Interviews Khadija Abdalla Bajaber’s astonishing debut novel, The House of Rust, winner of the inaugural Graywolf Press Africa Prize, arrived in October as if on a magical wave, imbued with an assortment of creatures—human and animal, real and imagined—that populate the city of Mombasa and its surrounding waters. Aisha, fierce and adventurous, sets off on a boat made of bones in hopes of rescuing her fisherman father who has disappeared at sea. What she encounters on her search—and return home—will enthrall and amaze. “On the surface this is a limpid tale,” writes author A. Igoni Barrett, the prize’s judge, “but it is eddied and enriched by what lurks beneath the surface of both the sea and the prose. Everything in this story sparkles.” I spoke with Bajaber about Mombasa, sea monsters, and Aisha’s journey of self-discovery, among other things. Anderson Tepper: Congratulations, Khadija. I’m curious about the story of your book’s path to publication. Did it change much since being awarded Graywolf’s Africa Prize in 2018? Khadija Abdalla Bajaber: Thank you very much. Well, it definitely changed and grew. When I’d first finished working on the book, it ended at what is now actually the midpoint. I was quite happy with that ending at the time but was already beginning to rethink things. There were subplots I’d set up at the beginning that needed resolving. So then I started developing everything more; and toward the end, when... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2021-11-15 21:42:08 UTC ]
Audible is launching a fiction podcast featuring original short stories from writers including Daisy Johnson, Eimear McBride and Liv Little. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-10 17:17:09 UTC ]
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SAMANTA SCHWEBLIN’S COLLECTION of short stories Mouthful of Birds opens bleakly: When she reaches the road, Felicity understands her fate. He has not waited for her, and, as if the past were a tangible thing, she thinks she can still see the weak reddish glow of the car’s taillights fading on... Continue reading at Los Angeles Review of Books
[ Los Angeles Review of Books | 2019-07-10 17:00:00 UTC ]
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Interviews Shelly Bhoil Tenzin Dickie is a Tibetan writer and translator and editor of The Treasury of Lives, a biographical encyclopedia of Tibet, Inner Asia, and the Himalayan region. Her edited anthology, Old Demons, New Deities: 21 Short Stories from... Continue reading at World Literature Today
[ World Literature Today | 2019-06-25 14:25:59 UTC ]
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At the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Ad Age sat down with some of the brightest minds in advertising and marketing to discuss some of the bravest and most talked about ideas of this year, some of which also scored big Lions last week. One of the most celebrated campaigns... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2019-06-24 17:00:00 UTC ]
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Picador has acquired a collection of short stories from "really exciting talent" Dima Alzayat. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-05-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Not many writers can say they’ve transitioned from love poems to children’s novels about anthropormorphic jazz musicians like “Duck Ellington.” Poet, educator, New York Times bestselling author Kwamé Alexander has done it all. His newest work, “The Undefeated,” is his “love letter to black... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As a recipient of the Arts Connects Us Grant I travelled to Ghana and Sierra Leone to meet with writers and publishing professionals working in the field of books for young readers to foster creative and collaborative exchanges between those contacts and publishing professionals and readers in... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2019-03-19 11:10:28 UTC ]
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You started writing early in your high school days, what were you writing about most back then?I think it is exaggerating to say I started writing at high school. I was already writing, but it was mainly journaling, which was not for public consumption. There was a poem (about a tree in the... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2019-03-15 11:15:36 UTC ]
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Podcasts, writing workshops and a collection of short stories are among the winners of this year’s RSL Literature Matters Awards. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Europa Editions has snapped up the latest collection of short stories by American writer Deborah Eisenberg. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Love is in the air—and all over the children’s picture book list. Plus actor Gary Sinise writes a love letter to the U.S. military, and humorist John Kenney contributes ‘Love Poems for Married People. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Picador has landed a second book of short stories by acclaimed science fiction writer Ted Chiang, Exhalation. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Some writers turn to fiction as a way to escape the nonstop onslaught of (mostly bad) news that Americans are subjected to constantly these days. Karen E. Bender, the novelist and short story writer, is not that kind of writer. Bender’s new short story collection, “The New Order,” takes on a host... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2019-02-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Indonesia is the country of focus at the London Book Fair this year and recently at Frankfurt - to what extent do you think Indonesian literature is finally having it's moment in the spotlight? I cannot say for certain what these one-off ‘spotlights’ on Indonesian literature would mean for... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2019-02-08 10:06:53 UTC ]
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Audible is bringing the novels and short stories of A.S. Byatt to audio for the first time this month. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-02-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Myriad has acquired world rights to Elaine Chiew's debut collection of short stories, The Heartsick Diaspora. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-02-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The shortlist for the 2019 International Prize for Arabic Fiction was announced today at the El-Hakawati Palestinian National Theatre in East Jerusalem. The IPAF - often referred to as the ‘Arabic Booker’ - is an annual literary prize for prose fiction, which encourages the readership of... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2019-02-05 16:33:45 UTC ]
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David Walliams’ next publication, a funny story entitled Fing, "dovetails seamlessly" with his short stories and middle-grade novels, according to his publisher HarperCollins Children’s Books. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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“A love letter to great British literary detectives” by US author Kate Racculia has been bought by HarperFiction. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author of the Oscar-nominated film “45 Years” David Constantine has signed a deal for a collection of short stories, The Dressing-up Box, with Comma Press. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2019-01-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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