Soma Nami Books, an independent bookhub based in Nairobi, recently launched a book curation project dubbed “the shelfie project,” in partnership with KOFISI Africa, a workspace provider with facilities across Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Johannesburg, Accra and Cairo.

Each month, Soma Nami Books will curate a shelf of books by African authors based on the continent and in the diaspora. The book selection will be on display at KOFISI Centers located at Keystone Park and Riverside Drive in Nairobi and will be available to all members at the centers. The partnership with KOFISI also involves author events held at KOFISI locations.

This initiative is in keeping with Somi Nami’s mission to serve Nairobi’s diverse reading communities. Founded by Muthoni Muiruri and Wendy Njoroge, Somi Nami is not just a book store. Soma Nami Café offers refreshments and space for events centered on important conversations about books.

Muthoni Muiruri says in the press release that she hopes the event will expand the audience for African writing:

With this partnership, we hope to expose a lot more people to literature from Africa and the African diaspora and widen our celebration of the arts. We are grateful for this partnership and to KOFISI for allowing us widen our net and our reach. We are definitely thrilled at the prospect of scaling our impact and getting a lot more people invested in our art and our stories.

Michael Aldridge, the CEO of KOFISI, is excited about the partnership enriching the reading experience of their members:

Books are integral to the design of our workspaces because they create a stimulating and productive environment where people can focus. The partnership with Soma Nami Books has been brilliantly received by all our Members in Nairobi who are coming to KOFISI Riverside during their coffee and lunchtime breaks to browse their selection of wonderful African literature and authors. We love that Soma Nomi is adding to our Member experience in such a positive way.

Congrats to Somi Nami!

For more details, contact: Wendy Njoroge by email([email protected]) or phone (+254 711 133264) or Amie Willenberg by email ([email protected])