In our regular Book Digest segment, we spotlight new books from Remy Ngamije, Mai Sennaar, Liss Kihindou, and Nfol.
Only Stars Know the Meaning of Space: A Literary Mixtape by Remy Ngamije
Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press
Date: December 3, 2024
Genre: Fiction, Short stories
Language: English
Where to find it: Simon and Schuster, Apple Books
Remy Ngamije
Rémy Ngamije is a Rwandan-born Namibian writer and photographer. He won the Africa Regional Prize of the 2021 Commonwealth Short Story Prize and was shortlisted for the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2021 and 2020. He is the founder of the Doek Arts Trust, an arts organization which publishes Doek! Literary Magazine, the country’s first literary magazine which he cofounded and serves as editor-in-chief. His work has been supported by the Civitella Ranieri Foundation and the Miles Morland Foundation and has been featured in literary festivals in Accra, Cape Town, Johannesburg, Nairobi, Berlin, and Basel.
Only Stars Know the Meaning of Space: A Literary Mixtape
Presented as a literary mixtape, Only Stars Know the Meaning of Space is a work of literature that provides you with a modern reading experience. The A-Side, read as one narrative, tells the story of a soon-to-be thirty-year-old aspiring writer navigating a complicated world. The B-Side, taken as a separate experience, features (seemingly) independent and unrelated short stories.
There’s “Crunchy, Green Apples (or, Omo)”, a story about loss told by the strangest of narrative devices: a shopping list. “Sofa, So Good, Sort Of (or, John Muafangejo)” is a first-person account of a family’s history and a long journey towards hope. A group of friends attempts to navigate a recent breakup in “From the Lost City of Hurtlantis to the Streets of Helldorado (or, Franco).”
Kinokia et les Ancêtres by Liss Kihindou
Publisher: Editions L’Harmattan
Date: November 8, 2024
Genre: Fiction, Young Adult
Language: French
Where to find it: Amazon, Editions L’Harmattan
Liss Kihindou
Liss Kihindou , born in Brazzaville, Congo, has published short stories, novels, poetry and essays as well as numerous articles in the print and electronic press. Kinokia et les Ancêtres is her second novel for young people, after Mwanana la petite fille qui parlait aux animaux (English: Mwanana, the Little Girl Who Spoke to Animals) (Jeunesse L’Harmattan, 2016).
Kinokia et les Ancêtres (English: Kinokia and the Ancestors)
In Congo, in the village of Kiyengué, famine has set in. A smell of frying rising from the Yinda family’s hut and a few words are enough to provoke the jealousy of the neighbors. Tâta Yinda is accused of witchcraft. Will Kinokia, his 10-year-old daughter, succeed in saving him?
They Dream In Gold by Mai Sennaar
Publisher: Picador
Date: August 8, 2024
Genre: Fiction
Language: English
Where to find it: Pan Macmillan
Mai Sennaar
Mai Sennaar is a writer, playwright and filmmaker. She lives between Baltimore and Dakar, and she speaks French and Wolof. They Dream in Gold is her debut novel.
They Dream In Gold
When Bonnie meets musician Mansour in 1960s New York City, it is clear that they are meant to be. As they tour the world together, from New York to Paris, to Rio and Swtizerland, it soon seems as though fame and unimaginable riches are only a heartbeat away. But now he is missing, and Bonnie, pregnant with his child, must find him. In Mai Sennaar’s sparkling debut , Bonnie and Mansour’s story takes us across oceans and continents as we chart their once-in-a-lifetime love.
Si j’étais une femme by Nfol
Publisher: Verona Editions
Date: March 1, 2024
Genre: Fiction
Language: French
Where to find it: Verona Editions
Nfol
Nfol is a French author of Cameroonian origin, professor in digital accessibility and entrepreneur. Inspired by his travels and his cultural heritage, he uses writing to build bridges between different perspectives.
Si j’étais une femme (English: If I Were a Woman)
Si j’étais une femme tells the story of Elijah, a young man recruited by Aequitas, a company created, managed and composed exclusively of women. His arrival in the company will create change. The different encounters he will have will change his vision of society, love, sexuality, women, men, but also of himself. Faced with daily discrimination, his certainties waver as he discovers the other side of the mirror and explores the complexities of power relations. This introspective journey becomes a universal reflection on justice, equality and our common humanity.
With this novel, Nfol challenges certainties and invites us to rethink our vision of the world. At the crossroads of social reflection and personal quest, If I Were a Woman does not leave you indifferent. It encourages you to think, to see differently, to feel differently.
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