“Through Multiculturalism We Become Better Humans”: A Conversation with Vonani Bila, by Ming Di Interviews [email protected] Thu, 06/13/2024 - 15:21 Vonani Bila with his mother and his son. Courtesy of Mark Waller, 2010.Vonani Bila (b. 1972) grew up in Shirley Village, Limpopo province, South Africa, from where he used to walk fourteen kilometers daily to Lemana High School in Elim. He is a poet, essayist, cultural activist, founding editor of the poetry journal Timbila, publisher of Timbila Books, curator of the Vhembe International Poetry festival, and founder of Timbila Writers’ Village, a rural retreat center for writers. He has been instrumental in promoting marginalized poets and has become an iconic figure among the poets of his generation in South Africa. His poetry continues the tradition of South African resistance poetry of the 1970s and 1980s, blended with postmodernist experiments. He is the author of eight storybooks in English, Northern Sotho, and Xitsonga for newly literate adult readers; two children’s books; co-compiler of a Xitsonga monolingual dictionary with M. M. Marhanele, Tihlùngù ta Rixaka (2016); and is currently a lecturer in English at the University of Limpopo. He holds an MFA in creative writing (cum laude) from Rhodes University and is currently a PhD candidate (creative writing) at Wits University. His poetry books include No Free Sleeping (1998) (with Donald Parenzee and Alan Finlay); In the... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2024-06-13 20:21:36 UTC ]
Everyone peaked too early. You remember. The beginning of lockdown, when suddenly half of your friends were FaceTiming you about Tiger King, or downloading a language app, and so many people ordered yoga mats online that they took an estimated six weeks to be delivered. Now the yoga mat... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2020-05-22 15:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Here are some of the finest poems of remembrance, or about remembrance, which can all be found in the wonderful anthology of remembrance poems, The Nation’s Favourite Poems of Remembrance. Remembrance – whether it’s recalling or remembering a past loved one, or commemorating someone who has... Continue reading at Interesting Literature
[ Interesting Literature | 2020-05-20 14:00:46 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Every year, Girls Write Now provides the opportunity for mentees to be published in a book form; in recent years, the print edition has been produced by Dutton, and the digital edition by the Feminist Press. Taking Our Place in History: The Girls Write Now 2020 Anthology invites you to witness... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-20 08:47:16 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Stephanie Danler’s memoir Stray invites us to look closely at our own life: our family dynamics, our loss, our trauma, and the moments of happiness that still exist within that fragile frame. With deep introspection and stunning prose, Danler tells us about the years she spent after writing her... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2020-05-19 11:00:55 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Claire Adam has scooped the Authors' Club Best First Novel Award for her “outstanding” novel Golden Child (Faber). Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-17 13:26:01 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A group of crime writers have collaborated to produce a short story collection during the UK lockdown, with all proceeds to go to NHS Charities Together. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-16 04:47:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
This year's Wigtown Book Festival will now be held online due to the pandemic, its organisers have confirmed. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-16 02:24:56 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Need an incentive to stay at home during the pandemic? How about a months-long game backlog that includes some classics? Square Enix is happy to oblige. The publisher has released a Square Enix Eidos Anthology on Steam that bundles 54 Eidos games for... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2020-05-11 13:20:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Everyone’s giving away games these days and while Square Enix’s new “Stay Home and Play” bundle isn’t free, it might as well be. The breadth and scope of the deal is pretty amazing: More than 50 games for under $40. That’s less than $1 per game, for those who can’t math.It’s the sort of... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2020-05-08 18:45:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Whether delving into chunky historical narratives or listening to short story podcasts, we’ve all been approaching reading differently during lockdown. Our reading habits can take us back in time, allow us to examine our present, or give us hope for the future. In time for the May bank holiday... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2020-05-07 13:58:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Author Juno Dawson has won the Visionary Honours Book of the Year for Proud, published by Little Tiger Press. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-07 10:59:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this
What would a comics anthology following the progression of vampire lore from the ancient world to modern takes look like? Find out here. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2020-05-06 10:35:39 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Our own Nick Ripatrazone takes a look a new poetry from John Freeman, Rosanna Warren, Juditha Dowd and Kiki Petrosino—plus an anthology edited Leah Silvieus and Lee Herrick. The post Must-Read Poetry: May 2020 appeared first on The Millions. Continue reading at The Millions
[ The Millions | 2020-05-06 10:00:15 UTC ]
More news stories like this
This flat-pack purse is designed to be shipped. Ikea built an empire out of a simple idea: furniture designed in such a way that it could be flat-packed to ease shipping costs and eliminate the need for a delivery truck. Today, that same innovation comes to purses, as the Milan-based bag label... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2020-05-06 09:00:23 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Like moons, Ancient Greece and adolescence, spring has given writers inspiration for centuries. “To what purpose, April, do you return again?” asks Edna St Vincent Millay, noting the “redness / of little leaves” and “the spikes of the crocus”. To Shakespeare, this time of year puts “the spirit... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2020-05-01 14:56:50 UTC ]
More news stories like this
My first novel bombed spectacularly. This was about 20 years ago. Everything went wrong. First my editor quit after which my publishing house kinda-sorta forgot I existed. Orphaned was the word they used. Since nobody gave a damn, I at least got to choose my own book cover. The photograph I... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-27 08:49:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Many lives are radically different right now. But birthdays, anniversaries, and public holidays come and go as before. The pink supermoon would have appeared whether we’d watched it from our windows or outdoors among a crowd of strangers. This week, Earth Day, Shakespeare’s birthday, and World... Continue reading at British Council global
[ British Council global | 2020-04-24 14:34:13 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Recently, I threw out the first 60 pages of the novel I am currently working on. I had been determined to challenge myself by writing in the third person—I had spent the last ten years working on my first novel in the first person and I thought I was ready for something new and difficult. […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-21 08:48:34 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Here’s some news to mix up your quarantine-driven online shopping life: the MoMA Design Store has just released a selection of rare books from its archive, and they’re now on sale at its website. The books include seminal texts like a first edition of William Eggleston’s Guide by John Szarkowski... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2020-04-20 20:00:04 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A group of crime writers are publishing a digital short story anthology to help raise funds for charity Samaritans in the light of the coronavirus crisis. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-20 05:15:57 UTC ]
More news stories like this