The Bibliophile

05/04/2024

WEEKLY MOTIVATIONAL STORIES

MEMORIES

Me: Jo, how's school?
Jo: I'm back in Makurdi.
Me: I wish I was on break, so I could pay a visit to ECWA Library.
Jo: Seriously, I need to check out all those books we read but forgot their titles.
Me: That's so true. The only thing I remember in some of them is the Plot.

Dear Reader,
I began actively using my high school library in my SS1. Mainly because we were prohibited from touching most of the books and all we did was read our school books.
My class was arguably the noisiest in the entire school, and worse, we shared a wall with the library.
We were always punished for noise making and to escape, Joseph and I found refuge in the library. We warmed our way into the librarian's heart and she gave us exclusive access to the restricted books, especially those over 200 pages.

We read one book after the other and talked about them.
The downside was that we were not allowed to take any books out of the library. We couldn't even borrow to take home, so I believe you understand how heartbreaking it was having to get to the climax of a story only for the bell to ring and you'd have to drop the book to go back to class or worse, go home and return to continue the next day.

Funny enough, it was after we left, that I discovered that some of these books were part of a series.

I read "Green" by Ted Dekker and later discovered it was part of a Four-Book series.

"The Soccerer in The North" by John Flanagan is part of the Rangers Apprentice series.

It was in high school I fell in love with Francine Rivers' books when I read "The Atonement Child",

And Karen Kingsbury when I read an incomplete copy of "Divine", which began on page 62.

Someday, when I get back home, I'll pay a visit to my amermater just to reacquaint myself with books whose titles and authors I've forgotten but whose plot remained with me.

Chatting with Joseph brings back memories of these books during our breaks.

Oh, I almost forgot the "Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew" We had a whole collection of them scattered across the shelves, I remember we had to go from shelf to shelf looking for them.

The Library was a refuge whenever our class was to be punished for noise making, it was also where we spent our breaks and free time.

Books truly are therapeutic, if you doubt it read Born A Crime by Trevor Noah and laugh out loud.

Yours Truly,

A. Bani
The Bibliophile

04/04/2024

03/04/2024

5 Effective Tips To Select What Book To Read by Lengdung Tungchamma

1. Follow your interests: This might seem obvious, but it's key! What are you passionate about? History? Cooking? Fiction that takes you to fantastical worlds? Go for genres or topics that excite you. You're more likely to stick with a book if the subject matter inherently interests you.

2. Tap into recommendations: Don't be afraid to ask friends, family, librarians, or even bookstore employees for suggestions. People who share your taste can point you towards hidden gems or classics you might have missed. Online resources like Goodreads or book review websites can also offer a wealth of recommendations based on your preferences.

3. Explore award winners: Awards like the Pulitzer Prize or the Man Booker Prize recognize exceptional writing. Browsing past winners or nominees within your preferred genre is a great way to discover high-quality books that are likely to be engaging reads.

4. Peek into the first chapter: Many libraries and bookstores allow you to skim the first chapter or two. This can give you a sense of the author's writing style, the tone of the story, and whether it grabs your attention. Don't feel obligated to finish a book if the beginning doesn't click with you.

5. Mix it up!: While it's great to find genres you enjoy, challenge yourself occasionally. Try a different genre or a non-fiction book on a topic you've always been curious about. You might discover a new favorite author or subject area that expands your reading horizons.

01/04/2024

You're comfortaby not growing in your comfort zone. Do yourself a favour and get out, but start small.
Happy New Month

30/03/2024

WEEKLY MOTIVATIONAL STORIES

A TRIP TO THE BOOKSHOP
“I want to build a personal library,” I said to him. He’d been buying books for a few of my coursemates at affordable rates. It inspired me to start buying too.

“As much as I love e-books, I’d like to own physical copies but books are too expensive.”

He turned to me and said, “Normally I buy one or two books for people, but since you want to build a personal library, I’m going to show you where to get any book of your choice for as low as 250.”

“Do you mean I can get a book for 250 naira?” I asked incredulously.

“Yes. When you’re ready, let me know.”

Dear Reader,

Growing up, I didn’t have as much access to books as I’d have loved to. It was frustrating, wanting to read but limited by the lack of it. Choosing a university far from home afforded me the opportunity to meet new people.

One of the people I met showed me where to get these books. A few days later, I saved two thousand naira and called him, and by 10:00 a.m. on 24th November 2022, we went to Books2Africa.

My first time there was mind-blowing and astonishing. It was a dream come true. It was one of the most amazing days of my life. Books were everywhere. There were books on shelves, in carts, in gigantic cartons, and on the floor around the cartons. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

I remember feeling so excited I almost called my book pal back home in Makurdi to tell her of the treasure I’d discovered.
I decided that showing her would be better.

Having decided that, I moved from shelves to carts, then to the cartons and back again, flipping through the pages of one book to another, and another, most of them quite new.

It was hard to choose. I’d been searching for how to get a book or two, yet I had hundreds to choose from and I couldn’t. I could only afford ten books, yet I’d set aside over twenty books.

We spent over three hours, there and had to leave because they wanted to close. I had to decide quickly the books to take and those not to take with me. It was hard, but I hard to.

As I approached the counter to pay for the books, for a brief moment, it crossed my mind that these books weren’t for 200 naira a piece, what if in my excitement, I’d misunderstood what my friend had said?
But my fears were gone when I walked out with ten books and an excitement I could barely contain. I’ve been there three more times since then.

So, have a friend who won’t only give and recommend a book, but show you where to get books.

Thank you, Isaac Adah, for showing me the way❤️

On that note, my personal Bibliopole (bookseller) is a bestselling bookseller Kyenpiya Dajem (+234 816 747 3579) you can contact her for your books.

Yours truly,

Bibliophile A. Bani

28/03/2024

FIVE STEPS TO GO FROM AVERAGE TO FORTUNE BY JIM ROHN

1. GET SERIOUS
You have to get serious about two things;

📌 Get serious about setting goals on where you want to go. Design your next 5 to 10 years.

What do you want to do?

Where do you want to go?

Who do you want to become?

For all these to work out in the next 5 years, you’ve got to get serious about your goals.

📌 Get serious about your personal development.
Personal development is striving hard to become the kind of person you want to be and to do that, you’ve got to be serious. If you get serious now, you’ll take a new direction in becoming the kind of person you want to be.

2.GET SMART

To make your life worthwhile, you’ve got to have information. Be smarter this decade than you were in the last decade. There’s nothing worse than being stupid. Read books and come up with information.

Journal. Go to lectures, workshops, and insightful conversations (like Conversation with Sam Semako). Listen to seminars and podcasts. READ BOOKS

Never cease your quest for learning. The possibility for life change starts with education.

Study. Learn. Grow. Change. Develop.
Never let it be said that you didn't do all these.
Don't wish it was easy, wish you were better. Life only gets easier when you get better.

3. GET GOING
All the things you've learned will do you no good if you don't put it into an action plan.
Most people are always learning and never putting into action. It's like bringing material to a holding site but never building anything.

You need to take action to get the proper results you're looking for.
Be disciplined.

Do what you can at the moment. Don't neglect to do what you can do to change your life. Today. Now. Just do it.

4. GET EXCITED
Get excited, not just about the pure enthusiasm of positive thinking.

Get excited over your ability to make yourself do the necessary things because discipline is a major step towards personal progress. And anytime you wish, you can change your life. It doesn't have to be the same after today.
Starting today, get excited about committing a positive, constructive act to make the changes in your life you want to make and to go in the direction you want to go.

Get excited about your potential. Your capacity is usually never the problem, you can learn to do the most incredible things, all you need to do is take the time to do it.

It's exciting to know any day you wish, you can change your life.

5. GET AWAY

There's an important thing called life balance. Learn to get away, be alone, reflect, and learn how to live.
How sad it will be to learn how to earn well but not how to live well.
You must balance your life.
Take time to cultivate good friends, to be with your family and the people that are important to you.

Yours Truly,
Bibliophile A. Bani
(Bibliophile)

26/03/2024

Value yourself and you'll be valued.

25/03/2024

Ideas are to be written down, not stored in your head.
Write down your thoughts this week

24/03/2024

"Inspire others through your actions, encourage kindness and collaboration, and be a role model for positive change. "
Hankuri Tawus Gaya