Poetry by the late Harry Garuba, from Shadow and Dream
The JRB presents an excerpt from the new reissue of the late Harry Garuba’s poetry collection, Shadow and Dream. Shadow…
Author: The JRB
‘I write to leave footsteps’—An excerpt from I Write the Yawning Void: Selected Essays of Sindiwe Magona
The JRB presents an excerpt from I Write the Yawning Void: Selected Essays of Sindiwe Magona. I Write the Yawning…
‘But when she tried to cry, all that spilled out of her was laughter’—Read an excerpt from Ukamaka Olisakwe’s new novel Don’t Answer When They Call Your Name
The JRB presents an excerpt from Don’t Answer When They Call Your Name, the new novel from Ukamaka Olisakwe. Don’t…
‘But the dreams didn’t cease immediately, and like a laceration, the wound closed with time’—Read an excerpt from Wisani Mushwana’s debut novel A Soft Landing
The JRB presents an excerpt from A Soft Landing, the debut novel by Wisani Mushwana. A Soft LandingWisani MushwanaKwela, 2023…
‘It is clear he tried to escape the clash’—Read the late Tembelakhe Mati’s story, from Marikana: A People’s History by Julian Brown
On the eleventh anniversary of the Marikana massacre, which took place on on 16 August 2012, The JRB presents an…
‘There are the goodbyes and then the fishing out of the bodies—everything in between is speculation’—Read an excerpt from Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin
The JRB presents an excerpt from Cecile Pin’s debut novel Wandering Souls, longlisted for the 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction….
[The JRB exclusive] ‘How are we supposed to fight something we can’t see?’—Read an excerpt from Glass Tower by Sarah Isaacs, winner of the inaugural Island Prize
The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from Glass Tower by Sarah Isaacs, winner of the 2022 Island Prize for a…
‘Tucked under a bridge in downtown Johannesburg, a place where culture, heritage and tradition converge’—Read an excerpt from Maye! Maye!: The History and Heritage of the Kwa Mai Mai Market
The JRB presents an excerpt from Maye! Maye!: The History and Heritage of the Kwa Mai Mai Market by Sipho…
‘Even centuries later, I still will not know what I was thinking’—Read an excerpt from Sharon Dodua Otoo’s debut novel Ada’s Realm
The JRB presents an excerpt from Ada’s Realm, the long-awaited novel by Sharon Dodua Otoo, winner of the prestigious Ingeborg…
[Sponsored] On living with polite ghosts and experiencing miracles—Sven Axelrad chats about writing his debut novel Buried Treasure
Magic happens in the space between. For author Sven Axelrad, this lies somewhere between accounting and writing. Axelrad’s debut novel…
[Sponsored] Daisy de Melker: Hiding Among Killers in the City of Gold—a true crime classic in ragtime Joburg, city of murder, mayhem and gold
Daisy de Melker: Hiding Among Killers in the City of Gold by Ted Botha is out this month from Jonathan Ball…
[Sponsored] Apartheid’s Black Soldiers: Un-national Wars and Militaries in Southern Africa by Lennart Bolliger—a unique analysis of apartheid military culture
Apartheid’s Black Soldiers: Un-national Wars and Militaries in Southern Africa by Lennart Bolliger is out this month from Jacana Media….
[The JRB exclusive] Read Keith Oliver Lewis’s short story ‘Blue Boy Lagoon’, the winner of the 2023 Short.Sharp.Stories Awards
The JRB presents ‘Blue Boy Lagoon’ by Keith Oliver Lewis, the winning short story from this year’s Short.Sharp.Stories Awards. The…
‘She sat at her dressing table, a plastic bag open on her lap, full of the hair that she had just scissored off her head’—Read an excerpt from Gothataone Moeng’s debut, Call and Response
The JRB presents an excerpt from Call and Response, the debut short story collection from Gothataone Moeng. Call and ResponseGothataone…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from K Sello Duiker’s Inkwenkwezi efihlakeleyo, a new isiXhosa edition of The Hidden Star, translated by Xolisa Guzula
The JRB presents an excerpt from Inkwenkwezi efihlakeleyo, the new isiXhosa translation of the late K Sello Duiker’s modern South…
‘Grace is not to walk on water, but to sink without resistance’—Read an excerpt from Lethokuhle Msimang’s debut novel, The Frightened
The JRB presents an excerpt from The Frightened, the debut novel from Lethokuhle Msimang. The Frightened Lethokuhle MsimangKaravan Press, 2023…
What surfaces when a library is burnt? What emerges from the ashes and ruins? Read an excerpt from Lost Libraries, Burnt Archives
The JRB presents an excerpt from Lost Libraries, Burnt Archives, an edited volume of short stories, artworks, poems and essays…
‘Immigrant women are bones to be pulverised into animal fodder’—Read an excerpt from María Fernanda Ampuero’s new short story collection Human Sacrifices
The JRB presents an extract from ‘Biography’, excerpted from Human Sacrifices, the new short story collection by acclaimed Latin American…
‘He’d had a home once in Johannesburg, until his father was murdered’—Read an excerpt from Sihle Qwabe’s debut novel, The Resurrection
The JRB presents an excerpt from The Resurrection, the debut novel from Sihle Qwabe. The ResurrectionSihle QwabeKwela, 2023 Read the…
‘iCuriosity kubelungu iningi kabi’—Read an excerpt from Written Out: The Silencing of Regina Gelana Twala by Joel Cabrita
The JRB presents an excerpt from Joel Cabrita’s new book Written Out: The Silencing of Regina Gelana Twala. Written Out:…
‘Riotous Deathscapes charts a course of black life in vast deathscapes. It is a portrait of life among the dead’—an excerpt from Hugo ka Canham’s new book
The JRB presents an excerpt from Hugo ka Canham’s forthcoming book Riotous Deathscapes, to be published mid-May. Riotous DeathscapesHugo ka…
[Sponsored] Listen to the new episode of Pagecast! Cariad Lloyd chats about her new book You Are Not Alone
In the latest episode of Pagecast, the podcast from Jonathan Ball Publishers, Pippa Hudson chats to Cariad Lloyd about her…
[Sponsored] ‘The impulse to write often strikes when I’m observing someone else’—Ayobami Adebayo chats about her new novel A Spell of Good Things
The seed of a story starts with the glimpse of a shadow, writes Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀. ‘This was a place I…
[Sponsored] The Manifesto Mixtape—listen to the Sound of Jacana, hosted by Charles Leonard
The Sound of Jacana Podcast and Mixtape, hosted by Charles Leonard, is out now! This edition, The Manifesto Mixtape, is…
‘With all these familiar horrors, who in the hell was going to believe in zombies?’—Read an excerpt from Nana Nkweti’s debut short story collection Walking on Cowrie Shells
The JRB presents an extract from ‘It Just Kills You Inside’, excerpted from Walking on Cowrie Shells, the debut short…
‘Her mother loved Angola more than she loved her daughter’—Read an excerpt from Yara Nakahanda Monteiro’s acclaimed novel Loose Ties
The JRB presents an excerpt from Yara Nakahanda Monteiro’s novel Loose Ties, translated from the Portuguese by Sandy Tamele, which…
‘Michael stands at the edge of the world and looks up into the eternal stars’—Read an excerpt from David Ralph Viviers’s debut novel Mirage
The JRB presents an excerpt from Mirage, the debut novel by David Ralph Viviers. MirageDavid Ralph ViviersUmuzi, 2023 Read the…
‘Every African who has been paying attention to the global Covid-19 response is angry. Listen to us as we tell you why.’—Read an excerpt from Strange and Difficult Times
The JRB presents an excerpt from Strange and Difficult Times: Notes on a Global Pandemic by Nanjala Nyabola. Strange and…
‘Pajubá as Queer Articulation of the Black Atlantic’ by Caio Simões de Araújo—an excerpt from Changing Theory: Concepts from the Global South
The JRB presents an excerpt from Caio Simões de Araújo’s chapter ‘Pajubá’, from the new essay collection Changing Theory: Concepts…
[Sponsored] Jonathan Ball Publishers’s podcast Pagecast takes you on a journey of the year in books, and recommends some great holiday reads
Pagecast, the podcast from Jonathan Ball Publishers, is looking back and reflecting on all the incredible books published in 2022….
[Sponsored] Books—the gift you can open over and over again!
Still looking for that perfect present? Penguin Random House has compiled the ULTIMATE gifting guide for you. From books for…
[Sponsored] New book alert! In My Life: Stories From Young Activists in South Africa 2002—2022
In My Life: Stories From Young Activists in South Africa 2002–2022 is out in December from Jacana Media. Edited by Shannon…
[Sponsored] ‘I swear you can’t make stuff like this up’—Read an excerpt from Tshidiso Moletsane’s Sunday Times Fiction Prize-winning novel Junx
Penguin Random House has shared an excerpt from Junx, the debut novel from Tshidiso Moletsane, winner of the 2022 Sunday Times Fiction…
[Sponsored] Listen to the new episode of Pagecast! Featuring Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan, authors of Mad Honey
The new episode of Pagecast, the podcast from Jonathan Ball Publishers, is out now! In this week’s episode, Pagecast, Pippa…
[Sponsored] Mr Entertainment by Paula Fourie: A pioneering biography of one of Cape Town’s most beloved entertainers, Taliep Petersen
Mr Entertainment: The story of Taliep Petersen by Paula Fourie is out now from LAPA Publishers. In Mr Entertainment, we hear…
[Sponsored] The Unaccountables: The Powerful Politicians and Corporations who Profit from Impunity—an urgent and passionately argued call to action
The Unaccountables: The Powerful Politicians and Corporations who Profit from Impunity, edited by Michael Marchant, Mamello Mosiana, Ra’eesa Pather and…
[The JRB exclusive] ‘Over the months, we found more and more of Wayne’s drawings, those bundles of thin lines on the walls’—Read an excerpt from Namwali Serpell’s new novel The Furrows
The JRB presents an excerpt from The Furrows: An Elegy, the new novel from award-winning author Namwali Serpell. The FurrowsNamwali…
[The JRB exclusive] ‘The first wound for all of us who are classified as “black” is empire’—Read an excerpt from Tsitsi Dangarembga’s new book Black and Female
The JRB presents an excerpt from Black and Female by Tsitsi Dangarembga. Black and FemaleTsitsi DangarembgaFaber & Faber, 2022 Read…
‘I danced a saraband with my parents. Their love dissolved my old fear’—Read an excerpt from Abdourahman A Waberi’s award-winning novel Why Do You Dance When You Walk
The JRB presents an excerpt from Why Do You Dance When You Walk by Djiboutian novelist Abdourahman A Waberi, winner…
‘I was an identity-less person at the mercy of apartheid officials’—Read an excerpt from Cleaner’s Boy: A Resistance Road to a Liberated Life by Patric Tariq Mellet
The JRB presents an excerpt from Patric Tariq Mellet’s autobiography Cleaner’s Boy: A Resistance Road to a Liberated Life. Cleaner’s…