NTARIKON: Poetry For the Downtrodden By Peter Vakunta

Peter W. Vakunta. NTARIKON: Poetry For the Downtrodden (Paperback). AuthorHouse. 96 pages (February 17, 2008). $10.49. Available from amazon.com

Ntarikon is a non-poem that speaks to everyone and to no-one. Throughout life, from the cradle to the grave, we store information culled from our personal experiences; from the experiences of others, and try in some way to make sense of it all. When we are not able to make sense of the things that occur in our lives, we often externalize the information through writing. By doing this, we are afforded a different perspective, thus allowing us to think more clearly about the things that have happened in our lives.

Poetry is one of the ways in which I externalize my thoughts. Versification is arguably a passionate art form. It has provided me with an outlet for exploring my innermost thoughts and emotions. Poetry allows me to communicate issues that I might not be able otherwise to openly discuss. It affords me the opportunity to re-evaluate myself, my relationship with others, my station in life, and the world around me. Poetry can be therapeutic, allowing us to work through issues in our lives to find solutions, clarity, comfort, and peace of mind. It provides a vehicle of expression for diverse attitudes and fresh insights.

The poetry within Ntarikon is from every point on the spectrum: every topic, every intention, every event or emotion imaginable. It is important to keep in mind that each verse in the poem is the voice of the poet; a piece of a mind that yearns to bring sanity to a world gone topsy turvy, of a heart that feels the effects of every moment in this life, and perhaps of a memory that is striving to surface. Recalling our yesterdays gives birth to our tomorrows.

Times and Seasons by Dipita Kwa

Dipita Kwa. Times and Seasons. Cook Communication, 2008. 275 pages. Available from lulu.com $15.98

How does it feel to live without an identity, without a deeper meaning of the word me because you know nothing about you? How can you measure the intensity of the pain you feel down there in your soul when you face the horrible prospect of totally losing the chance of eternal happiness in the loving arms of a man because of a dark past you don’t know?Dipita Kwa invites you to take this thrilling ride with Ewande Tikky, a deeply distressed, honest and courageous young woman in love, into the heart of the village of Mukunda – the land of mysteries – where is lurked the dark home containing the hideous memories of her birth. It is a bumpy ride through a series of disturbing, heart-rending, soothing, amazing . . . stories, each of which slowly opens old abandoned windows with creaking rusty hinges to focus a narrow beam of light into those buried and forgotten gruesome and often delighting aspects of her roots. In fact it is a unique collection of eclectic stories held in place by a mother piece that will keep you on to a final breath-releasing last page.Dipita Kwa’s novel Times and Seasons blends the cutting-edge wisdom of live and let live with the traditional and omnipresent notion of the spiritual invisible hand. It is the book the literary family needs.

Dipita in his own words

Born in Tiko, Republic of Cameroon, I was raised in the village of Mondoni Native where I did my primary education and equally absorbed a great deal of material on human society that now seeps gracefully into my works. I developed a passion for writing in Form 3 and carried it along to the University of Buea where I won a silver trophy in short story writing during the second edition of the University Festival of Arts and Culture (UNIFAC2001), and didn’t forget to grab my B.Sc in Economics. I taught Commerce & Finance and Economics at Regina Pacis College Mutengene before moving to my present job at Maersk Cameroon.

I am indebted to my regular mentor Mbella Sonne Dipoko, who saw in me a promising writer and never relented in suggesting ways of bringing this dream to life through wide and consistent reading and the striving for excellence.

Source: Crossing Borders Magazine, Issue 5