machine so your visit isn’t as rushed as mine was!)

I thought I’d share with you some advance praise for Samson’s book, The Jive Talker, Or How to Get a British Passport. It comes out on 3 July.

Samson Kambalu’s The Jive Talker is one of the funniest books I’ve read in years–the book of a born writer and a born comic, as distinct from a “humorist”(save me)–and it has its own peculiar wisdom, namely that nothing’s what we’re told it is, probably nothing is what we say it is either, and most importantly, nothing’s sacred, least of all us. For every reader who’s been bedazzled and disappointed by the “pity-me” school of autobiographical writing, and every reader who’s been jived to death, this book should be a life-preserver of sanity in an upside down world, a reorientation in how to avoid claptrap, self-pity and boorishness, and have a high, smart time doing it.

- Gary Indiana, author of Do Everything in the Dark and The Schwarzenegger Syndrome.

Samson Kambalu has a beguiling voice, and The Jive Talker delivers the charming and rare story of Kambalu’s coming of age as an artist in Malawi.

- Daniel Bergner, author of In the Land of Magic Soldiers: A Story of White and Black in West Africa