Tag: Panel & Page

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Moses, a Zulu baby discovered on a riverbank, and Daniel, the son of white missionaries, are raised as brothers on the Umzinyathi mission in 19th century Zululand, South Africa. As an infant, Daniel narrowly escapes an attack by a rhino and develops an intense corporeal connection to animals which challenges the religious dogma on which he is raised. Despite efforts by his adoptive mother to raise the boys as equals, Moses feels like an outsider to both white and Zulu society, and seeks certainty in astronomy and science. Only through each other do the brothers find a sense of belonging.

Since her mother left, Pearl has spent more and more time in the ocean, fishing to help her father pay the bills. But when she gets mixed up with a group of illegal abalone poachers and starts diving near a restricted wreck, Pearl meets an ancient sea monster named Otto—who isn’t quite as monstrous as she thought. a South African adventure story exploring how we are both bound to and freed by nature, seen through the eyes of a tough teen-aged heroine determined to live life by her own rules.

Happy new year, Catalyst family! After a wonderful holiday season, we are rested and ready for a big year here at the press—with eight (!!) titles in store for you all in 2023. First up are our two January arrivals, Eye Brother Horn and Pearl of the Sea, which you’ll be hearing lots about on our socials leading up to their simultaneous releases on Tuesday, January 31^st. We can’t wait to share these amazing books with you.

Until then, here’s a bit of Catalyst news for you to kick off the year! Our two Panel & Page releases for 2023—Pearl of the Sea and KARIBA—were included on this epic line-up of 2023 African creative projects to look out for from Squid Mag, and our two January releases were also included on this January roundup from the Community of Literary Magazines & Presses. Ameera Patel’s Outside the Lines is the African Book Club’s January book club pick and you can register here for their virtual discussion on January 22^nd, which Ameera will be attending to answer reader questions. And finally, check out Pearl of the Sea co-author Raffaella Delle Donne in conversation with Ayo Oyeku on Muna Kalati!

We love the written word here. I mean, you don’t publish as many books as we have, over as many years, without loving words. But from the very start, we’ve also loved images. Whether they are the whimsical black and white drawings found in books by Niki Daly or Bridget Krone, or the explosion of color in our first graphic novel release, Shaka Rising by Luke Molver, words and images together have also been a vital part of the stories we want to share. With Shaka Rising and its sequel King Shaka, we introduced the world to the African Graphic Novel Series, a collaboration with Jive Media Africa through our joint imprint Story Press Africa.

The Series gave us a way to tell rich, nuanced African histories through the pens and paintbrushes of African creators. We’re so proud of that work. “Wait,” you’re thinking. “Are you not doing graphic novels anymore?” No, nothing like that! The African Graphic Novel Series isn’t going anywhere. We hope that in the future we’ll be able to present more of those stories under that umbrella.

“So what’s this post all about, then?” is probably what you’re asking. Great question! This post is to introduce a sort-of sibling to the African Graphic Novel Series. Say hello to Panel & Page!

The Spark: The “It’s 2023!” Edition

Introducing Panel & Page