I’d Kill For Some Sleep: Tahar Ben Jelloun’s novel L’insomnie tackles a modern malady
«S’il vous plaît … un petit peu de sommeil … un petit peu de cette douce et agréable absence ……
Category: Fiction
‘From the historical past to the science fictional future’—Namwali Serpell chats to Wamuwi Mbao about her forthcoming debut novel, The Old Drift
Wamuwi Mbao chats to Namwali Serpell about her debut novel, The Old Drift. Namwali Serpell The Old Drift Penguin Random…
‘There is no comfort to be had in fiction. Our history is too raw for that’—Jacob Dlamini reviews Barry Gilder’s ‘brilliant, haunting’ novel The List
The List, the debut novel by former anti-apartheid activist and uMkhonto weSizwe member Barry Gilder, is a meditation about betrayal, faith,…
‘A story that skips along breezily, even as the body count rises’—Jennifer Malec reviews My Sister, the Serial Killer, the debut novel by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Contrary to what the title and pulpy cover seem to suggest, My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite is…
[City Editor] Behind every story, think of the writer—Niq Mhlongo on the new stage adaptation of his short story ‘Nailed’
There’s a film that stands the test of time and still resonates with my friends and me: The Shawshank Redemption….
New short fiction: ‘Loadshedding’ by Michael Yee, winner of the 2018 Short Sharp Stories Award
The JRB presents ‘Loadshedding’ by Michael Yee, the winner of this year’s Short Sharp Stories Award. The Short Sharp Stories…
Véronique Tadjo announced as head judge of the Prix Orange du Livre en Afrique francophone
Ivorian author Véronique Tadjo has been announced as the head judge of the new Prix Orange du Livre en Afrique…
[Conversation Issue] A brief history of the Igbo civilisation, and a love story—Chigozie Obioma chats to Jennifer Malec about his new novel, An Orchestra of Minorities
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec talks to Chigozie Obioma about his forthcoming ‘African cosmological novel’, An Orchestra…
[Conversation Issue] How to protect Africa—Mbali Sikakana decodes Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s visit to the Abantu Book Festival
As part of our January Conversation Issue, Mbali Sikakana contemplates the significance of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s recent discussion with Pumla…
[Conversation Issue] ‘Africa exists in the world, and the world has always been in Africa’—Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu chats to Jennifer Malec about her debut novel, The Theory of Flight
As part of our January Conversation Issue, The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec talks to Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu about her debut novel, The Theory of…
New short fiction: ‘Monkeys’ by Keletso Mopai
The JRB presents a new short story by Keletso Mopai. ~~~ Monkeys Pa is a farmer. He is also a…
New short fiction: ‘Njuzu’ by TL Huchu, excerpted from the Pan-African science fiction anthology AfroSFv3
The JRB presents ‘Njuzu’, a new short story by TL Huchu, excerpted from AfroSFv3. AfroSFv3 Edited by Ivor W Hartmann…
[The JRB Daily] Top 10 of 2018—A look back at our most popular articles of the year
This December marked the twentieth issue of The JRB, and the twelfth of the year. With the festive season reaching…
Justin Cartwright, 1945–2018, RIP
Acclaimed South African novelist Justin Cartwright has died, aged seventy-three. Cartwright passed away on Monday, 3 December, according to The…
[Fiction issue] [The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Ivan Vladislavić’s forthcoming novel, The Distance
The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from The Distance, the forthcoming novel by Ivan Vladislavić. Vladislavić is an award-winning novelist, short story…
[Fiction issue] ‘Paying for Independence’, a new short story by Sisonke Msimang
The JRB is proud to present a new short story by Sisonke Msimang. Msimang is the author of Always Another Country:…
[Fiction issue] [The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Nuruddin Farah’s new novel, North of Dawn
The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from North of Dawn, the forthcoming novel by Nuruddin Farah. North of Dawn Nuruddin…
[Fiction issue] [The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from a work in progress by Achmat Dangor
The JRB presents an excerpt from a work in progress by Achmat Dangor. Dangor, a political activist and award-winning author, is…
[Fiction issue] ‘Man of God’, a new short story by Odafe Atogun
The JRB presents new short fiction by Odafe Atogun. Atogun is the author of the critically acclaimed novels Taduno’s Song…
[Fiction issue] ‘The Story of My Cousin’ by Koos Prinsloo, newly translated by Michiel Heyns
In The JRB Fiction Issue this year, we are delighted to feature two short stories by Koos Prinsloo, published for…
[Fiction issue] ‘The Story of My Father’ by Koos Prinsloo, newly translated by Michiel Heyns
In The JRB Fiction Issue this year, we are delighted to feature two short stories by Koos Prinsloo, published for…
[Fiction issue] ‘Chasing shadows’, a new short story by Palesa Manaleng
The JRB presents the short fiction debut of Palesa ‘Deejay’ Manaleng. ~~~ Chasing shadows It’s raining, the roads are slippery, the…
[Fiction issue] ‘How the War Ended for Jonathan’, a new short story by Byron Loker
The JRB presents new short fiction by Byron Loker. ~~~ How the war ended for Jonathan Jonathan and I became…
[Fiction issue] ‘The History of Emil Coetzee’, an excerpt from a work in progress by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu
The JRB presents an excerpt from a work in progress by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu. Ndlovu is the author of The…
[Fiction issue] Read an excerpt from Kagiso Lesego Molope’s new novel, Such a Lonely, Lovely Road
The JRB is pleased to present an excerpt from Kagiso Lesego Molope’s new novel, Such a Lonely, Lovely Road. Such…
[Fiction issue] [The JRB exclusive] Read an excerpt from Frank Owen’s new post-apocalyptic novel, North
The JRB presents an excerpt from North, the new novel from Frank Owen, the pen name of Diane Awerbuck and…
Ivorian author Armand Gauz wins 2018 Prix-Ivoire for his novel Camarade Papa
Ivorian Armand Gauz has won the 2018 Prix-Ivoire for his sublime historical fiction novel Camarade Papa. The action is set in…
[The JRB Daily] [World Aids Day] Two Koos Prinsloo short stories translated into English for the first time—among the first fictional texts about HIV/Aids in South Africa
In The JRB’s forthcoming Fiction Issue, we will feature two short stories by Koos Prinsloo, published for the first time…
[The JRB Daily] Three African authors up for International Dublin Literary Award—the world’s richest annual literary prize
Three African authors have made the longlist for the International Dublin Literary Award, the world’s most valuable annual literary prize for…
[The JRB Exclusive] An excerpt from Tsitsi Dangarembga’s This Mournable Body, the third in the Tambudzai Trilogy that began with Nervous Conditions
The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from This Mournable Body, the highly anticipated new novel from Tsitsi Dangarembga. Scroll to…
[Temporary Sojourner] Efemia Chela reads Trifonia Melibea Obono’s La Bastarda, the first novel by an Equatoguinean woman to be translated into English
In La Bastarda we find a revolutionary piece of literature, where a young girl isn’t saved by her long-lost father,…
‘Even death dey fear me.’—Read an excerpt from Nnedi Okorafor’s short story ‘Showlogo’, from the new anthology Lagos Noir
The JRB presents an excerpt from a short story by Nnedi Okorafor, taken from the new anthology Lagos Noir. Lagos…
Transforming the real world into something strange—Wamuwi Mbao reviews Sally Rooney’s unusual and evanescent novel Normal People
Sally Rooney reshapes our understanding of the ordinary in a manner that invites us to imagine better ways of being,…
A seminal catalyst of African speculative fiction—Thando Njovane shares three thoughts on Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death
Constructed around a feminist, though dystopian, future, Nnedi Okorafor’s novel Who Fears Death—now reissued some eight years after its first…
What would happen if the super-rich spent all their money? Jennifer Malec reviews Patrick deWitt’s new novel, French Exit
It’s a strange time to be writing a comedy of manners about moneyed New Yorkers, but Patrick deWitt’s French Exit…
Maryse Condé receives The New Academy Prize in Literature, aka the ‘Alternative Nobel’
On 12 October, Maryse Condé was announced as the winner of the New Academy Prize in Literature, an award created…
[The JRB Daily] Anna Burns wins 2018 Man Booker Prize for her ‘utterly distinctive’ novel Milkman
Anna Burns has become the first Northern Irish writer to win the Man Booker Prize. The fifty-six-year-old author won the fiftieth…
Bullets and carnage, infidelity and revenge in occupied Kashmir—Azad Essa reviews Feroz Rather’s The Night of Broken Glass
In his debut work of fiction, The Night of Broken Glass, Feroz Rather masterfully captures the peculiar, punctured lives of…
‘I like writing male characters—I don’t have to get them home safely at the end of the chapter’—An interview with Aminatta Forna
Aminatta Forna sat down with The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec at the Open Book Festival in Cape Town to talk about her new novel,…
Where’s Mzansi noir?—Wamuwi Mbao laments the lack of dark and moody South African television adaptations
Wamuwi Mbao imagines a serial adaptation of Angela Makholwa’s Black Widow Society, a sleekly executed interpretation of HJ Golakai’s The Lazarus…