Africa-Press – Cape verde. Last Sunday, Kampala’s most artsy literati made a beeline to Donel’s Bistro And Lounge in Ntinda to attend the launch of the book “To Those Whose Parents’ Hearts Sunk When They Chose The Road Less Travelled” by Ibrahim Balunywa.
It is an intriguing title. Especially if we consider the nod to American poet Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken. The speaker or persona in that classic poem was faced by a divergence of paths and had to choose which road to take. The speaker opted for the road that seems less trod. At the end of the poem, the speaker reveals that choosing such a path “has made all the difference”—the suggestion being that he or she has led a life of nonconformity, and is the happier for it.
However, before we come to the nub of this poetry collection, allow me to run you through what happened at the book’s launch.
The event started at midday with a pop library, a chance for anyone to take to the stage and read some Ugandan literature. They could meet the authors one on one, purchase a book or books if they desired and get them signed. That session ended at 4.00pm. Thereupon, until 4.30 pm, there was an auction of the first copy of Balunywa’s book along with a painting.
After that exciting tussle there a few performers, such as the Luganda poet Ssebo Lule, who set fire to the stage, so to speak, until 5.00pm. When they had sufficiently warmed up the audience, Ibrahim Balunywa hit the stage alongside the band.
It was a thrilling event, one that did justice to the genre of poetry and how it is finally attaining mainstream recognition and respect. It has been hard going though, especially for the author.
“This book started to come together after a 6-month fellowship I endured under the Luwafu Road Press. We did a lot of writing, and a lot of my older work also got pieced together from the knowledge learnt in that process,” he reveals.
“The idea of the book started to come together from my core values which are to inspire, educate, and entertain. I felt an urgent need to address the challenges artists or norm breakers endure before they get to the other side where they see the light. From being ridiculed and cast out to success or some form of it for those that endure the journey. While also reminding those that are taking the journey that despite how tough it is, there is value in what they are doing so they should keep on keeping on. This is the crux of the book. And this all happens in the last segment. So the title of the book was adopted from the main part of it. All else speaks passionately about different subjects that influence who I am.”
That’s an inspirational message, indeed. The author believes it will serve as a spark to light the way to a more rewarding, remunerative poetry industry.
“The future of the industry is bright. Especially if it keeps moving in the direction it’s going. I say so because there are people like me, torch bearers who care about the craft and are pushing it forward. People like Ssebo Lule, Wake Mugoda, Mark Gordon, Peter Kagayi,” Balunywa intuits.
“These people are innovating and pushing the envelope in different ways, and no matter how frustrating it is, we have kept at it. That way all the up-and-coming poets will keep seeing light, and they will be inspired to do more, and to better themselves. And I see them, they are hungry to make a difference. I can only pray they stick to the core of what drives them.”
Title: To Those Whose Parents’ Hearts Sunk When They Chose The Road Less Travelled
Author: Ibrahim Balunywa
Price: 30,000 UGX
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