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The Notable African Books of 2019
A Particular Kind of Black Man
Fiction
August 6, 2019 | 272 pages
Simon and Schuster
This book will undo you; if not for the story about a Nigerian boy and his fight against American racism, for the right to exist and be seen, then for Tope Folarin’s magical prose—intimate, measured, and a mixture of poetry, liturgy, and prayer.
Adèle
Fiction
January 15, 2019 | 235 pages
Penguin Books
After The Perfect Nanny, Franco-Moroccan writer Leila Slimani returns with another thriller exploring the dark side of domestic life through the experiences of women who resist cultural expectations. In this novel, the eponymous character weaves an elaborate web of deceit to conceal her life as serial adulterer.
An Orchestra of Minorities by Chigozie Obioma
Fiction
January 3, 2019 | 464 pages
Little Brown and Company
Chigozie Obioma tops the breakout success of The Fisherman with this novel about a poultry farmer who falls in love with a woman he saves from jumping off a bridge. The ensuing love story spirals into a set of messy life decisions that take the characters on a breathtaking odyssey.
Beneath the Tamarind Tree
Nonfiction
July 9, 2019 | 400 pages
Dey Street Books
A CNN correspondent at the time, Isha Sesay was on the frontlines of the media wave around the kidnap of school girls in Chibok, Nigeria. With this book, she revisits the event in order to unearth intimate stories about loss but also of courage.
Better Never Than Late
Fiction
September 24, 2019 | 144 pages
Cassava Republic
Better Never Than Late is a collection of stories loosely connected by Prosperous and Agu, a couple whose home in Belgium is a gathering place for African visitors in their wanderings through Europe. Chika Unigwe captures the complexes of desire, loss, and longing that define the life of the immigrant.
Bird Summons
Fiction
February 6, 2019 | 320 pages
Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Leila Aboulela takes a break from short stories to write this gorgeous novel about three friends who encounter a mythical creature. Magic and folklore provide the narrative raw materials for a novel that explores questions of faith, femininity, and love through powerful representations of women’s lives.
Black Leopard Red Wolf
Fiction-Novel
February 5, 2019 | 637 pages
Riverhead Books
The Palmwine Drinkard-meet-Lord of the Rings is one way to capture the epic beauty of this adventure tale. Marlon James constructs a stunning medieval African world peopled with characters so enigmatic and textured they will undo everything you think you know about storytelling. BLRW is pure magic.
Black Tax: Burden or Ubuntu?
Nonfiction
September 10, 2019 | 272 pages
Jonathan Ball
Black Southern African families inspire this insightful collection exploring the intersection between domestic life and economic realities. Black tax is an economic system based on a culture of filial responsibility. The collection dissects this cultural phenomenon and its impact in south African life.
Broken Places and Outer Spaces
Fiction
June 18, 2019 | 112 pages
TED Books
After publishing 14 books in 14 years, Nnedi Okorafor takes the reader behind the scenes of her creative success to reveal the powerful experience of "breaking" and becoming. In her debut memoir and her 15th book, she talks about her paralysis, subsequent recovery, and the decision to become a writer. Inspiring!
Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi
Fiction
December 3, 2019 | 416 pages
Henry Holt and Co.
The second installment in Tomi Adeyemi’s Orisha trilogy is a bold adventure spiked with political intrigue and feminist ideals. Magic is back in the land of Orisha, thanks to Zelie and Amari’s fight against a villainous prince. Book two has the duo going head to head with the angry and bereaved king.
David Mogo, Godhunter
Fiction
July 9, 2019 | 360 pages
Abaddon
Writers like Suyi Davies Okungbowa are boldly experimenting with storytelling, and the results are often stunning. David Mogo God Hunter is a delightful, fast-paced story set in a fantastical world built around Yoruba deities.
Do Not Say It’s Not Your Country
Fiction
March 1, 2019 | 256 pages
Griots Lounge Publishing
Nnamdi Ogwuike channels Uwem Akpan’s Say You Are One of Them in this ambitious collection of 10 stories set in various African countries. From a Madagascan slum story to a Sierra Leonian love story, the collection captures the myriad worlds that give the African continent its distinct cultural shape.
Don’t Whisper Too Much
Fiction
March 1, 2019 | 195 pages
Bucknell University Press
Frieda Ekotto’s fiction opens up new grounds in African queer writing. She was one of the first to write fiction with humanizing representations of the lives of francophone African women loving women. This translation of two of her novellas is a gift to Anglophone readers.
Gingerbread
Fiction
May 5, 2019 | 272 pages
Riverhead Books
Oyeyemi is revered for her beautifully bizarre stories. Recycling bits of European folktales, she tells the story of a gingerbread recipe that mysteriously links present day London and the imaginary country of Druhástrana. Fans of Mr. Fox and Boy, Snow, Bird are in for a treat.
Girl, Woman, Other
Fiction
November 5, 2019 | 464 pages
Black Cat | Grove Press
A history-making book, Girl, Woman, Other won Bernadine Evaristo the coveted Booker Prize, making her the first black woman to do so. Dripping with poetry and experimental flair, the novel presents a series of portraits that reflect the textured lives of black women in Britain.
I’m Telling The Truth But I’m Lying
Nonfiction
August 20, 2019 | 272 pages
Harper Perennial
Bassey Ikpi’s memoir is an intimate look at mental health. Building on her struggle with bipolar disorder, she gives a moving account of the effects of mental illness on childhood, family, career, and community. Powerful storytelling, brilliant prose, and raw honesty make this book emotionally impactful.
In Search of Equilibrium
Poetry
February 28, 2019 | 80 pages
Nine Arches Press
British-Nigerian poet Theresa Lola takes readers on a journey through the maddening pain of grief. Where does the heart find wholeness after the undoing of bereavement? Can faith be a source of healing? Lola is a philosopher of the heart. Her writing is airy and sparkles with a light experimental touch.
Karmzah: The Unleashing
Fiction - Comic
February 3, 2019 | 36 pages
Leti Arts
Inspired by her experience as someone living with cerebral palsy, Farida Bedwei creates Karmzah, a superhero archeologist living with cerebral palsy. The comic book is a mythology-infused account of Karmzah, powered by flying crutches, bringing down criminal masterminds.
Let’s Tell This Story Properly
Fiction
May 23, 2019 | 320 pages
Oneworld Publications
After her critically acclaimed debut novel, Jennifer Makumbi had fans waiting impatiently for her next offering. Manchester Happened (published in the US as Let’s Tell This Story Properly) is a brilliant short story collection centered on the lives of Ugandans in Britain.
Mask Off: Masculinity Redefined
Nonfiction
September 20, 2019 | 144 pages
Pluto Press
With this book, British-Congolese writer JJ Bola establishes himself as a valiant feminist ally. Bola, who has done a lot of youth-centered community organizing, addresses young male audiences in this book. He argues for the reimagining of masculinity through the lens of feminist ideals.
Minutes of Glory: And Other Stories
Fiction
March 5, 2019 | 224 pages
The New Press
This career-spanning short story collection is a treat. Readers get to experience the short-fiction side of Ngugi’s writing. The collection pulls readers into a dazzling world of thrilling stories, memorable characters, and page-turning intrigues.
Modern Sudanese Poetry
Poetry - Anthology
September 1, 2019 | 186 pages
University of Nebraska Press
Adil Babikir’s decades-spanning collection of poetry celebrates works by writers too often left out in an anglo-centric African literary canon. The poems in the collection are originally written in Arabic and cover a wide range of ideas. A treasure trove of beautiful new writing for the anglophone reader!
Necropolitics
Nonfiction - Scholarly
October 25, 2019 | 224 pages
Duke University Press
Africa’s most beloved philosopher muses on the fate of the planet and its political future. In the collection of 8 essays, Achille Mbembe raises uncomfortable questions about the current state of world affairs, drawing attention to the rise of racist discourse and global inequality.
New Daughters of Africa
Nonfiction - Anthology
May 7, 2019 | 1056 pages
Amistad
History was made the a second time with the publication of New Daughters of Africa, a sequel to Daughters of Africa, which broke grounds when it was published 25 years ago. Edited by literary royalty Margaret Busby, New Daughters of Africa features the works of over 200 women of African descent.
Not My Time To Die
Nonfiction
April 5, 2019 | 210 pages
Huza Press
A nurse and mother of three, Mukagasana’s life was perfect. She was even planning her wedding anniversary when the killings began, and life took a sinister turn. Her account of the Rwandan Genocide is an essential and honest account of the darkest days in one of Africa’s most beloved nations.
Notes from a Young Black Chef
Nonfiction
April 9, 2019 | 288 pages
Knopf
Kwame Onwuachi, a Nigerian-American chef, has won many awards and has been featured on major cooking shows. But his life was not always the fairytale it now appears to be. The book chronicles his journey from cleaning up kitchens to winning America’s top culinary awards.
On Ajayi Crowther Street
Fiction - Comic
May 19, 2019 | 192 pages
Cassava Republic
Elnathan John knows how to articulate the absurd and the delightful quirk of everyday Nigerian life. With his first comic book, he transports the reader to Ajayi Crowther Street, a typical Lagos neighborhood where gossip, lies, secrets, big and little drama move life in unpredictable flows.
Out of Darkness, Shining Light
Fiction-Novel
September 10, 2019 | 320 pages
Scribner
In her fourth novel, Petina Gappah takes a familiar story and makes it strange. The novel details the 285-day journey during which a fellowship of interesting characters carry Dr. David Livingstone’s dead body to the Indian Ocean coast. Brace yourself for tons of LOL moments.
Pet
Fiction - YA
September 10, 2019 | 208 pages
Make Me a World
Pet is Akwaeke Emezi’s latest novel after the critically acclaimed Freshwater. It tells the thrilling story of Jam, a teenage transgender person, whose curiosity and acute sense of the impossible leads to a journey in search of the monsters haunting her seemingly calm and perfect world.
Princess Arabella is a Big Sister by Mylo Freeman
Fiction - Children's Book
March 19, 2019 | 28 pages
Cassava Republic
The fifth book in the beloved Arabella series, Princess Arabella is a Big Sister continues the story of a little royal and her attempt at navigating the tricky world of childhood. Writer and illustrator Mylo Freeman does not disappoint with the beautiful writing and stunning illustration.
Return to the Enchanted Island
Fiction
November 5, 2019 | 172 pages
Amazon Crossing
Malagasy mythology inspires this coming-of-age tale about a young anti-hero and his struggle to fulfill the demands of a cultural legacy. Johary Ravaloson’s book is the second Malagasy novel translated in English.
Sulwe by Lupita Nyong’o
Fiction - Children's Book
October 15, 2019 | 48 pages
Simon and Schuster
Lupita Nyongo’s children’s book is a sweet, adorable manifesto for little children of color. A little girl named Sulwe is unhappy because of her dark skin. All this changes after a journey to the stars where she figures out what it truly means to be beautiful.
The Careless Seamstress by Tjawangwa Dema
Poetry
May 1, 2019 | 90 pages
University of Nebraska Press
T.J. Dema has been writing and performing poetry for many years. In this award-winning collection, she centers the lives of women—their labor, loves, resistances, and expression of power. The celebrated Ghanaian poet Kwame Dawes loves the collection and praises its powerful message and measured writing.
The Dragonfly Sea
Fiction
March 12, 2019 | 512 pages
Knopf
In crafting Ayana’s story, Yvonne Owuor said that she drew inspiration from 600-year old tales about the Chinese-African encounter via the Indian Ocean. Ayana, whose life takes a dramatic turn when she embarks on an odyssey to the Far East, evokes periods in Africa’s past that have been largely unexplored.
The Freedom Artist
Fiction
September 5, 2019 | 256 pages
Head of Zeus
The Freedom Artist is Ben Okri’s 23rd book and 11th novel! Critics are so in love with the book they think it might be his most important book since The Famished Road. It tells the story of a man who goes in search of a truth he hopes will unlock the mystery behind his lover's disappearance.
The Half-God of Rainfall
Poetry
April 4, 2019 | 96 pages
Fourth Estate
Inua Ellams unites Classical Greek and Yoruba mythologies in this genre-bending work exploring violence and female power. The story revolves around Demi, a boy with powers who has to come to terms with the possibilities and limitations of being a god among mortals.
The Old Drift
Fiction
March 26, 2019 | 576 pages
Hogarth
A year-defining book! Everyone from NYT to Tor.com has The Old Drift on their best book of the year list. Set on the Zambezi River, the novel tells the story of three Zambian families—one black, one brown, one white—against a backdrop of history, science fiction, and fairytale.
The Other Americans
Fiction
March 26, 2019 | 320 pages
Pantheon
The Other Americans blends everything that makes a good novel memorable. It is a murder mystery, a family saga, a love story. The mystery surrounding the death of a Moroccan immigrant in the US reveals connection in a deeply community divided.
The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls
Nonfiction
September 17, 2019 | 216 pages
Beacon Press
A book that turns girls into “angry, ambitious, profane, violent, attention-seeking, lustful, and powerful” beings? Yes please! Eltahawy criticizes the culture of feminine respectability, arguing that girls should be taught to harness anger, desire, and joy. A powerful manifesto from one of Africa’s beloved feminists.
The Shadow King
Fiction
September 24, 2019 | 448 pages
W. W. Norton & Company
Salman Rushdie finished The Shadow King in just two days! Not surprising for a book about women writing themselves into history. Set in the 1930s during the second Italo-Ethiopian war, it tells the story of Hirut, a peasant girl who inspires a band of women to stir a world dominated by men.
The Water Dancer
Fiction
September 24, 2019 | 416 pages
One World
With his new book, Ta-Nehisi Coates takes a break from non-fiction and ventures into the world of fiction. The Water Dancer is speculative historical fiction centered on Hiram, a slave who has unnaturally acute memory and the ability to travel from one place to another in an instant.
They Called Me Queer
Nonfiction - Anthology
August 19, 2019 | 242 pages
Kwela
When Cassava Republic introduced readers to lesbian experiences in Nigeria with She Called Me Women, it was the start of a new phase. One year later, Windvogel and Koopman releases this stellar and inspiring collection of personal stories by queer people of color in South Africa.
This Hostel Life
Fiction
July 4, 2019 | 112 pages
Virago
Melatu Uche Okorie’s debut shows the diversity of African lives imagined in fiction. Inspired by her experiences as an asylum-seeker in Ireland, the Nigerian-Irish writer captures the lives of African immigrants in Ireland, their struggles but also the little joys and hopeful resistances that give their lives meaning.
This is How We Disappear by Titilope Sonuga
Poetry
April 26, 2019 | 106 pages
Write Bloody North
Titilope Sonuga’s poetry collection responds to the abduction of 276 girls by Boko Haram. How tragic is it that women disappear literally and metaphorically? Sonuga’s writing is a heart-rending kind of beautiful. It channels a lot of pain but also grace and the joy of flight into visibility.
Travelers by Helon Habila
Fiction
June 18, 2019 | 288 pages
W. W. Norton & Company
Habila’s first book to be set outside Nigeria. Through the eyes of a keenly observant (unnamed) narrator, the novel reveals the many ways that Africans in Europe are excluded, while honoring their struggle to make space for a dignified existence.
Triangulum
Fiction
May 14, 2019 | 367 pages
Two Dollar Radio
Masande Ntshanga’s Triangulum is a suspenseful dose of futuristic, apocalyptic, and philosophical goodness. Set in 2040, the story is centered on a manuscript that foretells the end of the world. A retired professor and science fiction writer is called upon to look into these claims.
When the Plums Are Ripe
Fiction
August 13, 2019 | 368 pages
Farrar | Straus and Giroux
Originally published in 2013, Nganang’s 7th book is one of the most anticipated translations of the year. In his signature evocative prose, Nganang tells the story of poet-bureaucrat Pouka who is caught between the forces of French colonization and WWII. A historical drama, it brings 1940s Yaounde to life.
Your Body Is War
Poetry
March 1, 2019 | 90 pages
University of Nebraska Press
Mahtem Shiferraw is an Ethiopian-Eritrean writer and visual artist. In this stunning collection, war is a metaphor for all the ways in which women’s bodies are exposed to violence. A deeply honest look at the female body placed in the context of violence but also a hopeful ode to survival and resistance.
