Award-winning Black author gets book published in 14 languages but not Swedish
Non-white Swedes have become more vocal about traumatic discrimination in Nordic country, once labeled a beacon of freedom and tolerance
Every Mirror She's Black, the debut novel by Nigerian writer and photographer Lola Akinmade Akerstrom, explores the lives of three Black women and their everyday experiences in Stockholm, a predominantly white city.
In an interview with Anadolu, Akerstrom said publishing houses in Sweden have refused to publish the book in Swedish, saying the public might feel uncomfortable with the content.
After many rejections, a publisher agreed to go forward under the condition that Akerstrom take some things out and make some changes to the book.
“We did have a Swedish publisher that said before they can publish it, they would like me to take out some scenes and make some changes so that they feel more comfortable, and I said no.”
Despite the rejections, Akerstrom doesn’t feel put off and hopes to introduce her book to Swedish readers.
Speaking about the novel, Akerstrom said the book “transcends culture, class and career.”
“So it’s showing very different contexts in life where they're still battling some of the same feelings: isolation, exclusion and trying to integrate or assimilate. So that was what the book really was about -- to show in a very raw and honest way all the great parts of the country but as well as all the parts of the country that need work on, that need to function better, so we all feel like we belong. And the book is doing really well all around the world but has not been published in Sweden yet.”
Giving an example from one of the characters in the book, a Somali refugee, Akerstrom says the fictional person Muna strives to feel that she is part of the society.
"She wants to feel acknowledged. She does everything she can. She learns the language, but it's still not enough," she says, adding that recognition and appreciation is a basic human expectation in a functioning society. Read More…
