Author of ‘Banks vs Bitcoins’, Osivue Itseumah, believes that African governments underestimate the potential of cryptocurrencies: ‘I think a lot of government officials or pro-fiat folks may only see investments in cryptocurrencies as profit-gaining opportunities.’
First Draft is our interview column, featuring authors and other prominent figures on books, reading, and writing.
Our questions are italicized.
What books or kinds of books did you read growing up?
For as long as I can remember, I have always had an interest in reading, both for leisure and educational purposes. Growing up, I read everything from church bulletin advertisements to newspapers, but I specifically remember my mom asking me to read Gifted Hands by Ben Carson while I was in secondary school and that led to my interest in a variety of other non-fiction work.
I started reading more biographies, autobiographies, and non-fiction bodies of work, especially every summer when my mom bought me books from WHSmith. I then started regularly visiting my school library when I returned to boarding school. There, I discovered volumes of work by Enid Blyton, Anthony Horowitz, and John Grisham, all of whom’s writing style and story plots I began to imitate when I began writing my own work.
I also got introduced to books and plays written by Nigerian and other African authors such as Mother’s Choice Agbo Areo, The Incorruptible Judge by D. Olu Olagoke, and Sizwe Bansi Is Dead by Athol Fugard, in my English and literature-in-English classes in secondary school. I then discovered the works of Chinua Achebe and Chimamanda Adichie years later. Alas, between required text and leisurely reading, I gained an appreciation for all types of prose, but I gravitated towards non-fiction.
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