[The JRB Daily] 2022 South African Literary Awards winners announced
The winners of the 2022 South African Literary Awards (the SALAs) have been announced. The winning writers were announced in…
Author: The JRB
[The JRB Daily] Annie Ernaux receives the 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature
French author Annie Ernaux has been awarded this year’s Nobel Prize in Literature, the Swedish Academy announced today in Stockholm….
[Sponsored] ‘Hearing that collective clamour for change reminded me that I did not walk alone’—NoViolet Bulawayo chats about her Booker-shortlisted novel Glory
Zimbabwean novelist NoViolet Bulawayo has just been shortlisted for the prestigious Booker Prize for her new novel Glory. Glory is…
[Sponsored] ‘What do you do if you suspect your husband is planning to murder you?’ Maggie O’Farrell introduces her new book The Marriage Portrait
In her new book The Marriage Portrait, Maggie O’Farrell turns her talents to Renaissance Italy in an extraordinary portrait of…
[Sponsored] A force of life, one of the only women writers at Drum—Juby Mayet’s autobiography Freedom Writer: My Life and Times out in October
Freedom Writer: My Life and Times by Juby Mayet if forthcoming in mid-October from Jacana Media. Mayet, who passed away…
#RhodesMustFall, patriarchy and feminism—read an excerpt from Why Men Hurt Women and Other Reflections on Love, Violence and Masculinity
The JRB presents an excerpt from Kopano Ratele’s new book Why Men Hurt Women and Other Reflections on Love, Violence…
‘He was determined to cement the Zulu language as a mighty force’—Read ‘The Last Word: Benedict Vilakazi’, excerpted from Wits University at 100
The JRB presents an excerpt from Wits University at 100: From Excavation to Innovation, a book that captures important moments…
[The JRB exclusive] Read ‘Until It Doesn’t’, Roy Udeh-Ubaka’s ‘brave and deeply moving’ Gerald Kraak Prize-winning story
The JRB is proud to present ‘Until It Doesn’t’, Roy Udeh-Ubaka’s Gerald Kraak Prize-winning story, excerpted from the new anthology…
A rich history and a rapidly evolving industry—View photographs from Africa in Fashion: Luxury, Craft and Textile Heritage by Ken Kweku Nimo
The JRB presents an excerpt from Ken Kweku Nimo’s new book Africa in Fashion: Luxury, Craft and Textile Heritage. Africa…
‘He looked like a bad decision. The best kind of bad decision’—Read an excerpt from Bolu Babalola’s debut novel Honey and Spice
The JRB presents an excerpt from Honey and Spice, the new novel from Bolu Babalola. Honey and SpiceBolu BabalolaHeadline, 2022…
Read an excerpt from Ben Okri’s new novel The Last Gift of the Master Artists
The JRB presents an excerpt from The Last Gift of the Master Artists, the new novel from Ben Okri. The…
‘Her name belonged to another world, even though her body lived in ours’—Read an excerpt from Pulane Mlilo Mpondo’s debut novel Things My Mother Left Me
The JRB presents an excerpt from Things My Mother Left Me, the debut novel by Pulane Mlilo Mpondo. Things My…
‘What do you think this crowd would do to a baby thief, if you were caught?’—Read an excerpt from Omolola Ijeoma Ogunyemi’s debut novel Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions
The JRB presents an excerpt from Jollof Rice and Other Revolutions: A Novel in Interlocking Stories, the debut novel from…
‘People were continuing to change, white people becoming dark’—Read an excerpt from The Last White Man by Mohsin Hamid
The JRB presents an excerpt from Mohsin Hamid‘s new novel The Last White Man. The Last White ManMohsin HamidPenguin, 2022…
[Sponsored] 5 easy steps to write your story! (Plus: WIN a creative writing intensive course)
If you have a story to tell, then tell it! Begin writing your memoir today with five easy steps from…
[Sponsored] New book alert! Margie Orford’s brutally compelling thriller The Eye of the Beholder—out in August
The Eye of the Beholder, the highly anticipated new book by Margie Orford, is out in August from Jonathan Ball…
[Sponsored] Mandela: Saint or Sell-out? Don’t miss a Jacana Media Don’t Shut Up conversation on correcting the Mandela myth (18 Jul)
Many are familiar with two versions of Nelson Mandela. Both versions render the man a myth, requiring that he is…
‘We’re not there to beg for a place on bookshelves in German bookshops but we’re there to demand it, to claim it’—Lidudumalingani on the 2022 African Book Festival
The JRB chats to guest City Editor Lidudumalingani about his curatorship of this year’s African Book Festival, taking place from…
‘Even with just her mouth alone she could do serious battle and slay’—Read an exclusive excerpt from NoViolet Bulawayo’s new novel Glory
The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from Glory, the highly anticipated new novel from NoViolet Bulawayo. GloryNoViolet BulawayoPenguin Random House,…
Read ‘Tribute to Professor Bhekizizwe Peterson’, by Jill Bradbury, Khwezi Mkhize and Makhosazana Xaba, excerpted from the new book Foundational African Writers
The JRB presents an excerpt from Foundational African Writers: Peter Abrahams, Noni Jabavu, Sibusiso Nyembezi and Es’kia Mphahlele, edited by…
‘As the plane staggers into the sky, darkness rushes to catch it’—Read an excerpt from Chisoni, or Conversations on a Plane About Life and Death by JG Jesman
The JRB presents an excerpt from JG Jesman’s debut novel Chisoni, or Conversations on a Plane About Life and Death….
‘Almost all of Africa’s ancient artistic heritage is now preserved in European countries’—Read an excerpt from Bénédicte Savoy’s Africa’s Struggle for Its Art
The JRB presents an excerpt from Africa’s Struggle for Its Art: History of a Postcolonial Defeat by Bénédicte Savoy. Africa’s…
‘What did it mean to suffocate history so as to preserve the order of the rich?’—Read an excerpt from Washington Bullets, the new book by Vijay Prashad
The JRB presents an excerpt from Vijay Prashad‘s Washington Bullets. Washington BulletsVijay PrashadInkani Books, 2022 ‘BRING DOWN MORE US AIRCRAFT’…
‘Anxiety in South Africa does not impede existence; it has rather become part of existence’—Read an excerpt from Worrier State: Risk, Anxiety and Moral Panic in South Africa by Nicky Falkof
The JRB presents an excerpt from Nicky Falkof’s new book Worrier State: Risk, Anxiety and Moral Panic in South Africa….
‘I saw myself in him, and by seeing myself in him, I felt less alone for the first time’—Read an excerpt from Welcome Mandla Lishivha’s new memoir Boy on the Run
The JRB presents an excerpt from Boy on the Run by Welcome Mandla Lishivha. Boy on the RunWelcome Mandla LishivhaJacana…
‘No one was going to make me feel ashamed of where I come from or who I am’—Read an excerpt from Terry-Ann Adams’s new book White Chalk
The JRB presents an excerpt from White Chalk, the new collection of short stories from Terry-Ann Adams. White ChalkTerry-Ann AdamsJacana…
‘Xolani. This is the name I use in my adulthood. I haven’t always used this name.’—Read ‘What’s in a Name?’, excerpted from Racism, Violence, Betrayals and New Imaginaries: Feminist Voices
The JRB presents an excerpt from ‘What’s in a name?’ Xolani S Ngazimbi’s essay from Racism, Violence, Betrayals and New…
[Sponsored] One minute with author Mike Nicol
Hammerman: A Walking Shadow, the new thriller from Mike Nicol, is out now from Penguin Random House SA! In the…
[Sponsored] New book alert! Tomorrow I Become a Woman—a powerful debut by Aiwanose Odafen
What can I do?’ she asked. You can fight, I thought, you can fight for your daughters. But then again,…
[Sponsored] ‘These stories are nothing short of miraculous’—Find out more about Terry-Ann Adams’s latest book, White Chalk
White Chalk, the new book from Terry-Ann Adams, will be out from Jacana Media this month! ‘White Chalk will blow…
Read ‘Garden Made of Water’, new short fiction by Ema Babikwa, from the forthcoming Blood Beats collection Something in the Water
The JRB presents new fiction from Ema Babikwa, from the forthcoming anthology Something in the Water: New Short Fiction from…
‘Navigating the reality of his blackness in an oppressive state’—Read an excerpt from Can Themba: The Making and Breaking of the Intellectual Tsotsi by Siphiwo Mahala
The JRB presents an excerpt from Siphiwo Mahala’s new biography, Can Themba: The Making and Breaking of the Intellectual Tsotsi….
[Sponsored] Don’t miss an evening with 2021 Booker Prize winner Damon Galgut, author of The Promise, at The Book Lounge (10 Mar)
You are invited to an evening with 2021 Booker Prize winner Damon Galgut at The Book Lounge! Galgut, who won the prestigious…
[Sponsored] First People—in this invaluable and accessible book Andrew Smith examines what we know about southern Africa’s earliest inhabitants
First People: The Lost History of the Khoisan by Andrew Smith is out now from Jonathan Ball Publishers. The book will…
[Sponsored] Cover reveal! Vivian de Klerk’s shocking, poignant and funny new novel Serpent Crescent
Pan Macmillan has revealed the cover for Serpent Crescent—the new novel by Vivian de Klerk! Serpent Crescent will be on the shelves…
[Sponsored] Where would we be without us! Wathint’imbokodo! Find out about the new series Imbokodo: Women Who Shape Us
Imbokodo: Women Who Shape Us is a groundbreaking series of books, written by Athambile Masola and Xolisa Guzula and published by…
‘The village is cursed. Don’t ever come back here.’—Read an excerpt from Véronique Tadjo’s In the Company of Men
The JRB presents an excerpt from In the Company of Men by Véronique Tadjo, out now in a new edition….
‘Mama never told me she loved me. Mama couldn’t even say happy birthday to me’—Read an excerpt from Lebo Mazibuko’s debut novel, Bantu Knots
The JRB presents an excerpt from Bantu Knots, the debut novel from Lebo Mazibuko. Lebo MazibukoBantu KnotsKwela Books, 2021 Read…
‘If there had been any kings in Rwanda, it was better to forget them’—Read an excerpt from Scholastique Mukasonga’s Our Lady of the Nile
The JRB presents an excerpt from Our Lady of the Nile by Scholastique Mukasonga, out now in a new edition….
‘A dark, vast emptiness within, as boundless as the universe outside’—Read an excerpt from Alistair Mackay’s debut novel It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way
The JRB presents an excerpt from It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way, the debut novel from Alistair Mackay. It…