ALEX FERGUSON'S NEW BOOK

By Omoseye Bolaji

To the delectation of thousands of readers, Sir Alex Ferguson - revered erstwhile supremo of Manchester UTD FC - has just released his latest autobiography. The event once again highlights the yawning chasm between the western world and Africa, re the genre of the written, published word.

The palpable euphoria, the fulsome excitement and ambience even before the book was released is a story in itself. But what else can one expect in an “enlightened" society where some newspapers over yonder actually sell in MILLIONS? - hence to put it as mildly as possible, here is a veritably literate society indeed.  

It has been reported that the initial print run of Ferguson's book is 100 000 copies, expected to be sold out soon, with reprints guaranteed. Small beer compared to sales of Harry Potter books perhaps, but these are scenarios the literary scene in Africa can only envy in quintessential manner.

The interesting thing is the way the western world generated transcendent interest in Sir Ferguson's book even before it came out. In their countless dozens of newspapers, magazines, websites, blogs etc the anticipation over the book was generated, reaching a peak just before the book was published this week.

There were even countless perceptive reviews before the book came out; provocative presumptions and assumptions about probable "acerbic" comments. What would the great man, Fergie, write about the likes of David Beckham, Arsene Wenger, Roy Keane, Rooney, Ronaldo, etc? All these ingredients added to the frenzy.

And the perspicacious media provided even more fillip, whetting even more appetites with excerpts and reviews from the book just before its release. The emphasis of course was on the more explosive, controversial aspect of the work, the "pungent attacks" on the likes of Keane, Beckham, and more mildly on Arsene Wenger. So why would the book not fly off the shelves?

And don't forget to add into the tantalising mix the reactions of those "attacked" by Fergie in the book. It is still early doors, but even before the book was formally released this week Roy Keane has already ventilated his chagrin; to the effect that Fergie should not have written negative things about those who did the hard job on the field of play for years - ensuring the author's greatness as Coach and leader.

Perhaps. But the point here is how the wheels of the western publishing
world is well galvanised and oiled; a true publishing, sports and literary repast. If only the same operated here in Africa! Alas, the general picture is that of despondency and even hints of something of a doomsday scenario as more and more major booksellers close down.

One does not want to paint a bleak picture, but how many of us are reading? Are we aware of new, genuine African books being churned out, meagre though the number is? This year alone I felt like weeping, reading comments from two great (elderly) Nigerian writers, who confessed that even if they heard about any new books, they probably cannot afford to buy such books anyway!    

As I pondered tens of thousands of people buying Alex Ferguson's book - which is just a football book, not literature - I mused over the general pathetic situation in this wise in Africa. Why can't we take pride in building our own private libraries at home, and regularly stocking them with (new) books? But I must still praise those few Africans I know who relish books, and buy new titles on a regular basis – like Mpikeleni Duma, R Mokoena, K Dintlhoane (The Bibliophile)...  

The great thing is that the good libraries often manage to grab hold of new books and stock them; one would necessarily expect libraries in Africa to buy and stock virtually all titles penned by African writers. After all, during our times now, it would be an insult to espy countless recent books published by famous writers from the Eurocentric world easily available in our libraries; whilst it might be onerous to come across books written by our own writers...

But it is a safe bet to assume that the latest Ferguson book will soon be available from most libraries all over the world...