This Week in Literary News: Week of October 31

On November 6, The Theory of Flight author Siphiwe Ndlovu will be in conversation with Cosmogramma author Courttia Newland and moderator Sean Jacobs, editor and founder of Africa is a Country. Here’s the registration info.

The two team up again for Radical Books Collective’s “Beyond Wakanda! Celebrating New African Speculative Fiction” day on November 12 from 11am-2pm EST (5pm-8pm in SA)

 

African literature has been in the spotlight a lot lately. Abdulrazak Gurnah was awarded the Nobel Prize; Tsitsi Dangarembga was awarded the 2021 German Peace Prize; Senegalese novelist Boubacar Boris Diop has been named the winner of the 2022 Neustadt International Prize for Literature; fellow Senegalese author Mohamed Mbougar Sarr has won the Prix Goncourt, becoming the “first writer from sub-Saharan Africa to be awarded France’s oldest and most prestigious literary prize.”; and South African novelist and playwright Damon Galgut has won the Booker Prize. Congrats to all!  Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of October 31”

This Week in Literary News: Week of October 24

First up, some Catalyst news! We’ve got some great upcoming events for you to join this November:

We Kiss Them with Rain author Futhi Ntshingila and Bom Boy author Yewande Omotoso are participating in the 2021 Open Book Festival’s podcast series, running from November 8-24, and on November 6 at 2pm EST (8pm South Africa), The Theory of Flight author Siphiwe Ndlovu will be in conversation with Cosmogramma author Courttia Newland and moderator Sean Jacobs, hosted by WORD Bookstore in Brooklyn! Here’s the registration info.

Can’t get enough Siphiwe and Courttia? Us either! Check out The Radical Books Collective’s “Beyond Wakanda! Celebrating New African Speculative Fiction” day on November 12 from 11am-2pm EST (5pm-8pm in SA), which features another conversation between Siphiwe and Courttia, moderated by Lizzy Attree.

To celebrate these two awesome events, take 15% off of The Theory of Flight when you order from our site, this month only! Use code RADICAL at checkout. And speaking of Courttia, we spotted him on Electric Lit this week! Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of October 24”

What’s New in 2022

Fall is in the air here (translation: I’m already cold). As the calendar pages start falling away on 2021, we thought it’d be a good time to give you all a little sneak peek at our upcoming titles— many of which are available for pre-order.

We’re excited to add more books from one of our favorite children’s authors, Niki Daly, our very first young adult book in translation, and a new addition to our growing list of graphic novels. In addition to those, we think there’s something for just about every kind of reader in our 2022 catalog. Continue reading “What’s New in 2022”

This Week in Literary News: Week of September 12

The Theory of Flight

In the upcoming months, you’re going to have a lot of opportunities to see Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu in person, well, virtually in-person. On September 25, the Theory of Flight author visits the Harare Book Club, and on October 3, she heads to the Brooklyn Book Fair. Visit our event calendar to find out more, and stay tuned for more events! The Theory of Flight is out now, and her follow-up The History of Man is out in January.

One school district doesn’t quite get the spirit of Banned Books Week. Students at a a Pennsylvania school are protesting “after their school board’s conversation about a proposed diversity curriculum turned into a list of banned books,” LitHub reports. The books are all written by authors of color and/or feature characters of color, which the school board insists in just a coincidence. Also a coincidence: this link to Banned Books Week, which highlights the “shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.” Banned Book Week runs from September 26 – October 2. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of September 12”

It’s National Translation Month!

September is National Translation Month, an annual celebration of translated literature. Now in its ninth year, this annual celebration encourages readers to learn more about and read global literature in translation from authors, both past, and present. This month, we’re celebrating by offering 20% off on all of our translated titles when you buy from our online store (current releases only. Not applicable to pre-orders). Keep reading to learn more about these books, authors and translators! Plus, learn about one of our forthcoming translated books for YA readers. Continue reading “It’s National Translation Month!”

This Week in Literary News: Week of August 29

DISRUPTION

Let’s start off with some exciting Catalyst news. Visit LitHub to read an excerpt from our forthcoming release, Disruption: New Short Fiction from Africa. Disruption is the newest  Short Story Day Africa anthology, and features 21 new and emerging authors from across Africa. It releases September 7, and you can learn more about the collection here.

How much do you love that Bobby Byrd (our friend and Cinco Puntos press co-founder) was included in this list of books on Sandra Cisneros’ nightstand? Speaking of Cinco Puntos, read this lovely article on the press, and its impact on the publishing world. This summer, CInco Puntos announced that it was being acquired by Lee and Low.

“I felt more disconnected, displaced and determined to understand and document this history for myself and other indigenous South African groups that have been scattered across the region because of colonialism.” Over at gal-dem, Nomqhele Beauty Dhlamini writes about the Xhosa people of Zimbabwe, and discovering a part of her heritage. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of August 29”

This Week in Literary News: Week of August 22

The book world lost some greats this week, including Leon F. Litwack (a Pulitzer Prize winning U.S. slavery and segregation historian), Eloise Greenfield (a lifelong activist for African American representation in children’s literature), Stephen Oates (author of many bestselling biographies on American Civil War-era leaders), James Loewen (a renowned educator and racial justice activist who wrote the bestselling book Lies My Teacher Told Me), and Jill Murphy (beloved children’s book author and creator of The Worst Witch).

In industry news, PRH’s Penguin Classics imprint has launched its Green Ideas series, with 20 short books about the environment written by activists like Wangari Maathai, Jared Diamond, Rachel Carson, Greta Thunberg, and more, and McNally Jackson is launching McNally Editions, a paperback reprint series for overlooked classics and hidden gems.

Bom Boy

In Catalyst news, two of our authors are making some great appearances elsewhere. Barbara Boswell, author of Unmaking Grace, has a new essay in Brittle Paper. And also in Brittle Paper, a great review of Surfacing: On Being Black and Feminist in South Africa, an anthology (published by Wits University Press) edited by Desiree Lewis and Gabeba Baderoon, which features essays by Barbara and Yewande Omotoso, author of Bom Boy. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of August 22”

This Week in Literary News: Week of August 8

Divine Justice

In Catalyst news this week, Joanne Hichens’ thriller, Divine Justice was included in Amplitude Magazine’s roundup of books featuring amputees. Amplitude Magazine is a publication “for amputees who want to live more fully.”

“It is in the act of remembrance and re-evaluation of such music that a fuller appreciation of the hidden spaces in this country’s struggle heritage come to light. There is deep history to be excavated. Each in their own way, these albums are psalm songs of the South African jazz holy grail.” Liam Brickhill in Africa is a Country on two recently reissued albums from Matsuli Music, a label focused on South African rarities and jazz classics.

“In the early days of the Cold War, the CIA launched journals, concerts, and co-opted high-profile African-American NGOs.” Head to CrimeReads, to read an excerpt from Susan Williams’ book White Malice: The CIA and the Covert Recolonization of Africa. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of August 8”