Books they read with Aaron Appleton
Aaron Appleton is the Creative Director and Founder of the organization Ensigo (www.ensigo.com).
What you need to know:
Aaron Appleton is the Creative Director and Founder of the organization Ensigo (www.ensigo.com). His work through Ensigo focuses on engaging creative practitioners from across a diversity of cultural, political and linguistic lines in collaborative global art projects. He is currently in Uganda working on a cross-cultural album and touring art exhibition. Beatrice Lamwaka spoke to him.
What do you like about fiction?
I love the powerful emotions that fiction can evoke. As a child I remember times when my dad would read to me before going to bed. I have such fond memories of those stories and how real they became...to the point where I could feel the heartache of the characters, smell the fresh baked apple pie they were eating, or see the majestic landscapes they were exploring.
This ability to transcend present reality and journey into another world has been a profound source of spiritual and creative inspiration to me. While reading a great work of fiction, I often become emotionally invested and I am struck by the intricacy, beauty and subtlety of life.
If you were a character, which writer would you like to write your life story?
Douglas Adams (author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy). I’m drawn to his quirky sense of humor and immense creativity. Plus, I think it would be much more interesting and hilarious to see my life depicted in a bizarre space odyssey.
Which books did you like or hate in school?
Other than math textbooks I can’t think of books that I hated in school. What I did dislike were the strict deadlines for finishing books and the tests on them. It took so much of the joy out of reading, understanding and interacting with the text on my own terms.
My favorite course in literature was during a study abroad program in Uganda and Rwanda in 2006. The class was Post Colonial African Literature with Ugandan author and Professor Susan Kiguli. Because of Susan’s contagious enthusiasm and talent as a teacher I developed a deep love for the works of many of Africa’s literary hero’s like: Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, J.M. Coetzee, Okot p’Bitek, Tsitsi Dangarembga, and Mariama Bâ.
What struck you most in some of in your favorite books?
The ability of the author to synthesize complex scientific findings across multiple fields into vocabulary that I not only understood but was moved by.
Which writer have you recently discovered?
Daniel Quinn. In total I’ve read nine of his books over the past year, and I’m even venturing into reading a doctoral dissertation that carefully examines different themes and meanings in his writing. His books help me to understand the world in a way that makes the most sense.
Which books have influenced your life?
Basically all books by Daniel Quinn. Most notably; Ishmael, Story of B, and My Ishmael. When I think of books I’ve read in my life I now think of them in terms of books I’ve read before Ishmael, and books I’ve read after Ishmael.
The Wayfinders: Why Ancient Wisdom Matters in The Modern World by Wade Davis. Wade is an anthropologist, ethnobotanist and National Geographic Explorer in Residence. This particular book of his has been the source of tremendous inspiration for work I do with Ensigo.
I love it so much that I can’t help but share my favorite quote from the book. In my view this simple quote summarises the central revelation of anthropology
