The Storymoja Hay Festival is the biggest literary festival in Kenya having happened for the last five years and seeing many thousands of guests. This year’s event the five in the series is a bit special. The 2013 edition of the event was badly affected when terrorists attacked one of Kenya’s best malls at the […]
Book: African Delights Author: Siphiwo Mahala Publisher: Jacana Media Year of publication: 2011 Number of pages: 243 Genre: Short Story Number of stories: 12 Jacana Media-published African Delights is the second book from Pretoria based South African writer Siphiwo Mahala. His first was the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal Press 2007 book When a Man Cries […]
The African Literature Association (ALA) has seen the madness happening in Gaza in the Middle East and decided that enough is enough. The organisation in its most recent ALA Resolutions and Executive Letters supports the Palestinian people who are currently suffering a hail of bombs and other non nice things that kill. The statement, given […]
AC Grayling,, Chair of judges, Man Booker Prize 2014, England Re: Lack of African Authors on Man Booker Prize I am happy to note that you have earlier today announced the Man Booker Prize longlist earlier today and the names on the list are quite impressive and are listed here; Joshua Ferris (US) – To […]
The best thing about being a subscriber to Bookslive.co.za is that you get to follow the African literature scene in a very cool way. The focus is definitely South African but you get something from other parts of this rock we live in. Take for instance today’s announcement of the Best short stories in the […]
Book: Tropical Fish Author: Doreen Baingana Publisher: Oshun Year of publication: 2005 Number of pages: 147 Genre: Short story anthology A few months ago I mentioned that the Miles Moreland Scholars for 2013 Doreen Baingana, Percy Zvomuya and Tony Mochama were in the process of giving us new work in English. With a new call […]
Author: Susan Abulhawa Book: Mornings in Jenin Publisher: Bloomsbery Year of publication: 2010 Number of pages: 322 Susan Abulhawa’s novel Mornings in Jenin is a revelation. The last few days our TV screens have been inundated with images from a little part of the Middle East called the Gaza strip as the seemingly unending battle […]
In spite of the hype accompanying last night’s Caine Prize win for Okwiri Oduor, the reality is that the biggest prize in African literature is actually the one the Nigerians give to their best author. The Nigerian Prize for African Literature sees that one writer going home with US$100,000 rotating yearly amongst four literary genres: […]
The Caine Prize 2014 winner has just been announced in London and the winner this year is Kenyan writer Okwiri Oduor. She becomes the third Kenyan winner of the prize after Binyanvanga Wainaina in 2002 and Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor on 2003. The ceremony with several speeches started with a minute of silence for the just […]
South African Nobel-prize-winning author Nadine Gordimer, one of the literary world’s most powerful voices against apartheid, has died at the age of 90. She was one of three African Nobel prize winners alongside Wole Soyinka who celebrated 80th birthday yesterday and JM Coetzee. She was the only African woman who has gone on to win […]
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