Afro-Arab Fiction in Translation: 5 Must Read Novels from 2015 and 5 to Look Forward to in 2016

February 22, 2016

 By M. Lynx Qualey Arabic literature is often seen as something that belongs to the “Middle East,” not to Africa. This sharp distinction is not just a recent invention, but an impoverishing one, and one that novelists have continually subverted. Sudanese writers like Hammour Ziada (Longing of the Dervish) or Amir Tag El-Sir (French Perfume, … More Afro-Arab Fiction in Translation: 5 Must Read Novels from 2015 and 5 to Look Forward to in 2016

Is there a connection between contemporary Caribbean and African literature?

February 15, 2016

By Alexis Teyie In October last year, Marlon James won the Man Booker Prize for his novel, A Brief History of Seven Killings. He is the first Jamaican-born author to win “Britain’s most prestigious literary award.” Earlier in 2015, Zambian writer, Namwali Serpell, won the Caine Prize – described as Africa’s leading literary award – … More Is there a connection between contemporary Caribbean and African literature?

Required Reading: Reflections on Lawino’s Ocol 50 Years Later

February 8, 2016

By Gloria Kiconco When Lawino abuses Ocol, my ears burn and I hope her discerning eyes cannot see through the thin sheet of education I cover myself with. Her attacks in verse chronicle my one-sided romance with whiteness. Her buzzing anger is what I swallow whenever my head cranes to see which fair-skinned face has … More Required Reading: Reflections on Lawino’s Ocol 50 Years Later