‘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,…
Tag: Koleka Putuma
[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,…
‘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…
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…
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….
‘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 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…
What continuities can be drawn from the murder of Ahmed Timol in apartheid Joburg to the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis? Wamuwi Mbao unpacks the debased tradition of police murdering civilians
The abolition of slavery, formalised gender discrimination, apartheid and other reprehensible ways of being did not occur simply through continued…
New poetry by Koleka Putuma: ‘EVERY / THREE HOURS’
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents a new poem by Koleka Putuma. ~~~ EVERY / THREE HOURS this country buries…
[The JRB Daily] Koleka Putuma’s Collective Amnesia announced as winner of the 2018 Glenna Luschei Prize for African Poetry
Koleka Putuma has won the African Poetry Book Fund’s 2018 Glenna Luschei Prize for African Poetry, for her collection Collective…
[The JRB Daily] Exclusive to The JRB: ‘I’m going to market the hell out of our stories’—Zukiswa Wanner reveals the details of her new Africa-focused publishing company, Paivapo
Zukiswa Wanner is starting her own publishing company, with a focus on marketing and selling books throughout Africa. Wanner will launch…
[The JRB Daily] Sindiswa Busuku-Mathese wins 2018 Ingrid Jonker Prize for her debut collection Loud and Yellow Laughter
Sindiswa Busuku-Mathese has been announced as the winner of the 2018 Ingrid Jonker Prize for English Poetry, for her 2016 collection Loud…
‘How does one take part in a national dialogue when your voice carries this baggage?’ Antjie Krog interviews award-winning poet Karin Schimke
‘I cannot un-white my voice, nor can I stop writing.’ Poet, academic and author Antjie Krog interviews Karin Schimke about…
[Conversation Issue] [City Editor] Niq Mhlongo reveals how he missed his own debut book launch, leading to an astounding moment at the Abantu Book Festival twelve years later
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB presents City Editor Niq Mhlongo’s keynote speech from the 2017 BRICS…
[The JRB Daily] JRB Contributing Editor Bongani Madondo up for Brittle Paper Literary Award
Main image: Bongani Madondo photographed by JRB Photo Editor Victor Dlamini To celebrate their seventh anniversary, Brittle Paper recently launched the…
Portrait of the poet as a young genius: Bongani Madondo reviews Koleka Putuma’s Collective Amnesia
There is an ‘undecidable conflict’ between the poet’s desire to sing an alternative world and, as Grossman puts it, the…