A Sunday Evening with Teju Cole at Jazzhole

Heres how Lagos book lovers spent a Sunday Evening with Teju Cole at Jazzhole.

Cassava Republic, the Nigerian publishers of Teju Cole, hosted him at Jazzhole yesterday evening. It was a warm and cosy event, at the literature, music and art haven Jazzhole, located at 168 Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Book Lovers from all over Lagos refused to miss the opportunity to hear author speak about his books and work, and the small space was crowded with people.

Teju Cole is the author of the novella Every Day Is for the Thief (2007, 2014), the novel (2011), the essay collection Known and Strange Things (2016), and the collection of photography and nonfiction, Blind Spot (2017). He is the Distinguished Writer in Residence at Bard College and photography critic at The New York Times Magazine.

He spoke about losing his sight months after he published Blind Spot — a book about "buried histories that we disregard, and the idea that something can bloom out of that".

As usual, he dished out inspiring quotes about the responsibility African writers with cultural insight have, in curing the mental genocide that Colonialism and white supremacy brought to Africa.

Speaking on the importance of the art of storytelling, he says: "We have a responsibility to project stories in their complexities. When writing, you cannot cater to the concerned trolling of people who don’t really care... Not performing what is expected of me as an African writer is very important to my life as an artist.”

He further spoke on solitude in the writing process and the delicate dance between loneliness and aloneness. He insists that it can be a dangerous dance if one does not take caution.

If you were not present at the gathering, you sure missed a lot!