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City Reads Bookstore

How to say Babylon

How to say Babylon

Regular price GH₵195.00
Regular price Sale price GH₵195.00
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With echoes of Educated and Born a CrimeHow to Say Babylon is the stunning story of the author’s struggle to break free of her rigid Rastafarian upbringing, ruled by her father’s strict patriarchal views and repressive control of her childhood, to find her own voice as a woman and poet.

Throughout her childhood, Safiya Sinclair’s father, a volatile reggae musician and militant adherent to a strict sect of Rastafari, became obsessed with her purity, in particular, with the threat of what Rastas call Babylon, the immoral and corrupting influences of the Western world outside their home. He worried that womanhood would make Safiya and her sisters morally weak and impure, and believed a woman’s highest virtue was her obedience.

In an effort to keep Babylon outside the gate, he forbade almost everything. In place of pants, the women in her family were made to wear long skirts and dresses to cover their arms and legs, head wraps to cover their hair, no make-up, no jewelry, no opinions, no friends. Safiya’s mother, while loyal to her father, nonetheless gave Safiya and her siblings the gift of books, including poetry, to which Safiya latched on for dear life. And as Safiya watched her mother struggle voicelessly for years under housework and the rigidity of her father’s beliefs, she increasingly used her education as a sharp tool with which to find her voice and break free. Inevitably, with her rebellion comes clashes with her father, whose rage and paranoia explodes in increasing violence. As Safiya’s voice grows, lyrically and poetically, a collision course is set between them.

How to Say Babylon is Sinclair’s reckoning with the culture that initially nourished but ultimately sought to silence her; it is her reckoning with patriarchy and tradition, and the legacy of colonialism in Jamaica. Rich in lyricism and language only a poet could evoke, How to Say Babylon is both a universal story of a woman finding her own power and a unique glimpse into a rarefied world we may know how to name, Rastafari, but one we know little about.'

Orders can be picked up from our store in Adenta. Click on this link for google map directions 

Shipping Info

Delivery fees can be paid on delivery. The cost of delivery ranges from GHS 25 to GHS 60, based on your location.

All orders received on business days are processed within 24 hours. Orders received on weekends and holidays are processed within 24-72 hours.

Deliveries in Accra, its environs, Kasoa and Tema, Ghana

Deliveries in and around Accra as well as Kasoa and Tema, would be made within 24 hours after receiving your order confirmation email.

Deliveries outside Accra (Inter-regional Deliveries)

Inter-regional deliveries to areas outside Accra, are made via Speedaf or by bus (VIP, STC) within 48 - 72 hours business days (excluding weekends and holidays) after receiving your order confirmation email. Please reach out to us on +233205302691 whenever you make an order going outside Accra.

Pick ups

Orders can be picked up from our store in Adenta. Click on this link for google map directions 

International Shipping

Currently, we do not offer international shipping. We are still working on an affordable means of shipping internationally. Do send an email to orders@cityreadsbookstore.com before making and order if you are located anywhere outside Ghana.

Return & Exchange

Books purchased can be returned within a week. This means from the day you received your purchase, you have up to 7 days to request a return, refund or exchange. 

To be eligible, your item must be in the same condition that you received it, unused, and in its original packaging. You’ll also need to submit the receipt or proof of purchase.

If your return is accepted, we’ll arrange for a delivery company to pickup. Items sent back to us without first requesting a return will not be accepted.

We make sure our books and all other items are in pristine condition before delivery.  In the event where your order arrives damaged in any way (dog ears, broken spine etc), please email us as soon as possible at orders@cityreadsbookstore.com with your order number and a photo of the item’s condition. 

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact us at orders@cityreadsbookstore.com.

Damages and issues
Please inspect your order upon reception and contact us immediately if the item is defective, damaged or if you receive the wrong item, so that we can evaluate the issue and make it right.

Exceptions / non-returnable items
Unfortunately, we cannot accept returns on sale items or gift cards.

Exchanges
The fastest way to ensure you get what you want is to return the item you have, and once the return is accepted, make a separate purchase for the new item.

Refunds
We will notify you once we’ve received and inspected your return, and let you know if the refund was approved or not. If approved, you’ll be automatically refunded on your original payment method within 10 business days. Please remember it can take some time for your bank or credit card company to process and post the refund too.
If more than 10 business days have passed since we approved your return, please contact us at orders@cityreadsbookstore.com.

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WANT TO ORDER BOOKS FOR YOUR LIBRARY OR BOOKSHOP AT WHOLESALE PRICES?

Send an email to Priscilla at orders@cityreadsbookstore.com to arrange wholesale orders.

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