NEW BLOG ADDRESS

Hello,

This is just to let readers know that I've moved my blog to a new site:
www.laurettasbookblog.wordpress.com

Henceforth, all reviews will be made on that address.

Thank you for reading.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: DARE TO WAIT by JANE IHEJIRIKA

Dare to Wait by Jane Ihejirika takes an in-depth look into the subject of waiting on God. Using her personal experience and biblical stories as examples, Jane explains what it means to wait on God and the benefits of waiting on Him. She also describes the role of the Holy Spirit, the word and prayer in the waiting experience and challenges individuals to have the right attitude while waiting on the Lord.

I must confess that at first I found the book a bit too theoretical. Fortunately, however, the author later infused stories from her personal experience into the narrative thus breaking the monotony and making it a bit more practical.

I also liked the fact that it was not a lengthy book. Some people may feel that it’s too short but one man’s meat, as they say...

Christians especially will find this book a valuable addition to their collection.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: LOVE'S INDENTURE by FEYI AINA

Hello people.

 What is the probability of a rich girl getting married to a mechanic? Well, author Feyi Aina thinks it’s very possible, and sets out to prove it in her sweet romance, Love’s Indenture. Read and Enjoy.

Sassy, ill-mannered Jaiyeola is quite the opposite of her sister, Molade, who everyone regards as sweet and gentle. But Jaiye doesn’t seem to mind being the black sheep of the family; at least, not outwardly. Only Molade understands her and knows how to reach beneath the cold exterior to the warm heart beneath. When, however, death conspires to take Molade away, Jaiyeola finds herself in a fix and only marriage to a car mechanic, Toye, can save the situation and deliver her from the demons within.

I enjoyed reading this book. I must confess that I wasn’t particularly hooked by the first chapter, maybe because it kind of started out a bit preachy and I expected the rest of the book to be that way.

I was pleasantly surprised. Many authors tend to ‘cheat' by declaring that their hero/heroine fell in love  at first sight, thus conveniently avoiding the task of creating the sort of attraction that readers can identify with. This author, however, took her time to build the chemistry between Toye and Jaiye, and by the sixth chapter I was hooked.

The story is also reasonably realistic, which adds to its appeal. Readers who are not fans of lengthy novels will find this book to their taste as it can be finished within six hours.

I do wish though that the author had gone for an edgier book cover. I also felt the ending was a bit abrupt, one more chapter detailing perhaps the birth of their child or the 'happily ever after' may have been in order.

All in all, however, if you like reading romance stories that give goosebumps and make one's heart go linga linga ling, to borrow a line from Tuface Idibia's African Queen, then this book is for you.

Status: Recommended, for lovers of sweet romance.

Get it online:

https://www.okadabooks.com/book/about/loves_indenture__full_version/17006

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK OF THE WEEK: LALIBELA'S WISE MAN BY MATSHONA ...

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK OF THE WEEK: LALIBELA'S WISE MAN BY MATSHONA ...: Hello people. The more books I read, the more I am convinced that there is truth in the saying ‘Do not judge a book by its cover.’ Som...

WRITING CONTEST ORGANISED BY GTBANK/OKADABOOKS/FARAFINA

Here's calling all writers of fiction,

GTBank in conjuction with Okadabooks and Farafina publishers has a competition for writers. 

Below are the guidelines as seen on csr.gtbank.com/DustyManuscript:

It’s not enough to write, every written work needs to be read because the essence of telling a story on paper is for people to read and learn from it.

With a thousand and one fabulous writers in Nigeria, only a small fraction gets the chance to publish their works, either because they abandon it at some point or do not have a publisher to get it out. This is why GTBank has taken up the Dusty Manuscript initiative to empower Nigerian writers. The idea is to get writers to tell and sell their stories across the globe because it’s high time to dust off those manuscripts and get them published.

The Dusty Manuscript Contest features a two-day book writing and marketing boot-camp for the top 25 long-listed authors. To be selected, writers are required to submit novels that depict Crime and Romance in an innovative way that sheds light on the Nigerian culture.

Entries will be judged by top authors and will be based on writing prowess, interpretation and style of writing, level of interest to the general public on the subject matter, potential commercial success of the book among other criteria.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

• Word count: 25,000 to 35,000 words
• Genre: adult fiction
• Written language: English
• The manuscript must be unpublished (never been printed in any form – anthology, magazine, newspaper, or online, with the exception of personal blogs and personal websites. )
• Participants should have at least one parent born in Nigeria who holds citizenship of the same.
• All entries must be submitted via the GTBank portal with an overview and synopsis of the manuscript, and a brief author biography.
• One entry per person

NOTE: No entry fee is required

Formatting Guidelines for Manuscript

• Submitted as a PDF or Word file (.doc and .docx)
• Twelve-point font, double-spaced
• All pages should be numbered and should contain the manuscript title.
• Author’s name should not be present anywhere on the manuscript.

PRIZES/OPPORTUNITIES

• First Place: N1,000,000 + publishing contract with Kachifo Ltd
• Second Place: N500,000 + publishing contract with Kachifo Ltd
• Third Place: N250,000 + publishing contract with Kachifo Ltd
• The remaining shortlisted books with the exception of the top 3 will get their books e-published by OkadaBooks.
• Top 25 shortlisted authors receive a two-day bootcamp training on writing, marketing and branding.

TIMELINE

Submission date; February 5th – March 15, 2018
Submission portal closes at 12:00 a.m. midnight (CST) on March 15, 2018.
The long-list will be announced in May 2018
Bootcamp and announcement of shortlist will be announced in May 2018
Announcement of Top three will be announced in June 2018

To submit your story, kindly visit http://csr.gtbank.com/dustymanuscript

BOOK OF THE WEEK: LAND OF SILENCE BY TESSA AFSHAR

Land of Silence is a book written by Tessa Afshar and published by Tyndale House.

In the opening chapter, readers are introduced to the heroine, Elianna, a teenage girl with a younger brother. Elianna is betrothed to Ethan as a result of a mutual agreement between their fathers, who have been friends for as long as she could remember.

Due in part to a fault of hers, Elianna loses her younger brother under unfortunate circumstances and this results in a strained relationship with her parents,  particularly her father.

Subsequent happenings lead Elianna to struggle with self doubt, and the arrival of a Roman Officer, Decimus Calvus, causes a complication in her relationship with Ethan. Things get worse when her menstrual cycle is affected and she begins bleeding regularly and profusely, causing her to become an object of scorn and ridicule in the community. It takes a chance meeting with a prophet in Judea for Elianna to be restored and delivered from the land of silence.

I like the book’s cover as well as its opening chapter. I love how Tessa Afshar takes her time to create book covers with Middle Eastern themes, which form the setting in almost all her novels. The opening chapter is quite poignant and creates a thirst on the part of the reader for more chapters.

The next few chapters come along fine as well, until one gets somewhere around the ninth chapter. From that point, the pace becomes too slow and the story begins to drag. I understand that good stories need to be detailed and to have depth, however, I think the book has way too many details, especially with regards to Elianna’s family business.  I must add though that anyone particularly interested in the production and sale of textile materials like wool and silk will not have a problem with the amount of detail but may be rather captivated by it.

Again, I find some scenes in the book to be overly dramatic, for example; the heroine tends to gasp rather a lot, even at inopportune times. Scenes like this made it a bit difficult for me to connect with the characters.

I think the climax of the book is its strongest point, and it is at that moment readers get to realize that the story is actually based on the hemorrhaging woman described in the bible. This is a testament to Tessa Afshar's writing skills, I think. The fact that she is able to build a story of over 100,000 words, based just on a few lines in the Bible, is a proof of her writing prowess.
Status: Recommended, provided you’ve read a previous Tessa Afshar novel. It’s available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0198UNULS/ref=pd_aw_sim_351_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=QBCV5SK6ZVMQQ48MZ6F6

Set for release in August 2018:

Can't wait to read this juicy looking book with the intriguing title. Can you?

BOOK OF THE WEEK: PEARL IN THE SAND by TESSA AFSHAR

Click on the link below to read the post:

https://laurettaani.blogspot.com.ng/2017/01/book-review-pearl-in-sand-by-tessa_14.html

BOOK OF THE WEEK: SEASON OF CRIMSON BLOSSOMS by ABUBAKAR ADAM IBRAHIM

Hello people.

Months ago, I stumbled upon an online article highlighting Nigerian authors and publishers making a mark on the international scene.

I must confess that I was a bit surprised when I read the article. Hitherto, I assumed Chimamanda Adiche the only contemporary Nigerian author who was well known internationally, in addition to authors like Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Buchi Emecheta, and a few others. Now here was this foreign article educating me on other award winning authors and their publishers. I became eager to read the books by these authors after that.

Imagine my surprise months after when, on browsing through author tabs on the Okadabooks app, I saw one of the award winning books, Season of Crimson Blossoms, by Abubakar Adam Ibrahim. 

After reading Season of Crimson Blossoms, it was easy to see why it won the 2016 Nigerian Prize for Literature. There are just two words to describe it: Authentically African. 

Set in the Northern part of Nigeria, the book’s plot centres around Hajiiya Binta Zubairu, a 55-year old widowed grandmother who carries on a secret affair with 25-year old Hassan ‘Reza’ Babale.

Whatever is hidden will eventually come to light, however, and when Hajiya's suitor, Mallam Haruna, and her first son, Alhaji Munkaila, discover the affair, what results is a cataclysmic ending the reader will not see coming.

I love the fact that Abubakar remained true to his roots in this book. Not much is known about the North apart from its ethnic conflicts, tribal wars and Boko Haram menace. Movies which would have educated people about that part of Nigeria are usually done in the Hausa language, and how many Nigerians are interested in seeing a movie they can understand only by reading the subtitles? Fortunately, with this book, Abubakar has given his readers a peek into the life of the average Northerner; a peek I certainly enjoyed taking.

I also find his use of metaphors to be quite brilliant; I mean, who can read this opening sentence and not be captivated by it?

“Hajiya Binta Zubairu was finally born at fifty-five when a dark-lipped rogue with short, spiky, hair....scaled her fence and landed, boots and all, into the puddle that was her heart.”

Brilliant, isn't it?

There is a lot of reminiscing in the book, however, which slows down its pace quite a bit. Also, I must confess that at a point, I found the character Reza's habit of saying ‘You understand,’ a bit of a distraction especially in the opening chapters. 

Overall, the various scenes in the book came together quite nicely, and I daresay anyone who enjoys Chimamanda's novels will like reading this book.

Recommended for ages fifteen and above.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: THE BADASS GIRL'S GUIDE BY C.J SCARLET

Hello people.

In the past, it was not uncommon to hear statements like, “If you don’t want to be sexually assaulted, make sure you dress well. Don’t wear short skirts or dresses with plunging necklines and don’t flirt with men,” etcetera.  

Two things happened, however, to put paid to that line of reasoning. First, research based on available data revealed that sexual assault was not limited to women who dressed provocatively or engaged in flirtatious behaviour. Conservative women also reported cases of sexual assault.

Second,  women’s rights groups insisted on the right of women to dress as they pleased without fear of molestation, and the onus fell on men to keep their hands,[if not their eyes] to themselves.

This point has been a bone of contention in many sexual assault cases. Does a woman’s choice of outfit or social behaviour determine if she gets assaulted or not? Assuming it does, why are there cases of sexual assault even in places where women wear burqas?

 These are tough questions indeed, but whatever the case may be, this week's book by C.J Scarlet titled The Badass Girl’s Guide; Uncommon Strategies to Outwit Predators, contains practical tips for outwitting sexual predators.

In this guidebook, C.J discusses myths and facts about sexual assault and describes the types of predators. She also highlights five possible responses to sexual assault; Freeze, Fawn, Comply, Flee or Fight and is careful to point out how each can be used to advantage.

Reading this book for me was like inhaling fresh air; in fact at a point I found myself exhaling. At last! Here’s someone who is real and not idealistic. No locker room advice is given here [‘carry pepper spray in your bag at all times’], rather, readers are treated to sound advice such as the role of intuition and situational awareness in preventing sexual assault, as well as tips for outsmarting a would-be predator.

I recommend this book to all women; it is worth having and worth keeping. 

BOOK OF THE WEEK: ROYALTY BY BOLATITO IDAKULA

Hello people.

At some point in my life I had two acquaintances with pronunciation issues. One had a habit of exchanging 'ch' sounds with 'sh', e.g pronouncing ‘China’ as ‘Shina.’ The other had the problem of lambdacism; thus it was common to hear words like lamp and lamb being pronounced as ramp and ramb.

 I must admit that sometimes I did find these pronunciations hilarious, and more than once I was tempted to utter some witty remark concerning their tongues. However, after reading this week’s book, Royalty, by Bolatito Idakula [daughter of politician Rashid Ladoja and wife of musician Bez Idakula],  I must say I'm glad I kept my mouth shut on those occasions.

Royalty is a memoir detailing Bolatito's life as a politician’s daughter in a polygamous home, her struggle with low self esteem and the loss of a child, as well as her journey to wholeness.

In the book, she describes the less-than-cordial relationship between her parents and its effect on her when she eventually moved in with her father and stepmothers. She also shares her struggle with low self esteem and describes the grief she felt on losing her child. 

One thing is for sure: a person cannot read this poignant book and remain unaffected by it. The book captures the effect of polygamous home on children and makes one aware of just how much insensitivity can hurt.  It also emphasizes the need for care when dealing with children and teenagers, as one careless word or action could mar them for life. 

Fortunately, the book is not all sorrow . There are points where readers catch a glimpse of sunlight; a ray of hope even in the midst of the storm. Bolatito does not neglect to mention the love story between herself and her husband; musician Bez Idakula, which I believe some readers may be dying to know. She also explains how she eventually found peace in her reconnection to God.

Many, especially women, will find Bolatito's testimony inspiring. It can be downloaded for free via the Okadabooks app.

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: THE STRAWBERRY STARTUP by MOSES LIM

Book of the week: The Strawberry Startup by Moses Lim. Click on the link below to read details:


Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: THE STRAWBERRY STARTUP by MOSES LIM: Hello people. Sometime around 2007, there was a major shakeup in the Nigerian banking industry, which saw some founders like Ernest Aki...

BOOK OF THE WEEK: DE-ESCALATE: HOW TO CALM AN ANGRY PERSON IN NINETY SECONDS OR LESS BY DOUGLAS NOLL

Hello people.

Have you ever found yourself trying to calm an angry person only to get angry in the process; further escalating the tension? I certainly have.

This week’s book, De-escalate, deals with the subject of anger. Written by Douglas Noll, the book teaches techniques for dealing with angry people without losing control of oneself.

In the introductory chapter, Douglas Noll asserts that the ideas in the book, if practised, will help readers deal effectively with angry individuals. He also identifies some ‘deadly sins’ which affect our ability to successfully calm an angry individual; for example, the ‘sin’ of emotional invalidation.

Douglas then educates readers on anger-defusing skills such as Affect Labelling, Peace Circle Model, etc. He describes Affect Labelling as the process of listening to another person's emotional experience and reflecting back those emotions in short, simple "You" statements. 

One major point Doug makes, however, is that for de-escalation skills to work, individuals must learn to keep their emotions in check. Without this ability, it will be difficult to handle conflict successfully. Using various scenarios, he describes how the skills can be used with young children, teenagers, spouses, friends, co-workers and bosses. 

Here's an example from the book on anger defusion using Affect Labelling:

Husband: “Would you stop that…texting and pay attention to me for once?”

Wife:[Affect Labelling] “You’re frustrated.”

Husband: “Yeah. Everytime we go out to dinner, you pull out your phone and start texting your friends. It pisses me off.”

Wife: “You’re angry and frustrated and feel disrespected.”

Husband: “Damn right I do.”

Wife: “You don’t feel loved or appreciated. You feel invisible and unworthy.”

Husband: “Yeah.”

Hmmm. I felt a bit skeptical when I read this scenario, as well as some other scenarios described in the book. I don't know, but this just seems to be too good to be true. How many people out there can successfully manage to keep their emotions in check? A more probable scenario might be something like this:

Husband: “Would you stop that…texting and pay attention to me for once?”

Wife:  [still fiddling with phone] “Okay.”

Five minutes later…

Wife: “So what were you saying again?”

Husband remains silent for the rest of the day.

OR…

Husband: “Would you stop that…texting and pay attention to me for once?”

Wife: “What do you mean? Don’t I have the right to send messages to whoever I want to send messages to?”

Husband: “Everytime we go out to dinner, you pull out your phone and start texting your friends. It pisses me off.”

Wife: “Well, I’m sorry that you feel that way, but you’ll just have to learn to live with it.”

  I must admit that I found Affect Labelling, a bit too formulaic, bearing in mind the fact that humans are complex and very unpredictable. I certainly intend to try it out though; if some mortals have used the technique and found it helpful, then there's no harm in trying it out. Hopefully, all I need is practice???

Overall, despite the fact that a few ideas might seem a bit lofty, there are many useful ideas for anger de-escalation contained in the book. Teachers, counsellors and workers in prison systems will definitely find this book useful in the practice of their profession.  

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK OF THE WEEK: GET SMARTER MARKETING by JILL BR...

Book of the week:
Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK OF THE WEEK: GET SMARTER MARKETING by JILL BR...: Hello people. Years ago, I was at an event where a speaker was scheduled to give a motivational speech to young, budding entrepreneur...

BOOK OF THE WEEK: THE POUCHPLAN BUDGET BY MITCHELL WALKER

Hello people.

The Pouchplan is a budgeting tool created by Mitchell Walker to help individuals take control of their finances. In the introductory chapter of the book, The Pouchplan Budget, Mitchell seeks to establish credibility by explaining that he worked for fifteen years as the vice president of finance for a Berkshire Hathaway company and thus has experience analysing and reviewing thousands of budgets. 

He then describes how he was broke and in debt in the late 1980s, to the extent of looking for change under the couch cushions in his home just to get gas money for his car. The Pouchplan, he claims, was the shovel he used to dig his family out of financial distress and into financial security.

The author in chapter one explains how the Pouchplan works. All that is needed is for users of the plan to write down their regular income, their fixed expenses and finally their variable expenses, and then the Pouchplan budget system will provide specific instructions for users to follow when payday arrives. Someone is probably thinking now; “This is just too good to be true.” 

I must confess that I had mixed feelings after reading the book. First, I think I sort of expected more; perhaps the dos and don’ts of budgeting or that sort of thing. The book, however, is based entirely on the Pouchplan tool. I also wondered as to the seeming simplicity of the tool; bearing in mind the fact that a lot of budgeting tools are rather complex and complicated, to say the least.

Fortunately for doubting Thomases, the Pouchplan can be downloaded for free via the website, www.pouchplan.com. It’s a plus on the part of the author that he is interested in receiving feedback from users, whether positive or negative, and he even mentions the possibility of tailoring the Pouchplan to suit the individual’s needs where possible. Readers interested in a budgeting tool will find this book quite useful. 

BOOK OF THE WEEK: KIKELOMO; THE MEMOIR OF AN ABUSED GIRL

Hello people.

The more books I read, the more I am convinced that there is truth in the saying, “Do not judge a book by its cover or title.”

About a couple of weeks ago, I saw a book titled Kikelomo on the Okadabooks store. The cover was not particularly eye-catching and the bland title did not help matters either, so I simply moved on and looked at other books on the app.

Some days ago, however, I came across the book again and was surprised to see that it had been downloaded over a thousand times. Intrigued by this occurrence, I downloaded it[seeing as it was free], started reading and, filled with a sense of incredulity, looked up the author on Google hoping to get some sort of confirmation regarding her story.

The book, Kikelomo, is a memoir written by well-known Nigerian photographer, Kikelomo Woleosho, in which she describes in details the sexual abuse she suffered as a child; her struggle with masturbation as well as her journey to wholeness.

Raised by a mother who suffered from chronic depression, Kikelomo, whose father was based in the United Kingdom, found herself alone and having to tend to her younger siblings for a better part of her life.

Left in the care of a neighbour at age seven, Kike was sexually molested by him and thus, was introduced to the world of sex and masturbation.

The sexual abuse did not stop there. Entrusted to the care of a relative who also abused her, Kike was molested right up to her adolescence and only until she encountered the Spiritual did she begin to receive a sense of healing and wholeness as an individual.

I love Kikelomo’s frankness in the book. To be candid, at a point I had to check her profile via Google to be sure the author was for real and not writing  made-up stories. Amongst other things, Kikelomo Woleosho is a member of Barack Obama's Young African Leaders Initiative [YALI] and a recipient of the World Bank scholarship for women in business.

Parents, child care givers and all lovers of children will do well to read this evocative book as it offers insight into the world of children and how they can be preyed upon by sexual predators. Interested readers can download the book on the Okadabooks store via this link: https://www.okadabooks.com/book/about/kikelomo_the_memoir_of_an_abused_girl/15306#.WhLa-aSgnqE.link

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK REVIEW: DESTITUTIO QUOD REMISSIO by BRETT ARM...

Click on the link below to read the book review...

Welcome to Lauretta Ani's Blog: BOOK REVIEW: DESTITUTIO QUOD REMISSIO by BRETT ARM...: Hello people. The first time I saw the book Destitutio Quod Remissio , two things struck me immediately. First, the title of the book. ...

BOOK OF THE WEEK: BRAND IDENTITY BREAKTHROUGH BY GREGORY DIEHL

Hello people

One popular belief regarding brand promotion is that when a business has a product or service to offer, the best way to get more customers is to advertise to all and sundry, in hopes of drawing in potential customers. This, according to Gregory Diehl, the author of this week’s book, Brand Identity Breakthrough, is an inefficient way of promoting your brand to potential customers.

In this bestselling book, Diehl opines that good communication is key when promoting a good or a service. In addition, he states that apart from knowing the value one’s product or service adds to customers, the onus falls on entrepreneurs to identify the type of people who can recognize the value of their product or service.

Greg further asserts that anything which exists to serve everyone really exists to serve no one, and the best quality product or innovative marketing technique won't matter if the people you are approaching don't see a need for what you offer. 

Available on Okadabooks and Amazon Kindle

So what should an entrepreneur do to stamp his/her brand in the minds of people? Amongst other things, Diehl suggests the following:

1.    Identify your Unique Selling Point[USP]

2.    Focus on designing products and services that meet a specific demand, and:

3.    Know your target customers and advertise to them.

The beautiful thing about the book is that the author takes his time to explain the points in the book, thus ensuring that readers get value for their time and money. He also includes case studies of business owners who experienced greater success as a result of incorporating the ideas he teaches.

Brand Identity Breakthrough is a must-have for budding and established entrepreneurs. It can be gotten on Amazon and other major bookstores.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: BEHOLD YOUR MISSING RIB BY CHUKS EDEN

Hello people.

With so many marriage issues abounding in the world today, there can never be too many books on the subject of love and marriage. This week's book, Behold Your Missing Rib by Revd. Chuks Eden, deals with the subject of love and marriage albeit with a twist.

In the introductory chapter of the book, Revd. Chuks promises that the book will empower readers to overcome all barriers to marriage; a very heavy claim indeed.

Using scriptural verses as a framework to support his postulates, he suggests, in chapter one, seven primary reasons why marriages fail using different case studies to back up his claims.

In subsequent chapters, the author describes various traits a person must look out for in a prospective partner if they wish to marry and live happily ever after.

 It is at this point that the book gets interesting, although I must confess that I found it difficult agreeing with some of the things written in the book; for example, the author advises that a person should not marry a man who is not working, or a man whose work one is not comfortable with. While I understand what the author is trying to say, I also know that a few women were fortunate enough to marry men who were not working at the time of the wedding but who got jobs soon afterwards.

The author also advises that it’s best to marry someone not just of your own faith, but even of your own denomination if possible. Again, though this does make sense when viewed from one perspective [imagine a Deeper Lifer marrying a House on the Rock member]; I believe there are still exceptions to the rule.

These are but a few of the controversial issues contained in the book. It also contains insightful statements however, for instance, in the chapter on physical appearance, the author states that no matter how loud a person’s inner beauty shouts, a would-be suitor will not hear the sound unless they are first captivated by the outward packaging of the person.

Behold Your Missing Rib is entertaining and insightful once a person can get past the controversial issues in the book. Readers who wish to buy the book can purchase it on Okadabooks by clicking on the link below: 

http://okadabooks.com/book/about/behold_your_missing_rib__adult_only_18/11864 

NEW RELEASE ON OKADABOOKS AND AMAZON KINDLE

Hello people.

I am pleased to announce the release of my novel, A Crown of Beauty. Here's the blurb:

As a child, Ada seemed to have it all. With doting parents, a best friend, and a crush on Alex Babatunde Haastrup; her rival in primary school; life couldn't have been more interesting.

A tragic occurrence in her late teenage years shatters her fairytale existence, however, and Ada finds herself rebelling against everything she has ever believed in and keeping her distance from her loved ones- including Alex.

Years later, a chance encounter in the university forces her to confront her fears, and when fate brings her and Alex together again, they must decide if they can let go of the past and give the future a chance.

The book can be gotten on Okadabooks, a site which accepts payments in local and foreign currency. Here is the link to the book:

https://www.okadabooks.com/book/about/a_crown_of_beauty/15860#.Wep_PvoktLo.link

It is also available on Amazon Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076N5M9FT/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_t2_-ul7zb8J8FC5S

My Amazon Author page link: https://www.amazon.com/LAURETTA-ANI/e/B076NXJWDR

Thank you for purchasing the book, and I look forward to reading your reviews.

BOOK OF THE WEEK: OUT OF THE BLUE BY GREG MURTHA

Hello people.

The average person subconsciously believes that he/she will live forever, or at least be young and healthy forever. Imagine the shock, therefore, when a once healthy person takes ill and receives this news from the doctor: ‘You have a terminal illness.’ Such was the shock received by Greg Murtha, the author of this week’s book, Out of the Blue.

Greg, a healthy, successful, forty-six year old man, left his house one early morning in December 2011 to perform his usual morning exercise. On returning home, he headed for the bathroom and was shocked to see blood, a lot of it, coming out with his urine. A visit to the doctor later confirmed his worst fear- he was ill; not just ill, but terminally ill. He had cancer.

Out of the Blue was penned while Greg was in the hospital. Written from a Christian perspective, Greg gives readers a glimpse into his thoughts on cancer, caregivers to cancer patients, life and life after death.

Reading this book is sure to make the reader remember just how finite life is, and how important it is for one to spend one’s life doing the things one loves and being with the people that matter most. The book can be gotten on Amazon and other major bookstores.

P.S: Greg lost his battle with cancer on June 22, 2017.