The JRB latest
[The JRB Daily] Listen to the new episode of Read This!—featuring The Shadow King and The Water Dancer
The new episode of Read This! is out now—find out what’s hot in the world of books! In this episode, we travel…
[The JRB Daily] 12 African writers nominated for 2020 International Dublin Literary Award—the world’s richest annual literary prize
Twelve African writers have been longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award, the world’s most valuable annual literary prize for…
Sandile Dikeni, 1966–2019, RIP
Poet and activist Sandile Dikeni died in Cape Town on Saturday, it has been widely reported. Dikeni was the author…
[The JRB Daily] 2019 South African Literary Awards winners announced—The JRB collects three
The 2019 South African Literary Awards winners were announced tonight at a gala ceremony in Johannesburg, with The JRB’s nominees—Editor…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 3, Issue 11
Wamuwi Mbao • Richard Poplak • Bernardine Evaristo • Siphiwo Mahala • Zadie Smith • Efemia Chela • Lidudumalingani •…
A depth charge aimed at the submerged wreckage of slavery—Wamuwi Mbao reviews The Water Dancer, the debut novel by acclaimed writer Ta-Nehisi Coates
Between Baldwin, the world and the Old South—Wamuwi Mbao reviews The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates. The Water DancerTa-Nehisi CoatesHamish…
[Sponsored] Win a SIGNED copy of Margaret Atwood’s Booker Prize-winning new novel The Testaments!
Penguin Random House is giving away a series of books signed by their authors – exclusive to The Reading List…
Board the Eastern Main Line and go to work in Hell—Richard Poplak reviews The Night Trains, Charles van Onselen’s finest book yet
Richard Poplak reviews The Night Trains by Charles van Onselen, a book grounded in the hard work of scouring the…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Bernardine Evaristo’s Girl, Woman, Other—‘One of my aims as a writer is to explore the hidden narratives of the African diaspora’
The JRB presents an excerpt from Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo, co-winner of the 2019 Booker Prize. Girl, Woman,…
[Sponsored] Calling all fiction writers! Submit your novel to Jonathan Ball Publishers
Jonathan Ball Publishers is accepting fiction submissions from 1–15 November 2019. Find out more about how to submit your novel here!…
Fragments, explorations and variations—Jennifer Malec reviews Zadie Smith’s debut collection of short stories, Grand Union, her most American book to date
Zadie Smith, the accomplished, experimental New Yorker—The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec reviews Grand Union. Grand UnionZadie SmithHamish Hamilton, 2019 Read an…
[Temporary Sojourner] Thrill to the layered, secret nature of it—Efemia Chela reviews Maaza Mengiste’s new novel, The Shadow King
The JRB Francophone and Contributing Editor Efemia Chela travels to Ethiopia with the living archive of Maaza Mengiste’s novel, The Shadow King. The…
[Sponsored] Out now! The Bosasa Billions: How the ANC Sold its Soul for Braaipacks, Booze and Bags of Cash
The Bosasa Billions: How the ANC Sold its Soul for Braaipacks, Booze and Bags of Cash by James-Brent Styan and Paul…
A perfectly shaped raging fire of language and emotion—Lidudumalingani reviews Everything is a Deathly Flower, the debut poetry collection by Maneo Mohale
Lidudumalingani reviews Everything is a Deathly Flower by Maneo Mohale, finding it to be a succession of powerful moments. Everything…
‘I have turned my car into a mobile bookshop’—Siphiwo Mahala chats to Jennifer Malec about self-publishing his new book, Red Apple Dreams, and why short stories are the future
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec chats to Siphiwo Mahala about his new collection of short stories, Red Apple Dreams. Mahala…
[Sponsored] Read an excerpt from Jo-Ann Richards’s South African classic The Innocence of Roast Chicken—painful, evocative, beautifully drawn and utterly absorbing
Pan Macmillan has shared an exclusive extract from The Innocence of Roast Chicken by Jo-Anne Richards. First published back in 1996, The Innocence…
Tyranny of place, tyranny of time: Remembering Es’kia Mphahlele in his centenary year, by Mmatshilo Motsei
Mmatshilo Motsei pays tribute to Es’kia Mphahlele, one hundred years after his birth. I first encountered Es’kia Mphahlele when, in…
Gandhi as heir of Rhodes? A reassessment of the Mahatma as an Afro-Asian prophet
Adekeye Adebajo addresses the once-unthinkable question ‘Was Gandhi a racist?’, as the 150th anniversary of his birth is celebrated. 1….
[Sponsored] Announcing the 2020 Dinaane Debut Fiction Award longlist—unearthing new southern African writers
Header image: Previous winners of the EU Literary Award/Dinaane Debut Fiction Award The Jacana Literary Foundation has announced the longlisted…
New poetry by Brendan Joyce, from Character Limit
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents new poetry by Brendan Joyce, from his chapbook, Character Limit. ~~~ 21. To be…
‘I would like to be on good terms with all animals.’ Read an excerpt from Zadie Smith’s debut short story collection, Grand Union
The JRB presents an excerpt from Grand Union—the first ever collection of stories by Zadie Smith, the Booker Prize-shortlisted author…
[Photo Editor] Original portraits of Ekow Duker and Lerato Tshabalala by Victor Dlamini
Victor Dlamini is The JRB’s Photo Editor. We feature his work on our Instagram channel. Visit this ten-year retrospective of…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Siphiwo Mahala’s new collection of short stories, Red Apple Dreams
The JRB presents an excerpt from Red Apple Dreams, the new anthology of stories by Siphiwo Mahala. Mahala is the author…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Meanwhile … a new graphic novel anthology about everyday queer life in Southern and East Africa
The JRB presents an excerpt from Meanwhile … Graphic Short Stories About Everyday Queer Life in Southern and East Africa….
Introducing Yeoville—part of the mythology of transitional Johannesburg
The JRB presents an excerpt from Politics and Community-Based Research: Perspectives from Yeoville Studio, Johannesburg. Politics and Community-Based Research: Perspectives…
How Hip Hop is helping a new generation to ‘read the world’—Read an excerpt from Neva Again: Hip Hop Art, Activism and Education in Post-Apartheid South Africa
Hip Hop is producing a new generation of readers and writers in a world that operates in diverse literary forms,…
[The JRB Daily] Listen to the new episode of Read This!—featuring Everything is a Deathly Flower, the highly anticipated debut poetry collection from Maneo Mohale
The new episode of Read This! is out now—find out what’s hot in the world of books! Today, we’re talking about…
[The JRB Daily] Listen to the new episode of our audio show Read This! featuring Efemia Chela on Wayétu Moore’s novel She Would Be King and an interview with Sarah Ladipo Manyika
The new episode of our books show Read This! is out now—find out what’s hot in the world of literature!…
[The JRB Daily] Shortlists announced for the UJ Prizes for South African Writing in English
The shortlists for the University of Johannesburg Prizes for South African Writing in English have been announced. The 2019 edition…
[The JRB Daily] Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo jointly win the 2019 Booker Prize
Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo have jointly won the 2019 Booker Prize, for their novels The Testaments and Girl, Woman,…
[The JRB Daily] Olga Tokarczuk and Peter Handke win the 2018 and 2019 Nobel Prizes in Literature
Polish author Olga Tokarczuk and Austrian author Peter Handke have won the Nobel Prizes in Literature. The announcement was made…
[The JRB Daily] How is the Nobel Prize in Literature decided? The Nobel Committee reveals new, less ‘Eurocentric’ and ‘male-centred’ criteria
Every year, speculation abounds about which author will win the Nobel Prize in Literature. This year, the Nobel Committee have…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 3, Issue 10
Koleka Putuma • Ta-Nehisi Coates • Khanya Mtshali • Siyanda Mohutsiwa • Mphuthumi Ntabeni • Efemia Chela • Sandile Ngidi…
Jia Tolentino is a moral voice for the secular world—Khanya Mtshali reviews Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion, a collection of essays that explores how we survive our late-capitalist hellscape
In Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion, Jia Tolentino presents her cosmopolitan obsessions with piercing insight and authority, writes Khanya Mtshali. Trick…
[Sponsored] Find out more about Phumlani Pikoli’s debut novel Born Freeloaders – PLUS read an excerpt, hot off the press!
Pan Macmillan has shared an excerpt from Born Freeloaders, the highly anticipated first novel from Phumlani Pikoli. Born Freeloaders is in stores…
American Spy reimagines the American spy, bringing gender and race into the war room—Jennifer Malec reviews Lauren Wilkinson’s new Cold War thriller
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec reviews Lauren Wilkinson’s debut novel American Spy, a thriller that exposes the human drama that plays out…
