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
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.
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
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”
This Week in Literary News: Week of August 1
Happy Women in Translation Month! This month, we’re celebrating with 20% off of Sacrificed (paperback or ebook), the U.S. debut of bestselling Afrikaans author Chanette Paul, translated by Elsa Silke. Read an excerpt of the thriller that the New York Journal of Books says “places Chanette Paul among the classiest thriller writers of our day.” And be sure check out some of our posts from WIT Months past with tips on how you can add more translated literature— especially by women authors— to your bookshelves!
In celebrity author news, Mel Brooks is penning a memoir at 95, our beloved Mother of Dragons Emilia Clarke has a new superhero comic book (sigh…not about dragons), and Abby Wambach recommends three books on sports and leadership. And in South African author news, 38-year-old Karen Jennings is nominated for a Booker for her novel, The Island. This week, she spoke with The Guardian about repeated rejections and writing while poor.
Romance Writers of America is in trouble again, after having awarded their top prize for religious book of the year to a book about a genocidal, misogynistic maniac—and then promptly rescinding it. And just when we thought they were fixing things up over at RWA…
Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of August 1”
This Week in Literary News: Week of June 20
In Catalyst Press news, the winners of this year’s Short Story Day Africa Prize have been announced! We’re thrilled to be releasing Disruption, the newest Short Story Day Africa anthology, to the North American market in September. Disruption features stories from 21 new and emerging authors from across Africa, including the winning short stories of this year’s prize. Pre-orders are available now.
In celebrity book news, beloved British television host Graham Norton has a new memoir, James Patterson and Bill Clinton are back with more tropes, and Jared Kushner and President Joe Biden’s sister both signed book deals (sigh). And most important, Tsitsi Dangarembga became the first Black woman to win the prestigious Peace Prize of the German Book Trade! Go Tsitsi!
A literary heritage project in Australia is trying to save the nation’s books, and five organizations across the United States have started a collective fundraiser in support of Black literary arts. This week commemorates 121 years since the loss of the Hanlin Library (the what, you ask?). And in case you needed another reason to hate Amazon… Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of June 20”
This Week in Literary News: Week of June 6
This week marked the release of our third graphic novel— Madame Livingstone written by Christophe Cassiau-Haurie, illustrated by Barly Baruti, and translated by Ivanka Hahnenberger. You may remember this book from such illustrious appearances as The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and Foreword Reviews This historical tale of friendship and adventure is set in Congo during World War I. Stay tuned for a Q&A with the book’s creators later this month!
Mark your calendars for this great talk: On June 22, NYU’s Center for Black Visual Culture/Institute of African American Affairs presents a conversation with author Kevin Adonis Browne and Temple University Global Studies professor, Harvey R. Neptune on “Carnival and the Poetics of Caribbean Culture”
Over at AfroPop, an exploration of the Cuban intervention in Angola, and “Through music, interviews, and historical radio clips, producer Ned Sublette, author of Cuba and Its Music, tells the story of Cuba’s massive commitment in Africa, from the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and the subsequent independence of Congo, to the end of the Soviet Union in 1991.” Listen to the story here. Continue reading “This Week in Literary News: Week of June 6”
Halley’s Comet
Disruption: New Short Fiction from Africa
Continue reading “Disruption: New Short Fiction from Africa”
Coming in 2021: Madame Livingstone
For the next few weeks, we’ll be spotlighting our upcoming releases for the new year. You’ll learn a bit about our 2021 releases, their authors, and information about pre-ordering.
We’re excited to bring another work in translation to our catalog in 2021. Madame Livingstone: The Great War in the Congo by Christophe Cassiau-Haurie, illustrator Barly Baruti, and translator Ivanka Hahnenberger is a thrilling World War I saga set in, what was then called, the Belgian Congo. We’re thrilled to bring this book to readers in June 2021. Although we’ve definitely gotten into the historical fiction graphic novel game before with our King Shaka series, this release marks our first one for adult readers, and we can’t wait for you to see this gorgeously illustrated, beautifully written, deftly translated book this summer.
Continue reading “Coming in 2021: Madame Livingstone”