Laurette Annely Akariza unveiled her new book titled ‘Rebounce’ at the Kigali Genocide Memorial amphitheatre this month. The author said that the book stemmed from her previous work, ‘Wet Under the Rainbow’, released in 2020, which delved into the impact of transgenerational trauma on the post-genocide generation in Rwanda.

Discussing her first book, Akariza mentioned the character Cyusa, who sadly took his own life due to the burden of inherited trauma, a story that resonated with her from all the distressing narratives she had encountered.

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"After my first book, people kept on approaching and telling me how they battle with transgenerational trauma but, in their stories, I could sense a spirit of resilience,” the author said, adding that it compelled her to document and share their stories to the world.

"I wanted to use their stories to inspire people, that you can still rise from the darkest and hardest moments of your life and live a happy and meaningful life,” she said.

Akariza said that her second book, ‘Rebounce’, stemmed from an urge to document and share some of the resilience stories she had heard from people.

The book’s message

The book, which was published by Inzozi Publisher, conveys a good message of resilience, Akariza said.

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"We get to know that there are people who are ‘rebouncing’. There are people—both the young and old generation—who are doing all they can to live a better lifestyle than the one they had.”

Akariza said the book is dedicated to the world because Rwanda’s story is a good example and she hopes it will inspire the rest of the global community.

The writer, born after the Genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi in 1994, mentioned that she used stories from the genocide to engage various individuals, highlighting it as one of the worst events in history, while noting the strong resilience shown by Rwandans.

Akariza mentioned loving the entire book, with the final lines being particularly memorable to her.

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"Aspire to rebounce. Be Rwanda, and always shine after the darkness,” are the final words from her book ‘Rebounce’. She expressed her desire for people to greet one another with "Be Rwanda”, symbolising resilience, strength, and beauty.

"Be Rwanda” because Rwanda is resilient, strong, and beautiful.

Challenges

Throughout her writing career, Akariza said that one of the barriers she met was access to information.

Among the challenges aspiring writers face is the dilemma of sourcing information and navigating the publishing process, as crucial details are often lacking online.

Akariza, 25, started writing in 2018. She began by crafting poems that would end up being long, hence, considering the option of writing books.

Also a mental health advocate, the author intends to translate her book into various languages to reach out to different communities, including Kinyarwanda speakers.

"If I get sponsors, I will translate the book into Kinyarwanda,” she said.

She revealed that she plans to release other books in the hope that she finds the publishing process easier, unlike before.

"If the publishing goes smoother like it is now, I will publish more books because I am always writing,” she said.

The author who is a crime-fiction movie lover, said that she enjoys hanging out with friends, reading books, and watching movies in her spare time.

‘Rebounce’ is available on Amazon, and at Bookshop Caritas and Kigali Public Library.