Tail of the Blue Bird

Set in a secluded village in the interior of Ghana, British forensic scientist Kayo is on a mission to investigate the circumstances behind the appearance of human remains in the village. Although he is highly trained in forensic research, the case continuously evades being solved. Kayo has to accept help of the villagers and adopt Ghanaian superstitions and local wisdom in order to get to the bottom of the mystery. In a skilful twist on the classic detective-novel format, Nii Ayikwei Parkes pits modernity, logic and science against tradition, myths and superstition. Written by Nii Ayikwei Parkes.

Wife of the Gods

For fans of Alexander McCall Smith, a debut mystery set in West Africa that introduces a marvelous detective and a culturally rich community Detective Inspector Darko Dawson, a good family man and a remarkably intuitive sleuth, is sent to the village of Ketanu—the site of his mother’s disappearance many years ago—to solve the murder of an accomplished young AIDS worker. While battling his own anger issues and concerns for his ailing son, Darko explores the motivations and secrets of the residents of Ketanu. It soon becomes clear that in addition to solving a recent murder, he is about to unravel the shocking truth about his mother’s disappearance. Kwei Quartey’s sparkling debut novel introduces readers to a rich cast of characters, including the Trokosi—young women called Wives of the Gods—who, in order to bring good fortune to their families, are sent to live with fetish priests. Set in Ghana, with the action moving back and forth between the capital city of Accra and a small village in the Volta Region,Wife of the Godsbrings the culture and beauty of its setting brilliantly to life.

Homegoing: A novel

Ghana, eighteenth century: two half sisters are born into different villages, each unaware of the other. One will marry an Englishman and lead a life of comfort in the palatial rooms of the Cape Coast Castle. The other will be captured in a raid on her village, imprisoned in the very same castle, and sold into slavery.

Homegoing follows the parallel paths of these sisters and their descendants through eight generations: from the Gold Coast to the plantations of Mississippi, from the American Civil War to Jazz Age Harlem. Yaa Gyasi’s extraordinary novel illuminates slavery’s troubled legacy both for those who were taken and those who stayed—and shows how the memory of captivity has been inscribed on the soul of our nation.

Ghana Must Go

Following Kweku Sai’s sudden death in a suburban neighborhood in Accra, a broken family comes together to share their individual stories and grief. Estranged relatives, with seemingly nothing but Kweku Sai in common, after years of separation meet once again in Ghana. Their secrets, feelings and fears are the glue that bonds them back together as they mourn Kweku’s death. Ghana Must Go is a touching novel that explores the inner workings of a modern, dysfunctional family. Spanning from Ghana to Nigeria, from England to the United States, this is a testament to family love that does not easily fade away.

No Sweetness Here

From the author of Changes: these stories "of post-independence Ghana in the late 1960s are written beautifully and wisely and with great subtlety" (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi).   In this short story collection, the award-winning poet and author of Changes and Our Sister Killjoy explores postcolonial life in Ghana with her characteristic honesty, humor, and insight. A house servant wonders what independence means in a country where indoor plumbing is still reserved for bosses. A brother tracks down his runaway sister only to find she has become a prostitute. In the title story, a bitter divorce turns tragic when the couple's only child dies of a snake bite.   In these and other stories, tradition wrestles with new urban influences as Africans try to sort out their identity in a changing culture, and "even at her gravest, Miss Aidoo writes with a sunny charm" (The New York Times).

The Beautyful Ones Are Not yet Born

Set in the 1960s during Kwame Nkrumah’s rule, a railway freight clerk attempts to stay uncorrupted in a society where accepting and offering bribes is the norm. This quest to stay honest and true to himself brings a lot of conflict into his life, both at his work and at home as everyone wants him to falsify documents in exchange for cash. Ayi Kwei Armah takes us on a journey through this unnamed worker’s day-to-day life as he tries to stay afloat in an increasingly morally conflicting society.

This acclaimed novel is a strong critique of Ghanaian society. From Ghanaian politicians faking British accents to people breaking the law as their only way of escaping poverty, this book captures the pressures and challenges of trying to be an upstanding man in 1960s post-revolutionary Ghana.

The Housemaid

A dead baby and bloodstained clothes are discovered in a small village. Although everyone has a theory about the story behind the abandoned infant, the men's views differ significantly from the women's. The tale presents the dilemma of seven different women caught in a web of superstition. Set in Ghana and written by Ghanaian author Amma Darko

Harmattan Rain

Harmattan Rain follows three generations of women as they cope with family, love and life. A few years before Ghana’s independence, Lizzie-Achiaa’s lover disappears. Intent on finding him, she runs away from home. Akua Afriyie, Lizzie-Achiaa’s first daughter, strikes out on her own as a single parent in a country rocked by successive coups. Her daughter, Sugri grows up overprotected. She leaves home for university in New York, where she learns that sometimes one can have too much freedom. In the end, the secrets parents keep from their children eventually catch up with them. Written by Ghanaiain-born fiction writer Ayesha Harruna Attah 

Cloth girl

When Matilda Lamptey turns fourteen, she’s married off to a much older man — a Gold Coast lawyer named Robert Bannerman. This arrangement is not favorable to any of the two women affected: Robert’s first wife becomes deeply jealous and feels neglected, and Matilda is robbed of her childhood. Set against the backdrop of British colonial rule over Ghana in the 1930s, Matilda’s life goes through many changes and she must adapt to her new life as she tries to please everyone around her. Cloth Girl is an outstanding portrayal of life in Ghana during the 1930s. The descriptions of the streets are incredibly vivid, and Marilyn Heward Mills thoughtfully details the interaction between British and Ghanaian citizens during the end of the colonial rule.