Episode 50

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Published on:

21st May 2026

How African Novels Think with Ainehi Edoro

A book discussion on Forest Imaginaries: How African Novels Think by Ainehi Edoro. Moderated by Bhakti Shringarpure.

About the book: Forests in fiction are often understood simply as settings, symbols, or remnants of a premodern past. Yet many African novelists have turned to the forest to experiment with worldbuilding and to imagine new futures. This groundbreaking book explores the life of the forest in African fiction, showing how writers have used it to reinvent the novel’s formal, aesthetic, and political possibilities.

About the author: Ainehi Edoro is a Nigerian literary scholar who focuses on African literature and digital culture. She is the founding editor of Brittle Paper, a leading platform for African literary culture, and faculty of English and African cultural studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Buy the book here: https://cup.columbia.edu/book/forest-imaginaries/9780231565073

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BookRising
A Radical Books Collective podcast
Featuring progressive conversations about books, publishing, writing.

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Radical Books Collective

Radical Books Collective creates an alternative, inclusive and non-commercial approach to books and reading. Radical books stimulate our imaginations to advance transformative futures. Radical books expose structures of oppression and chart creative paths forward. The Radical Books Collective organizes virtual book clubs, book and author events and immersive seminars on foundational radical books.