A giant of African literature whose best works existed between the political and the personal, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o was warm, funny and friendly – and liked to bet on my pool gamesAmong the African writers who emerged in the middle of the 20th century, the most political undoubtedly was Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. Born in Kenya while it was still under British rule he was anti-colonialist, a communist, anti-dictatorial, and an almost militant proponent for African languages being used for African literature.His best works exist at the interface between the political and the personal. His first book of essays, Homecoming, is at once engaging and polemical. His early novels Weep Not, Child and A Grain of Wheat look at the impact of colonialism and the Mau Mau rebellion on individual lives. He was strangely at his best with the personal and the intimate, but his reputation grew more from his political stances – first against the British government, then against the dictatorship in Kenya in the 70s. He was jailed not for a thundering political text but for a play in Kikuyu called I Will Marry When I Want. In prison he wrote his memoir on toilet paper. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2025-05-30 16:36:34 UTC ]
Headline has landed Sex Bomb, a "hilarious, compelling and conversation-starting" memoir from stand-up comedian, podcast host and writer Sadia Azmat. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-05-24 11:30:11 UTC ]
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Katherine Johnson’s work as a NASA mathematician was essential during the space race, if underappreciated. A new memoir sheds light on her story. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2021-05-21 15:20:36 UTC ]
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Randa Jarrar’s memoir Love Is An Ex-Country focuses predominantly on the years leading to the 2016 election, a period, which, like now, was characterized by heightened Islamophobia, misogyny, homophobia, anti-immigrant sentiment, and racism. Jarrar embarks on a road trip inspired by Tahia... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2021-05-21 11:00:43 UTC ]
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Actress Miriam Margolyes’ memoir of "extraordinary adventure" will be published by John Murray in September. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-05-19 23:43:16 UTC ]
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'WAKE: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts' by Rebecca Hall and Hugo Martinez is a riveting combination of memoir and inspirational scholarship. In this eight-page excerpt Hall's efforts to research a slave revolt in 1712 mark the first steps of a quest that will take her to 18th... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-05-19 04:00:00 UTC ]
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'We are proud to stand with our author,' said the head of Portfolio Books, promising that the memoir 'Flamin' Hot' will still be released June 15. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2021-05-19 00:04:48 UTC ]
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Air Miles has been illustrated by his wife Helen Oxenbury and finished by Bill Salaman, friend of the author who died in 2019The final picture book from the late, much-loved children’s author John Burningham – in which “difficult dog” Miles goes on one final journey – has been completed by his... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2021-05-15 06:00:18 UTC ]
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The pop star seems to have entered her memoir era at 19. Her new book, "Billie Eilish," uses photos and spare captions to document her life for fans. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2021-05-11 12:00:32 UTC ]
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Bonnier Books UK has bought comedian Josh Widdicombe’s first book, billed as part-childhood memoir, part-comic history of 1990s television and culture. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-05-07 23:03:11 UTC ]
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Forty years ago, IBM researcher Charlie Bennett helped usher in the study of quantum mechanics’ impact on computing. IBM is still at it—and so is Bennett. In May 1981, at a conference center housed in a chateau-style mansion outside Boston, a few dozen physicists and computer scientists gathered... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2021-05-07 08:00:30 UTC ]
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Verso has acquired Becoming Abolitionists: Police, Protests and the Pursuit of Freedom, a memoir by Derecka Purnell. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-05-05 20:05:47 UTC ]
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Williams Collins has pre-empted a memoir by political columnist and commentator Daniel Finkelstein uncovering his family’s devastating experiences of persecution during the Second World War. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-05-05 16:01:10 UTC ]
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A contributing editor for British Vogue, Paris Lees made her name as the UKs first high-profile transgender woman to break into the mainstream when she was named top of the Pink List of the most influential LGBT people in Britain, and became the first “out” transgender woman to appear on BBC... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-05-01 02:56:30 UTC ]
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Headline Publishing Group will publish The Queen Bee, the first memoir from Grammy-award winning rapper Lil’ Kim. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2021-04-29 09:26:52 UTC ]
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“Collision of Power” will be part memoir and part investigation into what’s ahead for the free press. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2021-04-28 16:45:36 UTC ]
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"Philip Roth: The Biography" and the memoir "The Splendid Things We Planned" are axed as Blake Bailey's publisher plans to donate to charities. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2021-04-27 21:01:25 UTC ]
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W.W Norton announced that it will cease publication of the newly released edition of Blake Bailey’s 'Philip Roth: The Biography,' as well as Bailey’s 2014 memoir 'The Splendid Things We Planned,' and take both works out of print. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2021-04-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
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She was a respected translator from French and a writer on astrology, but her magnum opus was a memoir of her time with Kerouac and the Beats. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-04-26 17:55:15 UTC ]
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“Second Place” borrows its story line from a 1930s-era memoir about D.H. Lawrence, but its themes are quintessential Cusk. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2021-04-26 17:28:26 UTC ]
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In an excerpt from her memoir Negative Space, Lilly Dancyger writes about moving back to New York City as a teenager and grappling with her father's death. Continue reading at Guernica
[ Guernica | 2021-04-26 13:00:05 UTC ]
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