Ok…Ok…for all the many who’ve asked (at last count 0), I’m attaching the pitch that got me through Round 1 of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest.

RAIN ON MY LEOPARD SPOTS

Abena Adu is not quite sure if she is white or black. She was born black, in Ghana, but the three short childhood years spent in England, have surprisingly left an indelible mark. What precipitated this move back to Ghana? Now Abena has to learn how to eat fufu (with your fingers, not a spoon!), trap lizards for fun in 30-degree temperatures, and watch the only TV in the entire village, with thirty other people. She wakes up one morning to find that a military coup has destabilized the nation, making school attendance a privilege, and daily survival, an unfair lottery. What will the loss of daily sustenance mean for a family once capable of feeding the entire village? Nana has the answers.

In a culture where women are expected to find their identities in the men they marry, Abena’s grandmother, Nana is an anomaly – married twice and loving neither man, this family matriarch seems to have nine lives. Sixty years older, Nana tries to teach Abena the essence of place and self, assuring her that rains may fall hard but the leopard’s spots never wash away. In later years, successful at work, Abena is still haunted by unfulfilled dreams, making her wonder if Nana told the whole truth. Can you ever lose who you are? And if you do, how can you get it back?

Rain On My Leopard Spots is a coming of age story, filled with angst, humor, self-reflection, and African proverbs…. an African Wonder Years. It will appeal to fans of Alexander McCall Smith’s #1 Ladies Detective Agency in the way the author depicts aspects of African life you never knew existed.

The author, born in Ghana is a university professor with passion for teaching. She lives with her family of five in Toronto, Canada.

Thought I’d talk a little bit about my love for all things books. I read much as a child – Enid Blyton, Agatha Christie, Dr. Seuss and then during the teenage years, it was all anthologies & literature textbooks. Don’t get me wrong – Shakespeare can be quite illuminating while you are boiling in 30 degree African temperatures. I must admit Chinua Achebe didn’t thrill me till I grew some more brain cells…I thoroughly enjoy him now.

I’m currently reading ABNA excerpts. For those not caught in the frenzy of the ABNA, this is an insane contest organized by Amazon and Penguin to find the next great voice in novel writing. Currently at the quarterfinals stage, the excerpts of the 250 ‘fresh new voices’  are available for download, free from Amazon. Mine is a sort of voyeurism. You see, I’m one of those ‘fresh new voices’ so I’m looking to see who the competition is. And I tell ya – there are some REALLY good ones out there that have me wondering why I can’t wind back the clock and pretend I never entered the contest. As of Jan 25, 2010 when the entries were submitted, my blood pressure was 130/90 with one Coversyl pill. Now, its 140/100 with two Coversyls, a water pill, an anti-stress pill and all the phone calls I get from my mother asking why I haven’t won yet!