Category: Fiction

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘The night leaves a lot of room for the imagination’—Read an excerpt from Morabo Morojele’s forthcoming novel, Three Egg Dilemma

Morabo MorojeleLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘The night leaves a lot of room for the imagination’—Read an excerpt from Morabo Morojele’s forthcoming novel, Three Egg Dilemma

The JRB presents an excerpt from Three Egg Dilemma, the forthcoming novel from Morabo Morojele. Three Egg Dilemma,Morabo MorojeleJacana Media,…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘The night leaves a lot of room for the imagination’—Read an excerpt from Po Bhattacharyya’s work in progress, Animal Behavior

Po BhattacharyyaLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘The night leaves a lot of room for the imagination’—Read an excerpt from Po Bhattacharyya’s work in progress, Animal Behavior

The JRB presents an excerpt from Animal Behavior, a work in progress by Po Bhattacharyya. 1. In the beginning, I’m…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘About guilt, if you spoke about guilt, there was no doubt’—Read an excerpt from Imraan Coovadia’s work in progress, An Enemy of the People

Imraan CoovadiaLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘About guilt, if you spoke about guilt, there was no doubt’—Read an excerpt from Imraan Coovadia’s work in progress, An Enemy of the People

The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from An Enemy of the People, a work-in-progress by Imraan Coovadia. So here too…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘No one had told him that the monsters had long since come out of the shadows’—Read an excerpt from Sebastian Murdoch’s work in progress

Sebastian Murdoch1 Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘No one had told him that the monsters had long since come out of the shadows’—Read an excerpt from Sebastian Murdoch’s work in progress

The JRB presents an excerpt from a work-in-progress, Strange Vibrations, by Sebastian Murdoch. An hour later, Billy was back on the…

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Fiction

[Fiction Issue] Read an excerpt from Lidudumalingani’s new short story ‘Everywhere, Nowhere’, excerpted from the new edition of Imbiza

LidudumalinganiLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] Read an excerpt from Lidudumalingani’s new short story ‘Everywhere, Nowhere’, excerpted from the new edition of Imbiza

The JRB presents an excerpt from ‘Everywhere, Nowhere’, new short fiction by Lidudumalingani, excerpted from the new edition of Imbiza…

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Afrikaans

[Fiction Issue] ‘A Boer doesn’t flutter around a cloud of lightning bolts and thundercracks like a moth around a rotten apple’—Read an excerpt from Lodewyk G du Plessis’s debut novel The Dao of Daniel

Lodewyk G du PlessisLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘A Boer doesn’t flutter around a cloud of lightning bolts and thundercracks like a moth around a rotten apple’—Read an excerpt from Lodewyk G du Plessis’s debut novel The Dao of Daniel

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Dao of Daniel by Lodewyk G du Plessis, translated from the Afrikaans by…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘That boy is a snake, I’m telling you … A green snake in green grass’—Read an excerpt from Leye Adenle’s new novel Unfinished Business

Leye AdenleLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘That boy is a snake, I’m telling you … A green snake in green grass’—Read an excerpt from Leye Adenle’s new novel Unfinished Business

The JRB presents an excerpt from Unfinished Business, the new Amaka thriller by Leye Adenle. Unfinished BusinessLeye AdenleCassava Republic Press,…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘There will be time to explore all of this during your stay’—Read an exclusive excerpt from Jarred Thompson’s forthcoming debut novel The Institute for Creative Dying

Jarred ThompsonLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘There will be time to explore all of this during your stay’—Read an exclusive excerpt from Jarred Thompson’s forthcoming debut novel The Institute for Creative Dying

The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from The Institute for Creative Dying, Jarred Thompson’s forthcoming debut novel, which will be…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘A strange guest invited into our house to stay forever’—Read an excerpt from Almini van der Merwe’s forthcoming debut Ghost Limb

Almini van der MerweLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘A strange guest invited into our house to stay forever’—Read an excerpt from Almini van der Merwe’s forthcoming debut Ghost Limb

The JRB presents an exclusive excerpt from Ghost Limb, the debut novel by Almini van der Merwe, which will be…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] ‘We thought she’d welcome us. We thought it was simple’—Read an excerpt from Saleh Addonia’s short story ‘She is Another Country’

Saleh AddoniaLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘We thought she’d welcome us. We thought it was simple’—Read an excerpt from Saleh Addonia’s short story ‘She is Another Country’

The JRB presents an excerpt from ‘She is Another Country’, a short story from The Feeling House, the debut collection…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘What’s Nigeria got to do with us? … They hate us there.’—Read an excerpt from Okechukwu Nzelu’s novel Here Again Now

Okechukwu NzeluLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘What’s Nigeria got to do with us? … They hate us there.’—Read an excerpt from Okechukwu Nzelu’s novel Here Again Now

The JRB presents an excerpt from Here Again Now by Okechukwu Nzelu. Here Again Now Okechukwu NzeluLittle, Brown, 2022 Ekene…

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Africa

[Fiction Issue] Read an excerpt from Victor Forna’s short story ‘They Will Fly with Blooded Wings’, from the Caine Prize anthology A Mind to Silence and Other Stories

Victor FornaLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] Read an excerpt from Victor Forna’s short story ‘They Will Fly with Blooded Wings’, from the Caine Prize anthology A Mind to Silence and Other Stories

The JRB presents an excerpt from Victor Forna’s short story ‘They Will Fly with Blooded Wings’, excerpted from A Mind…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘As if with an invisible thread, they were bound together by their circumstances’—Read an excerpt from Shevlyn Mottai’s debut novel Across the Kala Pani

Shevlyn MottaiLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘As if with an invisible thread, they were bound together by their circumstances’—Read an excerpt from Shevlyn Mottai’s debut novel Across the Kala Pani

The JRB presents an excerpt from Across the Kala Pani, the debut novel by Shevlyn Mottai. Across the Kala PaniShevlyn…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘You’ll appeal more to audiences who’ve never seen people like you’—Read an excerpt from Laila Manack’s debut novel Sisters of the Circus

Laila ManackLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘You’ll appeal more to audiences who’ve never seen people like you’—Read an excerpt from Laila Manack’s debut novel Sisters of the Circus

The JRB presents an excerpt from Sisters of the Circus, the debut novel by Laila Manack. Sisters of the CircusLaila…

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Book excerpts

[Fiction Issue] ‘You need a plan … To lose your temper is to lose the battle’—Read an excerpt from Maggie O’Farrell’s novel The Marriage Portrait

Maggie O'FarrellLeave a Comment on [Fiction Issue] ‘You need a plan … To lose your temper is to lose the battle’—Read an excerpt from Maggie O’Farrell’s novel The Marriage Portrait

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell. The Marriage PortraitMaggie O’FarrellHeadline, 2022 Venison baked in…

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Fiction

One part magical realism, one part crime thriller, one part romance, rendered entirely in patois—Shayera Dark reviews Ayanna Lloyd Banwo’s When We Were Birds

Shayera DarkLeave a Comment on One part magical realism, one part crime thriller, one part romance, rendered entirely in patois—Shayera Dark reviews Ayanna Lloyd Banwo’s When We Were Birds

Ayanna Lloyd Banwo’s debut novel When We Were Birds makes compelling work of how a world in which the living…

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Fiction

‘It is heartening to read introspective characters who don’t believe everything they think is interesting’—Wamuwi Mbao reviews Elif Batuman’s new novel Either/Or

Wamuwi MbaoLeave a Comment on ‘It is heartening to read introspective characters who don’t believe everything they think is interesting’—Wamuwi Mbao reviews Elif Batuman’s new novel Either/Or

Elif Batuman’s Either/Or is a new and worthy entry into the well-populated gallery of erudite books about people learning how…

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Fiction

‘When the Booker longlisting happened, I thought, oh, I’m going to have to start writing again’—Karen Jennings chats to Jennifer Malec about writing, fame and loneliness (Plus: exclusive audio)

Jennifer MalecLeave a Comment on ‘When the Booker longlisting happened, I thought, oh, I’m going to have to start writing again’—Karen Jennings chats to Jennifer Malec about writing, fame and loneliness (Plus: exclusive audio)

Author Karen Jennings was in conversation with The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec at the Origins Centre in Johannesburg recently, as…

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Africa

[The JRB exclusive] ‘Over the months, we found more and more of Wayne’s drawings, those bundles of thin lines on the walls’—Read an excerpt from Namwali Serpell’s new novel The Furrows

The JRBLeave a Comment on [The JRB exclusive] ‘Over the months, we found more and more of Wayne’s drawings, those bundles of thin lines on the walls’—Read an excerpt from Namwali Serpell’s new novel The Furrows

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Furrows: An Elegy, the new novel from award-winning author Namwali Serpell. The FurrowsNamwali…

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Book excerpts

‘I danced a saraband with my parents. Their love dissolved my old fear’—Read an excerpt from Abdourahman A Waberi’s award-winning novel Why Do You Dance When You Walk

The JRBLeave a Comment on ‘I danced a saraband with my parents. Their love dissolved my old fear’—Read an excerpt from Abdourahman A Waberi’s award-winning novel Why Do You Dance When You Walk

The JRB presents an excerpt from Why Do You Dance When You Walk by Djiboutian novelist Abdourahman A Waberi, winner…

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Academic

[The JRB Daily] Shortlists announced for 2022 UJ Prizes for South African Writing in English (Plus: winners of Creative Writing in isiZulu and Sesotho sa Leboa, and Literary Translation)

Jennifer MalecLeave a Comment on [The JRB Daily] Shortlists announced for 2022 UJ Prizes for South African Writing in English (Plus: winners of Creative Writing in isiZulu and Sesotho sa Leboa, and Literary Translation)

The shortlists for the annual University of Johannesburg Prizes for South African Writing in English have been announced. The 2022…

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Fiction

‘What happens when you have a crime committed against a person that never ever comes to an end?’—Margie Orford talks to Jennifer Malec about her new novel The Eye of the Beholder

Jennifer MalecLeave a Comment on ‘What happens when you have a crime committed against a person that never ever comes to an end?’—Margie Orford talks to Jennifer Malec about her new novel The Eye of the Beholder

The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec sat down with Margie Orford to talk about the challenges of writing about sexual violence, the politics…

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Fiction

‘I think that it is important for every woman to claim the “nasty” in her’—Anna Stroud interviews Joy Watson on her debut novel, The Other Me

Anna StroudLeave a Comment on ‘I think that it is important for every woman to claim the “nasty” in her’—Anna Stroud interviews Joy Watson on her debut novel, The Other Me

Anna Stroud chatted to Joy Watson about nasty women, how the markers of identity write themselves into our stories, and…

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Book excerpts

[The JRB exclusive] ‘All an educated African man could be in the City of Kings was a boy’—Read an excerpt from Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu’s new novel The Quality of Mercy

Siphiwe Gloria NdlovuLeave a Comment on [The JRB exclusive] ‘All an educated African man could be in the City of Kings was a boy’—Read an excerpt from Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu’s new novel The Quality of Mercy

The JRB presents an excerpt from The Quality of Mercy, the new novel from award-winning writer Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu. The…