African literature should be free to remain ‘a question to itself’—Lebohang Mojapelo reviews The Rise of the African Novel by Mukoma Wa Ngugi
In The Rise of the African Novel, Mukoma Wa Ngugi traces the way African literature has been a space to…
Category: Kenya
[The JRB Daily] Top 10 of 2020—a look back at our most popular articles of the year
This December marked the The JRB’s forty-second issue, the final issue of our fourth volume. With the new year just…
New short fiction: ‘Black Beauty’ by Makena Onjerika
The JRB presents a new short story by Makena Onjerika. ~~~ Black Beauty Our housegirl Scolastica only ever wore a…
Intimations of an ending—Carey Baraka on the unspoken demise of Kwani?, and the death of a dream
‘Still, there were dreams, and there were dreamers.’ Carey Baraka attempts to gather together the stories of Kwani? 1. One…
‘Thinking while black’—Read Grace A Musila’s essay from the award-winning book Black Academic Voices: The South African Experience
‘How do we craft a healthy, dignified blackness, in a world where blackness is a captured identity location that needs…
‘The majority of writers in Africa, of us, confine ourselves, rather than having great ambition’—An interview with Nuruddin Farah, by Lebohang Mojapelo
Internationally renowned Somali novelist Nuruddin Farah is known for his politically conscious writing, which led him into exile as a…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from the new African edition of We, the Scarred by Mukoma wa Ngugi
The JRB presents an excerpt from We, the Scarred by Mukoma wa Ngugi. The novel, which tells the story of…
Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor’s weight of whispers—Carey Baraka considers Dust, The Dragonfly Sea and a novelist’s mission to retell the ‘vile things’ of history
The Kenyan novel is not dead, writes Carey Baraka, as long as Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor keeps writing. 1. On June…
[The JRB Daily] The AKO Caine Prize announces 2020 judging panel—and major new sponsorship deal
The AKO Caine Prize for African Writing has announced its panel of judges for 2020, and a new sponsorship deal. …
[The JRB Daily] Top 10 of 2019—A look back at our most popular articles of the year
This December marked the The JRB’s thirty-second issue, the final issue of our third volume. With the new year—but not…
[The JRB Daily] 12 African writers nominated for 2020 International Dublin Literary Award—the world’s richest annual literary prize
Twelve African writers have been longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award, the world’s most valuable annual literary prize for…
[The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Meanwhile … a new graphic novel anthology about everyday queer life in Southern and East Africa
The JRB presents an excerpt from Meanwhile … Graphic Short Stories About Everyday Queer Life in Southern and East Africa….
‘A millennial Kenya we’ve never seen in fiction before’—Read an excerpt from The Cape Cod Bicycle War and Other Stories by Billy Kahora
The JRB presents an excerpt from The Cape Cod Bicycle War and Other Stories, the much-anticipated new book by Billy…
[The JRB exclusive] New short fiction: ‘Mr Thompson’ by Noel Cheruto, first runner-up in the 2018 Short Story Day Africa Prize
The JRB presents the winning stories from this year’s Short Story Day Africa Prize. Egyptian writer Adam El Shalakany won the…
[The JRB Daily] Short Story Day Africa winners announced—‘the closest competition yet seen in SSDA’s history’
Egyptian writer Adam El Shalakany has won the 2018 Short Story Day Africa Prize for his story ‘Happy City Hotel’—becoming the…
[The JRB exclusive] ‘PS. Everybody calls me Binyavanga these days.’ Read Binyavanga Wainaina’s letter to his late mother, from the 2016 exhibition Inside: Artists and Writers in Reading Prison
In 2016, the late Binyavanga Wainaina contributed a piece of writing to a United Kingdom-based art project titled Inside: Artists and…
[Photo Editor] Original portraits of Binyavanga Wainaina 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…
[City Editor] The Binj outside books—Niq Mhlongo recounts adventures with his friend, Binyavanga Wainaina
Header image: Binyavanga Wainaina (second from left) and Niq Mhlongo (far left), with American author and academic Jeffery Renard Allen, Lesego…
Binyavanga Wainaina, 1971–2019, RIP
Kenyan author and activist Binyavanga Wainaina has died, at the age of forty-eight. Wainaina passed away at 10 pm on…
[The JRB Daily] 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize shortlist announced, including writers from Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia
The shortlist for the 2019 Commonwealth Short Story Prize has been announced. South African writer Alex Latimer and South Africa-based…
Showcasing African literature’s contribution to decolonisation—Lebohang Mojapelo reviews Ngũgĩ: Reflections on His Life of Writing
Lebohang Mojapelo reviews Ngũgĩ: Reflections on His Life of Writing, a collection of essays that reflects on the life and work of Ngũgĩ…
[The JRB Daily] 2018 Short Story Day Africa Prize longlist announced
The longlist for the Short Story Day Africa Prize for Short Fiction has been announced. The prize was founded in…
New short fiction: ‘Origami’ by Troy Onyango
The JRB presents a new short story by Troy Onyango. ~~~ Origami First, he plucks a small part of himself…
Two new poems by Ngwatilo Mawiyoo
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents previously unpublished poetry by Ngwatilo Mawiyoo. Edith And Umau I’ve returned from America because…
[Photo Editor] Original portraits of Binyavanga Wainaina and Zakes Mda by Victor Dlamini
Victor Dlamini is The JRB’s Photo Editor. We feature his work on our Instagram channel. Don’t miss the ten-year retrospective…
[The JRB Daily] Panashe Chigumadzi wins 2018 Brittle Paper Award for Rights of Conquest, Rights of Desire, published in The JRB
The winners of the 2018 Brittle Paper Awards have been announced—including Panashe Chigumadzi, for her essay ‘History Through the Body or Rights…
‘Authors in the West don’t worry about whether Africa will understand them’—Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi discusses Kintu at Wits
Ugandan author Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi visited Wits University in August, for a discussion around her debut novel, Kintu. Kintu Jennifer…
[City Editor] Tanzania and my Vagabond Neurosis—Niq Mhlongo contemplates his irresistible urge to travel
About five months ago a very close friend of mine invited me to his wedding. His big day was Saturday,…
[The JRB Daily] Remembering VS Naipaul in South Africa
VS Naipaul, who died aged eighty-five on Saturday, spent some months in South Africa in 2009, researching his final book….
‘We should wrench the power away from the West and determine our own canon’—Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi talks to CA Davids about her novel Kintu
Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi is in South Africa in August to discuss her lauded debut novel, Kintu. She spoke to CA…
‘Language switching is the norm in Kenya; I just wrote the way we speak’—Makena Onjerika chats to The JRB about her Caine Prize success
2018 Caine Prize for African Writing winner Makena Onjerika chatted to The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec about her plans to…
[City Editor] Borders and books—Niq Mhlongo travels to Nairobi with ninety of his novels
Before I leave Johannesburg for Nairobi, Kenya, my friend and fellow author Zukiswa Wanner warns me not to bring more…
[The JRB Daily] Kenyan writer Makena Onjerika wins the 2018 Caine Prize for African Writing
Kenyan writer Makena Onjerika has won the nineteenth edition of the Caine Prize for African Writing for her short story…
Three new poems by Bethuel Muthee
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents previously unpublished poetry by Bethuel Muthee. ~~~ Movement Home It’s a bold step into…
New short fiction: ‘The Man at the Bridge’ by Kiprop Kimutai, commended by the 2018 Gerald Kraak Award
The JRB is proud to present a new short story by Kiprop Kimutai, ‘The Man at the Bridge’, which was…
Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ’s novel Nairobi Heat is now available in French as Là où meurent les rêves
« Qu’est-ce que ça te fait à toi, l’homme noir d’Amérique, d’être au Kenya ? » Voilà une question qui taraude l’inspecteur Ishmael….
[The JRB Daily] Short Story Day Africa Prize shortlist announced, revealing ‘uncomfortable and fascinating truths about who we are’
The shortlist for the Short Story Day Africa Prize for Short Fiction has been announced. The prize is worth $800…
[The JRB Daily] 2018 Caine Prize for African Writing shortlist announced, showcasing the ‘complexity and diversity of Africa and African lives’
The five-writer shortlist for the 2018 Caine Prize for African Writing has been announced, featuring writers from South Africa, Nigeria…
[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…
[Audio] It’s a writer’s life: That hilarious time Zukiswa Wanner encountered her own book in a Joburg taxi
Zukiswa Wanner launched her latest book, Hardly Working: A Travel Memoir of Sorts, in Johannesburg at African Flavour Books recently, in…