‘Poetry has always been a way for me to process life’—Saaleha Idrees Bamjee in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the eighth in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
Tag: Interviews
‘Johannesburg provokes extreme responses, one way or the other, because it’s full of contradictions’—An interview with Ivan Vladislavic about his new book The Near North
JRB Editor Jennifer Malec interviews The JRB Patron Ivan Vladislavić about his new book, The Near North. The Near NorthIvan VladislavićPicador Africa, 2024…
‘The readers are there, but we’re still figuring out the right distribution model to reach them’—Nozizwe Cynthia Jele introduces her new isiZulu-focused publisher, Happiness Books
Author Nozizwe Cynthia Jele has recently launched a publishing company, Happiness Books, which will specialise in books written in isiZulu. …
‘My way of writing and reading and seeing the world is not the only way’—Tariro Ndoro in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the seventh in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
‘Ngangizwa kahle ukuthi ukuhumusha kuyangikhulisa, kungisabalalisela ingqondo’—Makhosazana Xaba chats to Musawenkosi Cabe about her isiZulu translation of Frantz Fanon’s The Wretched of the Earth
Udliwano ndlebe mayelana nokuhushushwa kwengcwadi ka Frantz Fanon, Izimpabanga Zomhlaba, phakathi komhumushi uMakhosazana Xaba no Musawenkosi Cabe. This is a…
‘I was fascinated by the idea of women existing beyond the confines of the patriarchy and colonialism’—An interview with Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu on The Creation of Half-Broken People
Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu chats to JRB Editor Jennifer Malec about her new novel, The Creation of Half-Broken People. The Creation of Half-Broken…
‘The trees of the city provide a subtext for many things’—Salimah Valiani talks to Anna Stroud about her new poetry collection, IGoli/EGoli
Salimah Valiani chats to Anna Stroud about maps, trees and all the ingredients for love one can find in Johannesburg—and…
‘Before I even believed in myself, women writers older than me held my hand’—Busisiwe Mahlangu in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the sixth in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
‘Joburg is like a jilted lover’—Niq Mhlongo talks to Jennifer Malec about his latest novel, The City is Mine
Niq Mhlongo chats to JRB Editor Jennifer Malec about his new novel, The City is Mine, and the changes he’s…
On identity, poetry, diaspora and Afropessimism—Kweku Abimbola in conversation with Sreddy Yen
Gambia-born poet Kweku Abimbola, whose award-winning first collection of poetry Saltwater Demands a Psalm was published by Graywolf Press in…
‘A family can be a very stifling environment’—Lebohang Mojapelo interviews Pontsho Pilane on her book Power and Faith: How Evangelical Churches are Quietly Shaping Our Democracy
Lebohang Mojapelo talks to Pontsho Pilane about her new book, Power and Faith: How Evangelical Churches are Quietly Shaping Our…
[Conversation Issue] Jimi Solanke: a prodigal as folk hero—Sanya Osha salutes an inimitable artist
Sanya Osha pays tribute to the late Jimi Solanke, and chats to Oluwatoyin Sutton about her book Jimi Solanke: The…
[Conversation Issue] ‘Poetry refuses the abstraction of theory’—danai mupotsa in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the fifth in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
[Conversation Issue] ‘I don’t want to tell my reader what to feel; I want to make them feel’—Tan Twan Eng chats to Jennifer Malec about his new novel The House of Doors
Tan Twan Eng’s third novel, The House of Doors, was longlisted for the Booker Prize, and has just been longlisted…
[Conversation Issue] The world ends several times for Black people—A conversation with Uhuru Portia Phalafala and critical reading of her book Mine Mine Mine
Kim M Reynolds considers the historical and the personal in Uhuru Portia Phalafala’s new book Mine Mine Mine, in discussion…
‘I believe poetry is how my ancestors found me’—vangile gantsho in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the fourth in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
‘As an immigrant, family photos are elegies to a lost world’—Sarah Lubala in conversation with Makhosazana Xaba
This is the third in a series of long-form interviews by Patron Makhosazana Xaba to be hosted on The JRB,…
‘We, human beings, know how our stories end—with our heads blossoming into daisies’—Jarred Thompson chats to Anna Stroud about his novel The Institute for Creative Dying
Anna Stroud chats to Jarred Thompson about The Institute for Creative Dying, his debut novel that imagines a radical alternative…
‘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,…
‘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,…
‘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…
‘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…
‘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…
‘When the Booker longlisting happened, I thought, oh, I’m going to have to start writing again’—Karen Jennings chats to Jennifer Malec about writing, fame and loneliness (Plus: exclusive audio)
Author Karen Jennings was in conversation with The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec at the Origins Centre in Johannesburg recently, as…
‘What happens when you have a crime committed against a person that never ever comes to an end?’—Margie Orford talks to Jennifer Malec about her new novel The Eye of the Beholder
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec sat down with Margie Orford to talk about the challenges of writing about sexual violence, the politics…
‘I think that it is important for every woman to claim the “nasty” in her’—Anna Stroud interviews Joy Watson on her debut novel, The Other Me
Anna Stroud chatted to Joy Watson about nasty women, how the markers of identity write themselves into our stories, and…
‘An important collective political work’—Fungai Machirori reviews The Sex Lives of African Women by Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah
Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah’s The Sex Lives of African Women is an important addition to writing that resists the fetishisation of…
‘Someone tried to break into my house while I was writing this book’—Christopher McMichael talks to mpho ndaba about his new book Shoot to Kill: Police and Power in South Africa
Christopher McMichael sat down with mpho ndaba to discuss violent policing, its historical origins, and his new book Shoot to…
‘For me, the truth is important because we have been fed so many books with lies’—An interview with Terry-Ann Adams on their new collection of short stories, White Chalk
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec chatted to Terry-Ann Adams about writing, representation, and their new collection of short stories, White…
‘I find hope in the super uncomfortable, taboo-to-talk-about, ugly things’—Lebohang Mojapelo interviews Warsan Shire on her new book, Bless the Daughter Raised by a Voice in Her Head
Lebohang Mojapelo speaks to Warsan Shire about that Beyoncé moment, the importance of bearing witness, and her new book, Bless…
‘Writing is open to everyone, regardless of their background or where they’re from’—An interview with Eswatini’s first Commonwealth Short Story Prize winner Ntsika Kota
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec chatted to Ntsika Kota, winner of the 2022 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for his story, ‘and the…
‘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…
‘My writing comes alive when I have questions, when I don’t know where I’m headed, when I’m in the dark’—Yewande Omotoso chats to Jennifer Malec about her new novel An Unusual Grief
The JRB’s Editor Jennifer Malec chats to Yewande Omotoso about questions, answers, and her new novel, An Unusual Grief. An Unusual GriefYewande OmotosoCassava,…
‘I was constantly weaving fact and fiction, and blurring truth with fable’—CA Davids chats to Efemia Chela about her new novel How to Be a Revolutionary
Contributing Editor Efemia Chela speaks to CA Davids about her new novel, How to Be a Revolutionary. How to Be a RevolutionaryCA…
‘It was a book I told friends no one would ever read’—Wamuwi Mbao talks to Jason Mott about his National Book Award-winning novel Hell of a Book
Jason Mott, whose Hell of a Book was awarded the National Book Award for Fiction as well as the Sir…
‘To my mind, the family is the most important political space’—Nozuko Siyotula chats about her debut novel, Christopher
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec talks to Nozuko Siyotula about her debut novel, Christopher. ChristopherNozuko SiyotulaJacana Media, 2021 Jennifer Malec…
‘Where is the last rational place left in the world, for heaven’s sake?’—Lebohang Mojapelo interviews Wole Soyinka on his new novel, Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth
Lebohang Mojapelo interviews Wole Soyinka on his new novel. Chronicles From the Land of the Happiest People on EarthWole SoyinkaBloomsbury,…
‘Wouter Basson didn’t reply to my queries’—Imraan Coovadia chats to Jennifer Malec about his new book The Poisoners: On South Africa’s Toxic Past
Award-winning author Imraan Coovadia chats to The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec about the mechanisms of good and evil, emailing Wouter Basson, and his…
‘I decided to give up writing and to rethink my life’—Karen Jennings chats to Jennifer Malec about her Booker Prize-longlisted novel, An Island
Karen Jennings was recently longlisted for the Booker Prize, for her novel An Island. Here she chats to The JRB…