‘A superb macaron of darkly satirical fiction’—Wamuwi Mbao reviews Helen DeWitt’s new novella The English Understand Wool
Wamuwi Mbao reviews The English Understand Wool by Helen DeWitt, a book that contains ‘one of the most alarmingly enjoyable…
Blog
‘I am proud that I surrendered to poetry in the ways I did’—Katleho Kano Shoro in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the second in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
[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…
‘How does one truly listen, as a writer, in South Africa? How does one write?’ Kyle Allan reviews Kelwyn Sole’s latest collection of poetry Skin Rafts
Kyle Allan reviews Skin Rafts by Kelwyn Sole, a collection of poems that wrestle with a world that is connected…
‘One travels in ideas as well as trains’—Simon van Schalkwyk interviews PR Anderson on his new collection of poetry, Night Transit
Academic Editor Simon van Schalkwyk talks to PR Anderson about travelling to places you’ve never been, the viciousness of history,…
[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….
‘Death walks everywhere with people’—Siphokazi Magadla reviews Mxolisi Mchunu’s Violence and Solace: The Natal Civil War in Late-Apartheid South Africa
Siphokazi Magadla reviews Violence and Solace: The Natal Civil War in Late-Apartheid South Africa by Mxolisi R Mchunu, a book…
[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…
‘It’s very important to get our books published back at home’—Fungai Machirori interviews Lucy Mushita on her novel Chinongwa
Set in early twentieth-century Zimbabwe, Chinongwa follows the life of a young girl forced into child marriage with a much…
Poetry by Mxolisi Nyezwa, from Bhlawa’s Inconsolable Spirits
The JRB presents an excerpt from Mxolisi Nyezwa’s new collection of poetry, Bhlawa’s Inconsolable Spirits. Mxolisi NyezwaBhlawa’s Inconsolable SpiritsDeep South,…
‘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…
Poetry by PR Anderson, from Night Transit
The JRB presents an excerpt from PR Anderson’s new collection of poetry, Night Transit. Read Simon van Schalkwyk’s interview with…
[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…
[Photo Editor] A portrait of Don Mattera by Victor Dlamini
Victor Dlamini is The JRB’s Photo Editor. We feature his work on our Instagram channel. See this ten-year retrospective of his portraits. View this…
A recent, and very suspicious, lack of loadshedding—A playlist compiled by Tymon Smith
As the brief respite offered by a recent, and very suspicious, lack of loadshedding ends and we are reminded by…
‘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…
[The JRB Daily] Three African writers—Jacob M’hango, ’Pemi Aguda and Arinze Ifeakandu—awarded prestigious O Henry Prize for Short Fiction
Zambian writer Jacob M’hango and Nigerian writers ’Pemi Aguda and Arinze Ifeakandu are among the winners of the prestigious O…
[The JRB Daily] ‘Ambitious, eclectic and hard-hitting’—shortlist announced for 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction
The shortlist for this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction has been announced. Half of this year’s list is made up…
[The JRB Daily] ‘These books are all bold, subversive, nicely perverse’—2023 International Booker Prize shortlist announced
The six novels shortlisted for the 2023 International Booker Prize have been revealed, including Guadeloupian author Maryse Condé, described by…
[The JRB Daily] 2023 Commonwealth Short Story Prize shortlist announced—including six new writers from Africa
Header image: Africa Region shortlistees Buke Abduba, Josiah Mbote, HB Asari, Michael Boyd, Hana Gammon, Matshediso Radebe The shortlist for…
[The JRB Daily] ‘Holy ****! Is this real?’ Winners of R3m Windham–Campbell Prizes for fiction, non-fiction, poetry and drama announced
The eight winners of the 2023 Windham–Campbell Prizes have been announced. Now in its eleventh year, the Windham–Campbell Prize is one of…
[The JRB Daily] 2023 Island Prize for a Debut Novel from Africa longlist announced
The writers longlisted for the 2023 Island Prize for a Debut Novel from Africa have been announced. This literary prize,…
[The JRB Daily] ‘Celebrating the variety and diversity of literary production today’—2023 International Booker Prize longlist announced
The thirteen novels longlisted for the 2023 International Booker Prize have been revealed, including Guadeloupian author Maryse Condé, described by…
[The JRB Daily] ‘A glorious celebration of the boundless imagination and creative ambition of women writers’—2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist announced, including Zimbabwean author NoViolet Bulawayo
The longlist for this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction has been announced, including Zimbabwean novelist NoViolet Bulawayo. The Women’s Prize,…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 7, Issue 1 (February 2023)
Makhosazana Xaba • Maneo Refiloe Mohale • Wamuwi Mbao • Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu • Sindi-Leigh McBride • Carina Venter •…
‘Where else is history but in the stories people tell?’ Wamuwi Mbao reviews The Inheritors by Eve Fairbanks
The Inheritors by Eve Fairbanks is historical storytelling done well, writes Wamuwi Mbao. The InheritorsEve FairbanksJonathan Ball Publishers, 2023 David…
[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…
Portrait of the poet as a genius—Sindi-Leigh McBride reviews Koleka Putuma’s Hullo, Bu-bye, Koko, Come In
Sindi-Leigh McBride reviews Koleka Putuma’s Hullo, Bu-bye, Koko, Come In, a joy to behold even when the subject is devastating….
A book about embrace, but also about the chokehold of segregation—Carina Venter reviews Mr Entertainment: The Story of Taliep Petersen by Paula Fourie
Carina Venter reviews Paula Fourie’s Mr Entertainment: The Story of Taliep Petersen, finding a life that encompasses a country and…
[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…
‘Hope is a potent drug’—Jerry Chiemeke reviews Sylva Nze Ifedigbo’s Chinua Achebe Prize-winning novel Believers and Hustlers
Believers and Hustlers by Sylva Nze Ifedigbo, winner of the Chinua Achebe Prize for Literature, explores the sinister underbelly of…
‘I wanted to place myself in conversation with the living and the dead’—Maneo Refiloe Mohale in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
I remember being eight and geeking out about iambic pentameter … —Maneo Refiloe Mohale This is the first in a…
[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…
‘I choose intersectionality, I choose diversity, I choose multiple perspectives.’—Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu chats to Jennifer Malec about her latest novel, The Quality of Mercy
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec speaks to Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu about casting spells, writing with empathy, and winning one of…
‘Why so long and why now? … I suppose I forgot I was a writer’—Morabo Morojele chats to Lebohang Mojapelo about his forthcoming novel Three Egg Dilemma
Lebohang Mojapelo chatted to Morabo Morojele about his forthcoming novel, Three Egg Dilemma, to be published this month—fifteen years after…