‘I use anything handy which kills the gods’—Read an interview with Charles Mungoshi (1947–2019)
Literary giant Charles Mungoshi died on 16 February 2019, at the age of seventy-one. Mungoshi was born in 1947 in…
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[Photo Editor] Two portraits of Charles Mungoshi (1947–2019) by Victor Dlamini
Victor Dlamini photographed the Zimbabwean writer Charles Mungoshi, who died on 16 of February this year at the age of…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Ekow Duker’s forthcoming novel, Yellowbone
The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from Yellowbone, the forthcoming novel by Ekow Duker. Yellowbone will be published by Kwela…
The novel as a series of moments of potentiality—Wemar Strydom on ‘Translate Yourself’, Eben Venter’s first exhibition of visual work
Eben Venter presented the world debut of his first visual exhibition, ‘Translate Yourself’, at the February Lectures conference at the…
‘Postcolonial Africa is an interlocking of forms, signs and languages’—Photographs from Guy Tillim’s new book Museum of the Revolution
The JRB presents an excerpt, in photographs, from Museum of the Revolution, a new book by renowned photographer Guy Tillim. The…
I’d Kill For Some Sleep: Tahar Ben Jelloun’s novel L’insomnie tackles a modern malady
«S’il vous plaît … un petit peu de sommeil … un petit peu de cette douce et agréable absence ……
[The JRB Daily] AfroYoungAdult talent search selection announced—stories from the world’s oldest continent with the youngest population
The Goethe-Institut Sub-Saharan Africa has announced the selection for the AfroYoungAdult project. The project was launched last year, with the…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 3, Issue 2
Namwali Serpell • Jacob Dlamini • Barry Gilder • Rustum Kozain • Rémy Ngamije • Farai Mudzingwa • Oyinkan Braithwaite…
‘From the historical past to the science fictional future’—Namwali Serpell chats to Wamuwi Mbao about her forthcoming debut novel, The Old Drift
Wamuwi Mbao chats to Namwali Serpell about her debut novel, The Old Drift. Namwali Serpell The Old Drift Penguin Random…
[Sponsored] First look at Ivan Vladislavić’s new novel The Distance – an intricate puzzle of a book
The Distance—the highly anticipated new novel from Ivan Vladislavić—will be out from Umuzi on 6 February 2019. Meanwhile, enjoy an…
‘There is no comfort to be had in fiction. Our history is too raw for that’—Jacob Dlamini reviews Barry Gilder’s ‘brilliant, haunting’ novel The List
The List, the debut novel by former anti-apartheid activist and uMkhonto weSizwe member Barry Gilder, is a meditation about betrayal, faith,…
New poetry by Rustum Kozain: ‘Miró Miró’
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents previously unpublished poetry by Rustum Kozain. ~~~ Miró Miró In flight sudden a something…
[Sponsored] One of the first literary figures in France with a double identity, a cultural hybridity – An excerpt from The First Safari
Read an excerpt from The First Safari: Searching for François Levaillant by Ian Glenn, out now from Jacana Media! The First Safari tells…
New short fiction: ‘The Neighbourhood Watch’ by Rémy Ngamije
The JRB presents a new short story by Rémy Ngamije. ~~~ The Neighbourhood Watch Mondays: Auasblick, Olympia, and Suiderhof (maybe…
‘Zimbos are Highly Educated in conspiracy theories smh’—Tweets from Harare during the week-long #ZimShutdown social media blackout, January 2019
The JRB presents an alternative Twitter timeline by Farai Mudzingwa, who imagines what he would have, or could have, posted…
[Sponsored] Find out more about Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah’s extraordinary, bestselling debut, Friday Black—PLUS excerpt
Friday Black is a piercingly raw debut story collection from Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, a young writer with an explosive voice; a…
‘A story that skips along breezily, even as the body count rises’—Jennifer Malec reviews My Sister, the Serial Killer, the debut novel by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Contrary to what the title and pulpy cover seem to suggest, My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite is…
[Photo Editor] Original portraits of Tsitsi Dangarembga and Achmat Dangor by Victor Dlamini
Victor Dlamini is The JRB’s Photo Editor. We feature his work on our Instagram channel. Visit the ten-year retrospective of…
[Sponsored] Read an excerpt from Ekow Duker’s powerful, poignant novel The God Who Made Mistakes
Pan Macmillan has shared an excerpt from The God Who Made Mistakes by Ekow Duker. The excerpt was shared as part of The Friday…
[City Editor] Behind every story, think of the writer—Niq Mhlongo on the new stage adaptation of his short story ‘Nailed’
There’s a film that stands the test of time and still resonates with my friends and me: The Shawshank Redemption….
New short fiction: ‘Loadshedding’ by Michael Yee, winner of the 2018 Short Sharp Stories Award
The JRB presents ‘Loadshedding’ by Michael Yee, the winner of this year’s Short Sharp Stories Award. The Short Sharp Stories…
A 1960s summer in New York with Lewis Nkosi—Read an excerpt from Vintage Love and Other Essays by Jolyon Nuttall
The JRB presents an excerpt from Vintage Love and Other Essays by Jolyon Nuttall. Vintage Love Jolyon Nuttall Jacana Media, 2018 …
‘I avoid filling up my belly to feel less guilty’—Read newly translated poetry by Fiston Mwanza Mujila
Asymptote Journal runs the Close Approximations Translation Contest yearly, and this year an excellent translation of Fiston Mwanza Mujila’s poetry…
Véronique Tadjo announced as head judge of the Prix Orange du Livre en Afrique francophone
Ivorian author Véronique Tadjo has been announced as the head judge of the new Prix Orange du Livre en Afrique…
‘I write in French to tell the French that I am not French’—Algerian Francophone poetry featured in Words Without Borders
In the January 2019 issue of Words Without Borders, translator and poet Marilyn Hacker discusses the fascinating resistance history of…
‘It was the only way we could escape our whiteness’—Read ‘Struggle Heroes’, an excerpt from Hugh Lewin’s memoir, Stones Against the Mirror
The JRB presents an excerpt from Stones Against the Mirror, the memoir of journalist, author and anti-apartheid activist Hugh Lewin,…
Hugh Lewin, 1939–2019, RIP
Journalist, author and anti-apartheid activist Hugh Lewin has died, aged seventy-nine. Lewin passed away at his home in Killarney, Johannesburg…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 3, Issue 1 (January 2019, The Conversation Issue)
Emmanuel Iduma • Lidudumalingani • Zoë Wicomb • Chigozie Obioma • Mbali Sikakana • Amatesiro Dore • Chike Frankie Edozien…
[Conversation Issue] ‘There is nothing I loathe more than the idea that a piece of writing is “experimental”’—Emmanuel Iduma in conversation with Lidudumalingani
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Emmanuel Iduma, author of A Stranger’s Pose, in conversation with writer and photographer Lidudumalingani….
[Sponsored] Enter the Gama❤Phile Writers’ Competition and stand a chance to be published by Pan Macmillan SA
Attention aspiring storytellers: make your writing dreams a reality with the Gama❤Phile Writers’ Competition! Gama❤Phile, Pan Macmillan SA and the Pilanesberg…
[Conversation Issue] ‘Intersectionality seems so blindingly obvious a notion’—Zoë Wicomb in conversation with Andrew van der Vlies, from their new book Race, Nation, Translation
As part of our January Conversation Issue, we present an excerpted interview from a new collection of Zoë Wicomb’s writing, Race,…
[Conversation Issue] A brief history of the Igbo civilisation, and a love story—Chigozie Obioma chats to Jennifer Malec about his new novel, An Orchestra of Minorities
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec talks to Chigozie Obioma about his forthcoming ‘African cosmological novel’, An Orchestra…
[Sponsored] Award announcement: Submissions for the Gerald Kraak Prize will be kept open all year
From now on submissions for the Gerald Kraak Prize will be kept open all year round. Selections for the 2019…
[Conversation Issue] How to protect Africa—Mbali Sikakana decodes Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s visit to the Abantu Book Festival
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Mbali Sikakana contemplates the significance of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s recent discussion with Pumla…
[Conversation Issue] Letter to a Young Queer Intellectual by Amatesiro Dore
As part of our January Conversation Issue, read Amatesiro Dore’s Letter to a Young Queer Intellectual. How far, I’ve been…
[Sponsored] Cari Mora – From the creator of Hannibal Lecter comes a story of evil, greed, and the consequences of dark obsession
Penguin Random House has revealed the cover for Cari Mora, the new novel from Thomas Harris, bestselling author and creator of The…
[Conversation Issue] ‘Every small victory chips away at the fallacy that gay people are some sort of un-African species’—Chike Frankie Edozien chats to Efemia Chela
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB Contributing Editor Efemia Chela chats to Chike Frankie Edozien about his memoir, Lives of Great…
[Conversation Issue] ‘Africa exists in the world, and the world has always been in Africa’—Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu chats to Jennifer Malec about her debut novel, The Theory of Flight
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec talks to Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu about her debut novel, The Theory of…
[Sponsored] New poetry from Alice Walker in the ‘playfully imaginative and intensely moving’ Taking the Arrow out of the Heart
Mindful poems about tolerance, justice and hope for the future, by Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Color Purple….
[Conversation Issue] ‘Poetry is music, nothing more’—PR Anderson talks to Rustum Kozain about his new collection, In a Free State: A Music
The JRB’s Poetry Editor Rustum Kozain was in conversation with PR Anderson at the launch of Anderson’s new book, In…