Category: Book excerpts

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘I enjoyed occupying blurred lines. Ambiguity was an unsettling yet exhilarating space.’—Read an excerpt from Zaina Arafat’s debut novel, You Exist Too Much

Zaina ArafatLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘I enjoyed occupying blurred lines. Ambiguity was an unsettling yet exhilarating space.’—Read an excerpt from Zaina Arafat’s debut novel, You Exist Too Much

The JRB presents an excerpt from You Exist Too Much, the debut novel from Zaina Arafat. You Exist Too Much…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘Were there places in the world where neighbours would have greeted us instead of turning away?’—Read an excerpt from Yaa Gyasi’s new novel Transcendent Kingdom

Yaa Gyasi1 Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘Were there places in the world where neighbours would have greeted us instead of turning away?’—Read an excerpt from Yaa Gyasi’s new novel Transcendent Kingdom

The JRB presents an excerpt from Transcendent Kingdom, the new novel by Yaa Gyasi. Transcendent KingdomYaa GyasiViking, 2020 Read the…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘i feel like my heritage is obstinate’—Read an excerpt from Masande Ntshanga’s new book, Native Life in the Third Millennium

Masande NtshangaLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘i feel like my heritage is obstinate’—Read an excerpt from Masande Ntshanga’s new book, Native Life in the Third Millennium

The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from Native Life in the Third Millennium, a limited edition poetry and short story…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘This is my house! I just paid the money. I showed you the receipt.’—Read an excerpt from TJ Benson’s highly anticipated debut novel, The Madhouse

TJ BensonLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘This is my house! I just paid the money. I showed you the receipt.’—Read an excerpt from TJ Benson’s highly anticipated debut novel, The Madhouse

The JRB presents an excerpt from TJ Benson’s forthcoming debut novel, The Madhouse. The Madhouse TJ BensonPenguin Random House South…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘Yho mme we! What am I going to do with you two? You look like a farmer going to his first business meeting.’—Read an excerpt from Angela Makholwa’s Critical But, Stable

Angela MakholwaLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘Yho mme we! What am I going to do with you two? You look like a farmer going to his first business meeting.’—Read an excerpt from Angela Makholwa’s Critical But, Stable

The JRB presents an excerpt from Critical But, Stable, the new novel from Angela Makholwa. Critical But, StableAngela MakholwaPan Macmillan…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘No one knew what to call the place that was halfway between dreams’—Read an excerpt from Abubakar Adam Ibrahim’s book, Dreams and Assorted Nightmares

Abubakar Adam IbrahimLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘No one knew what to call the place that was halfway between dreams’—Read an excerpt from Abubakar Adam Ibrahim’s book, Dreams and Assorted Nightmares

The JRB presents an excerpt from the title story of Dreams and Assorted Nightmares, the new collection by Abubakar Adam…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘Oyinbo pepper, leave the Bush of Ghosts! Muzungu, go back to England!’—Read an excerpt from The Trial of Cecil John Rhodes by Adekeye Adebajo

Adekeye AdebajoLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘Oyinbo pepper, leave the Bush of Ghosts! Muzungu, go back to England!’—Read an excerpt from The Trial of Cecil John Rhodes by Adekeye Adebajo

The JRB presents an excerpt from Adekeye Adebajo’s forthcoming novella, The Trial of Cecil John Rhodes. The Trial of Cecil…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘Like his mother, Emile Oliphant has always collected men.’—Read an excerpt from Lester Walbrugh’s debut short story collection Let It Fall Where It Will

Lester WalbrughLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘Like his mother, Emile Oliphant has always collected men.’—Read an excerpt from Lester Walbrugh’s debut short story collection Let It Fall Where It Will

The JRB presents an excerpt from Let It Fall Where It Will, Lester Walbrugh‘s debut short story collection. Lester WalbrughLet…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘That’s how evenings in Nawa went.’—Read an excerpt from The Ardent Swarm, the English debut from award-winning author Yamen Manai

Yamen ManaiLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘That’s how evenings in Nawa went.’—Read an excerpt from The Ardent Swarm, the English debut from award-winning author Yamen Manai

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Ardent Swarm, the third novel from award-winning Tunisian author Yamen Manai, but the…

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Africa

‘A unique trick of the combination of love and time; the ability to keep one young’—Read an excerpt from Bolu Babalola’s debut collection of short stories, Love in Colour

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘A unique trick of the combination of love and time; the ability to keep one young’—Read an excerpt from Bolu Babalola’s debut collection of short stories, Love in Colour

The JRB presents an excerpt from Love in Colour, the debut collection of short stories by Bolu Babalola Love in…

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Academic

‘Oppression and thwarted aspiration are no bar to an appreciation of nature’—Read an excerpt from Jacob Dlamini’s new book Safari Nation: A Social History of the Kruger National Park

Jacob Dlamini1 Comment on ‘Oppression and thwarted aspiration are no bar to an appreciation of nature’—Read an excerpt from Jacob Dlamini’s new book Safari Nation: A Social History of the Kruger National Park

The JRB presents an excerpt from Safari Nation: A Social History of the Kruger National Park by Jacob Dlamini. Safari Nation:…

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Book excerpts

‘As much as you want to have sex with a stranger, this is mostly research’—Read an excerpt from ‘The Fool’, new writing by Nakhane, from Exhale: Queer African Erotic Fiction

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘As much as you want to have sex with a stranger, this is mostly research’—Read an excerpt from ‘The Fool’, new writing by Nakhane, from Exhale: Queer African Erotic Fiction

The JRB presents an excerpt from ‘The Fool’ by Nakhane, from Exhale, a new anthology of queer writing. Exhale: Queer…

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Book excerpts

‘Sometimes I would think, They had better interrogate me. At least there was contact.’—Read an excerpt from Women in Solitary: Inside the Female Resistance to Apartheid by Shanthini Naidoo

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘Sometimes I would think, They had better interrogate me. At least there was contact.’—Read an excerpt from Women in Solitary: Inside the Female Resistance to Apartheid by Shanthini Naidoo

The JRB presents an excerpt from Shanthini Naidoo’s book Women in Solitary: Inside the Female Resistance to Apartheid. Women in…

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Book excerpts

‘The morning that followed was crisp and clear. The air was sweet as only after slaughter’—Read an excerpt from Shanice Ndlovu’s debut collection of short stories, The Pride of Noonlay

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘The morning that followed was crisp and clear. The air was sweet as only after slaughter’—Read an excerpt from Shanice Ndlovu’s debut collection of short stories, The Pride of Noonlay

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Pride of Noonlay, the debut collection of short stories by Shanice Ndlovu. The…

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Book excerpts

[The JRB exclusive] ‘God withdrew from helping black people nearly thirty years ago’—Read an excerpt from Niq Mhlongo’s forthcoming novel, Paradise in Gaza

Niq Mhlongo1 Comment on [The JRB exclusive] ‘God withdrew from helping black people nearly thirty years ago’—Read an excerpt from Niq Mhlongo’s forthcoming novel, Paradise in Gaza

The JRB presents an excerpt from City Editor Niq Mhlongo’s new novel, Paradise in Gaza, out on 20 October 2020…

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Biography & Memoir

‘The beginning of an adventure’—Read the late George Bizos’s account of his escape from Nazi-occupied Greece as a child, from his memoir Odyssey To Freedom

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘The beginning of an adventure’—Read the late George Bizos’s account of his escape from Nazi-occupied Greece as a child, from his memoir Odyssey To Freedom

The JRB presents an excerpt from Odyssey To Freedom, the memoir of the late George Bizos. Bizos passed away in…

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Academic

‘Lines and images stick in the mind years after they have been heard or read’—Read Ivan Vladislavić’s Introduction to My Mother’s Laughter, a new collection of poems by the late Chris van Wyk

Ivan VladislavićLeave a Comment on ‘Lines and images stick in the mind years after they have been heard or read’—Read Ivan Vladislavić’s Introduction to My Mother’s Laughter, a new collection of poems by the late Chris van Wyk

The JRB presents an excerpt from My Mother’s Laughter: Selected Poems by Chris van Wyk, edited by Ivan Vladislavić and…

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Academic

‘Bessie Head’s work jolted me awake … I had not thought it possible that a black woman could be a writer’—Read an excerpt from Barbara Boswell’s new book, And Wrote My Story Anyway

The JRB1 Comment on ‘Bessie Head’s work jolted me awake … I had not thought it possible that a black woman could be a writer’—Read an excerpt from Barbara Boswell’s new book, And Wrote My Story Anyway

The JRB presents an excerpt from the Author’s Preface of And Wrote My Story Anyway: Black South African Women’s Novels…

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Africa

‘We didn’t fight a revolution to stay inside’—Read an excerpt from Mark Gevisser’s new book The Pink Line: Journeys Across the World’s Queer Frontiers

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘We didn’t fight a revolution to stay inside’—Read an excerpt from Mark Gevisser’s new book The Pink Line: Journeys Across the World’s Queer Frontiers

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Pink Line: Journeys Across the World’s Queer Frontiers, the new book by Mark…

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Academic

‘The idea of literary imagination as a kind of violation’—Imraan Coovadia considers JM Coetzee’s Disgrace, excerpted from his new book Revolution and Non-Violence in Tolstoy, Gandhi, and Mandela

Imraan CoovadiaLeave a Comment on ‘The idea of literary imagination as a kind of violation’—Imraan Coovadia considers JM Coetzee’s Disgrace, excerpted from his new book Revolution and Non-Violence in Tolstoy, Gandhi, and Mandela

The JRB presents an excerpt from Imraan Coovadia’s new book Revolution and Non-Violence in Tolstoy, Gandhi, and Mandela. Revolution and…

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Biography & Memoir

‘The whole wide world could see what South Africa was truly like’—Read an excerpt from Heart of a Strong Woman: A Memoir by Xoliswa Nduneni-Ngema, as told to Fred Khumalo

Fred KhumaloLeave a Comment on ‘The whole wide world could see what South Africa was truly like’—Read an excerpt from Heart of a Strong Woman: A Memoir by Xoliswa Nduneni-Ngema, as told to Fred Khumalo

The JRB presents an excerpt from Heart of a Strong Woman: A Memoir by Xoliswa Nduneni-Ngema, as told to Fred…

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Book excerpts

‘The brown man in a white man’s city who is watching other brown men.’ Read an excerpt from Amnesty, the new novel from Man Booker Prize winner Aravind Adiga

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘The brown man in a white man’s city who is watching other brown men.’ Read an excerpt from Amnesty, the new novel from Man Booker Prize winner Aravind Adiga

The JRB presents an excerpt from Aravind Adiga’s new novel Amnesty, a riveting, suspenseful and exuberant novel about a young…

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Book excerpts

‘Those gold men really think this land belongs to them’—Read an excerpt from How Much of These Hills is Gold, C Pam Zhang’s debut novel, which reimagines the myth of the American West

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘Those gold men really think this land belongs to them’—Read an excerpt from How Much of These Hills is Gold, C Pam Zhang’s debut novel, which reimagines the myth of the American West

The JRB presents an excerpt from How Much of These Hills is Gold by C Pam Zhang, a revisionist immigrant…

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Academic

‘Race matters. It matters because of the meanings we give to it.’ Read an excerpt from Race Otherwise: Forging a New Humanism for South Africa by Zimitri Erasmus

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘Race matters. It matters because of the meanings we give to it.’ Read an excerpt from Race Otherwise: Forging a New Humanism for South Africa by Zimitri Erasmus

This excerpt is based on a chapter from a Zimitri Erasmus’s book Race Otherwise: Forging a New Humanism for South…

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Book excerpts

‘It’s surreal that a coming-of-age story set in Umlazi has found another home in the USA’—International deal for Sifiso Mzobe’s debut novel Young Blood (Plus: Excerpt)

Jennifer MalecLeave a Comment on ‘It’s surreal that a coming-of-age story set in Umlazi has found another home in the USA’—International deal for Sifiso Mzobe’s debut novel Young Blood (Plus: Excerpt)

United States publisher Catalyst Press has acquired the rights to publish Sifiso Mzobe’s award-winning novel Young Blood in North America….

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Africa

[Sampler issue] Read an exclusive excerpt from Alain Mabanckou’s new novel The Death of Comrade President, a tale of family and revolution in postcolonial Congo

The JRBLeave a Comment on [Sampler issue] Read an exclusive excerpt from Alain Mabanckou’s new novel The Death of Comrade President, a tale of family and revolution in postcolonial Congo

The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from The Death of Comrade President, the new novel from Alain Mabanckou. The Death…