[The JRB Daily] 2022 Sunday Times Literary Awards longlists announced
The longlists for the 2022 Sunday Times Literary Awards have been revealed. The two awards—the Non-fiction Award and the Fiction…
Category: Fiction
[The JRB Daily] ‘Talent that will no doubt take the world by storm’—Ntsika Kota becomes first writer from Eswatini to win global Commonwealth Short Story Prize
Ntsika Kota has been announced as the overall winner of the 2022 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, making history as the…
[The JRB Daily] ‘This is absurd, I don’t win things’—Ruth Ozeki awarded 2022 Women’s Prize for Fiction for The Book of Form and Emptiness
American–Canadian author, filmmaker and Zen Buddhist priest Ruth Ozeki has been announced as the winner of the 2022 Women’s Prize…
[The JRB Daily] 2022 Caine Prize for African Writing shortlist announced—‘a staggering feast’
The shortlist for the 2022 AKO Caine Prize for African Writing, awarded annually for a short story by an African…
[The JRB Daily] ‘A laughing elegy, that retains hope in the face of impending doom’—Geetanjali Shree and Daisy Rockwell win 2022 International Booker Prize for Tomb of Sand
Image: International Booker Prize Tomb of Sand, written by Geetanjali Shree and translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell, has been…
[The JRB Daily] 2022 Commonwealth Short Story Prize regional winners announced—including first-ever win for Eswatini
The regional winners of the 2022 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, known as the ‘world’s most global literary prize’, have been…
[The JRB Daily] ‘There is a myth that there is only one type of storytelling in Africa’—Sarah Isaacs wins inaugural Island Prize for a Debut Novel from Africa
South African writer Sarah Isaacs has won the inaugural Island Prize for a Debut Novel from Africa with her manuscript…
‘Recitatif is cunning in its ability to expose us’—Masiyaleti Mbewe reflects on Toni Morrison’s only short story
To respect this text is to revisit it: Masiyaleti Mbewe reviews the new standalone edition of Toni Morrison’s Recitatif. RecitatifToni…
‘Time moves as slowly as it likes and then faster than you can make sense of’—Wairimũ Murĩithi reviews Okwiri Oduor’s debut novel, Things They Lost
Entering a world the author has long been building, Wairimũ Murĩithi reviews Things They Lost, the debut novel from 2014…
Tales from Mombasa—Carey Baraka speaks to Khadija Abdalla Bajaber about her award-winning debut novel, The House of Rust
Carey Baraka reviews The House of Rust, the latest tale from Mombasa, land of fables, and chats to its author,…
‘My writing comes alive when I have questions, when I don’t know where I’m headed, when I’m in the dark’—Yewande Omotoso chats to Jennifer Malec about her new novel An Unusual Grief
The JRB’s Editor Jennifer Malec chats to Yewande Omotoso about questions, answers, and her new novel, An Unusual Grief. An Unusual GriefYewande OmotosoCassava,…
‘I was constantly weaving fact and fiction, and blurring truth with fable’—CA Davids chats to Efemia Chela about her new novel How to Be a Revolutionary
Contributing Editor Efemia Chela speaks to CA Davids about her new novel, How to Be a Revolutionary. How to Be a RevolutionaryCA…
New short fiction: ‘Home™’ by Eckard Smuts
The JRB presents a new short story by Eckard Smuts. Home™ There it was, suspended like a giant Tinkertoy assemblage in…
Read ‘Garden Made of Water’, new short fiction by Ema Babikwa, from the forthcoming Blood Beats collection Something in the Water
The JRB presents new fiction from Ema Babikwa, from the forthcoming anthology Something in the Water: New Short Fiction from…
‘As a woman, one has to fight’—Read an excerpt from Niq Mhlongo’s new short story collection For You, I’d Steal a Goat
The JRB presents an excerpt from ‘The In-laws’, a short story from Niq Mhlongo’s new collection, For You, I’d Steal…
‘She wonders whether the clothes of our dead look different’—Read an excerpt from Yewande Omotoso’s new novel, An Unusual Grief
The JRB presents an excerpt from An Unusual Grief, the new novel from Yewande Omotoso. An Unusual GriefYewande OmotosoCassava Republic…
[The JRB Daily] ‘Wildly original works of literature that will captivate readers’—2022 International Booker Prize shortlist announced
The six novels shortlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize have been revealed. The International Booker Prize celebrates ‘the finest…
[The JRB Daily] 2022 Humanities and Social Sciences Awards winners announced—‘casting a celebratory light on those whose work often goes unnoticed’
Image: The 2022 HSS Awards winners. Back, from left: Aryan Kaganof, Natalia Molebatsi, Napjadi Letsoalo, Thulasizwe Simpson, Nthikeng Mohlele, Mandla…
[The JRB Daily] ‘You have changed my life!’ Three African writers among the winners of the 2022 Windham–Campbell Prizes
Header image: Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, Tsitsi Dangarembga and Emmanuel Iduma. The winners of the 2022 Windham–Campbell Prizes have been announced, including three…
[The JRB Daily] ‘Tracing a ring around the world’—2022 International Booker Prize longlist announced
The thirteen novels longlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize have been revealed. This year’s longlist includes work translated into…
‘No reprieve from the myriad invisible cuts inflicted by a society hostile to the colour of their skin’—Shayera Dark reviews Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström’s In Every Mirror She’s Black
Shayera Dark reviews In Every Mirror She’s Black by Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström. In Every Mirror She’s BlackLọlá Ákínmádé ÅkerströmHead of Zeus,…
‘It was a book I told friends no one would ever read’—Wamuwi Mbao talks to Jason Mott about his National Book Award-winning novel Hell of a Book
Jason Mott, whose Hell of a Book was awarded the National Book Award for Fiction as well as the Sir…
‘You are simulating what happened to real people and that’s a searing thought’—Joanne Joseph discusses her historical novel, Children of Sugarcane
The JRB’s Editor Jennifer Malec chats to Joanne Joseph about her debut novel, Children of Sugarcane. Children of SugarcaneJoanne JosephJonathan…
New flash fiction: The Burning Fruit by Abbey Khambule
The JRB presents a new short story by Abbey Khambule. The Burning Fruit The family room is wreathed in white…
‘To my mind, the family is the most important political space’—Nozuko Siyotula chats about her debut novel, Christopher
The JRB Editor Jennifer Malec talks to Nozuko Siyotula about her debut novel, Christopher. ChristopherNozuko SiyotulaJacana Media, 2021 Jennifer Malec…
‘The village is cursed. Don’t ever come back here.’—Read an excerpt from Véronique Tadjo’s In the Company of Men
The JRB presents an excerpt from In the Company of Men by Véronique Tadjo, out now in a new edition….
‘Mama never told me she loved me. Mama couldn’t even say happy birthday to me’—Read an excerpt from Lebo Mazibuko’s debut novel, Bantu Knots
The JRB presents an excerpt from Bantu Knots, the debut novel from Lebo Mazibuko. Lebo MazibukoBantu KnotsKwela Books, 2021 Read…
‘If there had been any kings in Rwanda, it was better to forget them’—Read an excerpt from Scholastique Mukasonga’s Our Lady of the Nile
The JRB presents an excerpt from Our Lady of the Nile by Scholastique Mukasonga, out now in a new edition….
‘A dark, vast emptiness within, as boundless as the universe outside’—Read an excerpt from Alistair Mackay’s debut novel It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way
The JRB presents an excerpt from It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way, the debut novel from Alistair Mackay. It…
‘To them, being brown was an asset, not a liability. It meant you could always fit in’—Read an excerpt from Wahala, the new novel by Nikki May
The JRB presents an excerpt from Nikki May’s debut novel, Wahala. WahalaNikki MayPenguin Random House, 2022 Read the excerpt: Boo…
[The JRB Daily] Mary Watson wins 2022 Philida Literary Award for ‘an oeuvre of literary excellence’
Mary Watson has been announced as the winner of the 2022 Philida Literary Award. The prize, established by Karina M…
[JRB Daily] ‘A transformative figure in African literature’—Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o wins PEN/Nabokov Award for Achievement in International Literature
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o has been announced as one of the winners of this year’s PEN America Literary Awards. Ngũgĩ was…
[The JRB Daily] 2022 English Academy of Southern Africa Awards winners announced
The full list of winners of the English Academy of Southern Africa Awards for writing have been announced. Founded in…
[The JRB Daily] Top 10 of 2021—a look back at our most popular articles of the year
With our last issue of 2021, the Fiction Issue, The JRB reached the milestone of publishing our 200th individual contributor….
[Fiction Issue] ‘Archival Technics’, a new short story by Patrick Flanery
The JRB presents a new short story by Patrick Flanery, which is part of a larger work. Archival Technics They say…
[Fiction Issue] ‘A Second Mowing’, a new short story by Simon van Schalkwyk
The JRB presents a new short story by Simon van Schalkwyk. A Second Mowing Alan was the gardener. I found him…
[Fiction Issue] ‘The Capture’, an excerpt from a work in progress by Glenn Diaz
The JRB presents an excerpt from a work in progress by Glenn Diaz. The Capture Sleep was beginning to finally…
[Fiction Issue] ‘The Wood Carving’, a new short story by Kiprop Kimutai
The JRB presents a new short story by Kiprop Kimutai. The Wood Carving On the bus to Donholm, I sat next…
[Fiction Issue] ‘Petite Mort’, a new short story by Zanta Nkumane
The JRB presents a new short story by Zanta Nkumane. Petite Mort. When your father dies on a Friday night,…
[Fiction Issue] ‘Miss Johns’, a new short story by Barbara Boswell
The JRB presents a new short story by Barbara Boswell. Miss Johns The 06:55 train is late again. I groan…