‘In looking behind us the way forward may become clear’—Perfect Hlongwane reviews The Land Is Ours by Tembeka Ngcukaitobi
The Land is Ours is Tembeka Ngcukaitobi’s first book, and it must not be his last, writes Perfect Hlongwane. The…
Category: South Africa
‘What does the K in your name stand for?’ Read an excerpt from Nthikeng Mohlele’s new novel, Michael K
The JRB is proud to present an exclusive excerpt from Nthikeng Mohlele’s new novel, Michael K. Michael K Nthikeng Mohlele Picador…
[City Editor] ‘I try to appreciate township solidarity without romanticising it’: Niq Mhlongo chats to Jennifer Malec about Soweto, Under the Apricot Tree
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec chatted to City Editor Niq Mhlongo about the banning of Inxeba, writing to music, and his brand…
New short fiction: ‘Intimates’ by Mbali Sikakana
The JRB presents a new short story by Mbali Sikakana. Intimates One day she takes a plane to a small…
[Photo Editor] Original portraits of Perfect Hlongwane and Yewande Omotoso 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…
‘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…
‘Spending time with Bra Willie is the closest thing to being in touch with the soul of this country’: Read Mandla Langa’s Introduction to Keorapetse Kgositsile’s Homesoil in My Blood
Homesoil in My Blood: A Trilogy Keorapetse Kgositsile Xarra Books, 2018 Exclusive to The JRB, we present author Mandla Langa’s…
Is Cyril Ramaphosa the man to lead South Africa out of its political and economic crisis? Read an excerpt from Ramaphosa: The Man Who Would Be King by Ray Hartley
The JRB presents an excerpt from Ramaphosa: The Man Who Would Be King by Ray Hartley. Ramaphosa: The Man Who…
[The JRB Daily] Wamuwi Mbao: No, the award-winning film Inxeba isn’t a disrespectful gay sex romp
Image: A scene from ‘Inxeba’. Supplied Wamuwi Mbao, Stellenbosch University Why has a film that holds important lessons for South Africans…
[The JRB Daily] 2017 Africa Centre Artists In Residency shortlists announced
The Africa Centre has announced the shortlists for the 2017 Artists In Residency programmes, including The JRB Contributing Editor Efemia Chela. The…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 2, Issue 2 (February 2018)
Welcome to the second issue of Volume 2 of The Johannesburg Review of Books. This month, we are excited and…
[City Editor] Read an exclusive excerpt from Niq Mhlongo’s forthcoming book: Soweto, Under the Apricot Tree
The JRB is proud to present new fiction from our City Editor, Niq Mhlongo, from his forthcoming short story collection,…
JM Coetzee is tired: Wamuwi Mbao reports from the ‘Photographs from Boyhood’ exhibition in Cape Town
An exhibition of JM Coetzee’s newly discovered childhood photography was recently held in Cape Town. Wamuwi Mbao was there. With…
‘I started writing the book in a fit of anger with Fees Must Fall activists’—Rehana Rossouw chats to Jennifer Malec about New Times
Rehana Rossouw’s critically acclaimed debut novel, What Will People Say?, was shortlisted for the 2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature, and won…
[Photo Editor] Original portraits: Victor Dlamini’s tribute in pictures to Hugh Masekela, the magician
Victor Dlamini is The JRB’s Photo Editor. We feature his work on our Instagram channel. Don’t miss the ten-year retrospective…
‘These were not men fighting, but corpses’—Read an excerpt from Marcus Low’s Asylum
Read an excerpt from Marcus Low’s debut novel Asylum—an existential thriller set in a quarantine facility in the arid Karoo—which…
New short fiction: ‘The day the white people walked into the sea’ by Stacy Hardy
The JRB presents a new short story by Stacy Hardy. The day the white people walked into the sea As…
Three poems by Shailja Patel
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents three poems by Shailja Patel. Syllabus Note O leftist men who heart critiques of Hillary and…
A flawed take on immigration and the rise of the right: Lebohang Mojapelo reviews Sasha Polakow-Suransky’s Go Back to Where You Came From
Fear of a black planet, rather than ‘economic anxiety’, gnaws at the West’s hallowed liberal democratic principles, writes Lebohang Mojapelo….
Letter: Translating Augustine—Sarah Ruden responds to David van Schoor
Sarah Ruden responds to David van Schoor’s letter, published in our January issue, addressing Ruden’s response to Van Schuur’s review…
[The JRB Daily] 2018 9mobile Prize for Literature shortlist announced
The shortlist for the 2018 9mobile Prize for Literature (formerly the Etisalat Prize for Literature) has been announced. The award…
[The JRB Daily] The early years: Read an excerpt from Hugh Ramapolo Masekela’s autobiography, Still Grazing
Hugh Ramapolo Masekela died in Johannesburg today, at the age of seventy-eight, after a long battle with prostate cancer. The…
Hugh Ramapolo Masekela, legendary jazz musician, RIP
Hugh Ramapolo Masekela, one of South Africa’s most celebrated and pioneering musicians, has died in Johannesburg. Masekela had been fighting…
[The JRB Daily] [Photo Editor] Listen to Victor Dlamini’s 2007 interview with Mmatshilo Motsei on her book The Kanga and the Kangaroo Court
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB published an essay titled ‘Kanga and Khwezi: Kwezilomso Mbandazayo challenges the…
The Johannesburg Review of Books Vol. 2, Issue 1 (January 2018, The Conversation Issue)
Welcome to the first issue of Volume 2 of The Johannesburg Review of Books. This month we said goodbye to Keorapetse…
[Conversation Issue] ‘The family is a great convenience for a writer’—Jonathan Franzen talks to Ben Williams in South Africa
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Ben Williams talks to Jonathan Franzen. Purity Jonathan Franzen Fourth Estate, 2016 American…
[Conversation Issue] Kanga and Khwezi: Kwezilomso Mbandazayo challenges the memorialisation of Fezekile Ntsukela Kuzwayo
Kwezilomso Mbandazayo, known as the womxn who loaned her name to Khwezi, Jacob Zuma’s rape accuser, offers a personal reflection…
[Conversation Issue] ‘We bury our stories and wonder why we are in so much pain’—Mohale Mashigo talks to Jennifer Malec about The Yearning
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Mohale Mashigo chats to The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec. The Yearning Mohale Mashigo…
[Conversation Issue] ‘I’ve become emboldened and do not give a shit anymore’—Award-winning author of Penumbra Songeziwe Mahlangu talks to Mbali Sikakana
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Mbali Sikakana interviews award-winning author Songeziwe Mahlangu. Penumbra Songeziwe Mahlangu Kwela Books, 2013…
[Conversation Issue] ‘Lagos is home, the place where I don’t have to explain myself’—Chibundu Onuzo chats to Wamuwi Mbao about Welcome to Lagos
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Wamuwi Mbao chats to Chibundu Onuzo. Welcome to Lagos Chibundu Onuzo Faber and…
Two poems by Angifi Dladla
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents two poems by Angifi Dladla. PHRRR You flew away, never bothered; I dove and…
[Conversation Issue] Found poems by Makhosazana Xaba, from Mohale Mashigo’s novel The Yearning
As part of our January Conversation Issue, we present new found poetry by The JRB Patron Makhosazana Xaba, a creative…
[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…
New short fiction: Fred Khumalo’s debut isiZulu short story ‘Kwakungcono eGibhithe’, from the anthology Izinkanyezi Ezintsha
The JRB presents new fiction from novelist and memoirist Fred Khumalo. This a first for both The JRB and Khumalo:…
[In Memoriam] [Photo Editor] A selection of Victor Dlamini’s portraits of Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile
The JRB presents Victor Dlamini’s literary portraits of Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile. South Africa’s National Poet Laureate, Keorapetse Kgositsile, passed…
[In Memoriam] Elinor Sisulu remembers Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile (including tributes from Njabulo Ndebele, Fred Khumalo and Sandile Memela)
Elinor Sisulu shared this tribute to South Africa’s Poet Laureate Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile, who died on the third of…
[In Memoriam] [Photo Editor] Listen to Victor Dlamini’s 2008 interview with Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile
The JRB Photo Editor Victor Dlamini interviewed South African Poet Laureate Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile back in 2008. Listen to the…
[In Memoriam] Watch a video of Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile on the importance of platforms for African literature
The Johannesburg Review of Books presents footage in memoriam of South Africa’s National Poet Laureate, Keorapetse Kgositsile, who passed away…
[In Memoriam] Nthikeng Mohlele remembers Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile
Nthikeng Mohlele honours South African National Poet Laureate Keorapetse ‘Bra Willie’ Kgositsile, who passed away in January. A Person of…
Letter: David van Schoor responds to Sarah Ruden
David van Schoor responds to Sarah Ruden’s letter, published in our December issue, addressing Van Schoor’s review of her translation…