Category: Events

  • November 2: Virtually Yours with Leila Aboulela

    November 2: Virtually Yours with Leila Aboulela

    Leila Aboulela’s River Spirit is the featured book for the series “Virtually Yours,” which runs on November 2, 2023. He will be moderated by Zukiswa Wanner. The event hosted by Goethe-Institut Namibia will run from 4pm GMT, 5pm WAT, 6pm CAT, and 7pm EAT.

    Virtually Yours is a regional project of Goethe-Institut Sub Saharan Africa, a series of online discussions with contemporary authors from Africa. “Virtually Yours” aims to create an online platform for avid readers, writers, academics, publishers, agents, and anyone else interested in literature by writers from Africa. The series of online discussions held once a month has featured Kalaf Epalanga, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim, Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, Oswalde Lewat, Niq Mhlongo, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, Tendai Huchu, Natasha Omokhodion-Kalulu Banda, Ondjaki, Ishmael Beah, Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, Rémy Ngamije, and Nadifa Mohamed.

    The featured guest for this event is Leila Aboulela’s River Spirit.

    Leila Aboulela

    Leila Aboulela
    Leila Aboulela

    Leila Aboulela is the inaugural winner of the Caine Prize for African Writing. Her sixth novel, River Spirit, was published in March 2023 and described by the New York Times as ‘dazzling… a novel about war, love, faith, womanhood and, above all, the struggle for truth and public narratives’. Leila’s previous novels include Bird Summons, The Kindness of Enemies, The Translator, Minaret and Lyrics Alley, winner of the Scottish Book Awards for Fiction. Her collection of short stories, Elsewhere, Home, won the Saltire Fiction Book of the Year. Leila’s work has been translated into fifteen languages and she has been shortlisted three times for the Orange Prize (now the Women’s Prize for Fiction). She grew up in Khartoum and moved to Scotland in her mid-twenties, where she now lives. Leila is an Honorary Professor at the WORD Centre, University of Aberdeen, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

    River Spirit

    RIver Spirit by Leila Aboulela

    1890s Sudan. When Akuany and her brother are orphaned in a village raid, they are taken in by a young merchant, Yaseen, who promises to care for them – a vow that tethers him to Akuany throughout their adulthood. As revolution begins to brew, led by the self-proclaimed Mahdi, Sudan begins to prise itself from Ottoman rule, and everyone must choose a side. Yaseen feels beholden to stand against this false Mahdi, a decision that threatens to splinter his family. Meanwhile, Akuany is moved across the country alone, sold and traded from house to house, with only Yaseen as her intermittent lifeline. Their struggle mirrors the increasingly bloody struggle for Sudan itself: for freedom, safety and the possibility of love. River Spirit is the unforgettable story of a people who, against the odds and for a brief time, gained independence from foreign rule through their willpower, subterfuge and sacrifice.

    When: Thursday, November 2nd 2023

    04:00 PM Universal Time (UTC) Accra
    05:00 PM West African Time (WAT) Lagos, Douala
    06:00 PM Central African Time (CAT) Windhoek, Johannesburg
    07:00 PM East African Time (EAT) Nairobi, Addis Abeba

    To register for this event please click here.

  • October 5: Virtually Yours with Kalaf Epalanga

    October 5: Virtually Yours with Kalaf Epalanga

    Kalaf Epalanga’s Whites Can Dance Too is the featured book for the series “Virtually Yours,” which runs on October 5, 2023. He will be moderated by Ondjaki. The event hosted by Goethe-Institut Namibia will run from 4pm GMT, 5pm WAT, 6pm CAT, and 7pm EAT.

    Virtually Yours is a regional project of Goethe-Institut Sub Saharan Africa, a series of online discussions with contemporary authors from Africa. “Virtually Yours” aims to create an online platform for avid readers, writers, academics, publishers, agents, and anyone else interested in literature by writers from Africa. The series of online discussions held once a month has featured Abubakar Adam Ibrahim, Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, Oswalde Lewat, Niq Mhlongo, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, Tendai Huchu, Natasha Omokhodion-Kalulu Banda, Ondjaki, Ishmael Beah, Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, Rémy Ngamije, and Nadifa Mohamed.

    This month’s guest is Angolan musician and writer Kalaf Epalanga best known internationally for fronting the Lisbon-based dance collective Buraka Som Sistema. He is a celebrated columnist in Angola and Portugal. Whites Can Dance Too is his acclaimed debut novel; it was first published in Portugal by Editorial Caminho (2017). It is an exhilarating debut novel told through three different voices, Whites Can Dance Too is Kalaf Epalanga’s reflection on and celebration of the music of his homeland, the intertwining of cultural roots, and freedom and love. The English translation was done by Daniel Hahn and it was published by Faber & Faber (get a copy here).

    To register for this event please click here.

  • World Premiere of As Madames (the play)

    World Premiere of As Madames (the play)

    The World Premiere of As Madames (the play) at the Centro Cultural University in Maputo, Mozambique on Friday, September 15, 2023. It was absolutely brilliant, thanks to a breath-taking adaptation by Evaristo Abreu and inspired casting, marvellous acting and kickass directing by Clotilde Guirrugo.

    Maputo came out in numbers on a Friday evening. Their laughter filled me with joy and the book-buying post show was the cherry on top. Totes chuffed to see high school friend Honana Ndelana and fellow scribes like Virgilia Ferrao, Melio Tinga, Mauro Brito, and Mia Couto come out to support.

    Muito obrigado, Maputo. My heart is fuller than my wine glass😘.

    Maia Couto, Evaristo Abreu and Zukiswa Wanner
    Maia Couto, Evaristo Abreu and Zukiswa Wanner
    Honana Ndelana and Zuksiwa Wanner
    Honana Ndelana and Zuksiwa Wanner
  • AS Madames to launch in Maputo, Mozambique

    AS Madames to launch in Maputo, Mozambique

    As Madames, the Portuguese language version of The Madams to launch in Maputo, Mozambique on Tuesday, September 5, 2023.

    My first novel The Madams abouta Black South African decided to take a white maid, published by Oshun Books in 2006, was a revelation in the South African writing scene. The first translation for this book in Portuguese by Sandra Tamale and is a collaboration between Kiela (Angola) and Ethale Books (Mozambique).

    The event at Wings Kitchen II Cine Teatro Scala Av. 25 de Setembro, No. 1514 at 6pm will be attended by among others translator Sandra Tamale and José P. Castiano.

    The launch details are on the poster.

  • September 7: Virtually Yours with Sue Nyathi

    September 7: Virtually Yours with Sue Nyathi

    An Angel’s Demise by Sue Nyathi is the featured book for the series “Virtually Yours,” which runs on Thursday, September 7, 2023. She will be moderated by Zukiswa Wanner. The event hosted by Goethe-Institut Namibia will run from 4pm GMT, 5pm WAT, 6pm CAT, and 7pm EAT.

    Virtually Yours is a regional project of Goethe-Institut Sub Saharan Africa, a series of online discussions with contemporary authors from Africa. “Virtually Yours” aims to create an online platform for avid readers, writers, academics, publishers, agents, and anyone else interested in literature by writers from Africa. The series of online discussions held once a month has featured Abubakar Adam Ibrahim, Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, Oswalde Lewat, Niq Mhlongo, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, Tendai Huchu, Natasha Omokhodion-Kalulu Banda, Ondjaki, Ishmael Beah, Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, Rémy Ngamije, and Nadifa Mohamed.

    Sue Nyathi was born and raised in Bulawayo and lives in Johannesburg and has previously published three bestselling novels to much reader and critical acclaim: The Polygamist (2012), The GoldDiggers (2018) and The Family Affair (2020). Her newest novel is An Angel’s Demise and has the following blurb;

    An Angel’s Demise is an epic saga that explores a contested legacy and the heartrending destiny of a family. The year is 1977 and the story begins on a farm in Somabhula with the birth of Angel.

    The farm is run by Paul Williams, an outwardly harsh and bigoted man who holds the livelihoods of many in his hands. When Angel’s parents join the liberation struggle, she is left in the care of her grandmothers, who have been in service to the Williams family for generations.

    Angel grows up on the farm over three momentous decades that see a convoluted past and inheritance unfold into an equally complicated present. Through her, we see a woman’s quest to unearth her identity and assert her independence. In the process of self-discovery, Angel realises that sometimes you need to be uprooted before you can grow.

    An Angel’s Demise, Sue Nyathi’s fourth novel, is a gripping tale infused with spirituality. It recounts an explosive story of love, war, bloody massacre and betrayal that encompasses a harrowing history, the cruel caprice of politics, gender-based violence and what happens when ordinary people get caught up in lies.

    We will give away five free books to five lucky readers who will join us, wherever in the world they may be.  It could be you. Details on how to join on poster.

  • Artistic Encounters event with Strauhof

    Artistic Encounters event with Strauhof

    Join me as I host Prudence Katomeni and Maimouna Jallow for our final Artistic Encounters event on the Strauhof’s LitAfrika YouTube page on the art of adaptation. The event on August 17th will run at 10 Ghana Mean Time/11 Nigeria time/Midday SA time/13h Kenyan time.

    Prudence’s music that she created as inspired by Fiston Mwanza Mujila’s Tram 83 and Maimouna’s performance was inspired by Abubakar Adam Ibrahim’s Season of Crimson Blossoms as part of the current LitAfrika II exhibition that I curated which has been running at Strauhof Museum in Zurich since June 16 until September 3.

    If you are anywhere close to Zurich and you haven’t seen it yet, please take a turn. You won’t regret it.

    Update: If you missed the event, check the video here;

  • Einstein Forum in Potsdam, Germany

    Einstein Forum in Potsdam, Germany

    The Einstein Forum is a foundation of the German federal state of Brandenburg that serves the public as an open laboratory of the mind. Through a varied program of conferences, workshops, podium discussions, and lectures it brings together original thinkers from all over the world to test new ideas—and interrogate conventional ones—with a general audience. Topics span the arts and humanities, natural and social sciences, ethics and politics. Whatever the subject, speakers are urged to think outside traditional academic boundaries. Our multidisciplinary emphasis encourages dialogue not only among experts from different fields but also, and just as importantly, between specialists and the public at large.

    I gave a keynote address at the Einstein Forum conference which had the theme “Zeitenwenden. Thinking in Upheaval” which ran from Jun 29 – Saturday, Jul 1, 2023. My address was entitled, “Despite, In spite of, Sometimes to Spite Our Governments: How The COVID-19 Pandemic Opened Artists to Solidarities and Collaborations.”

    Also at this event were Aleida Assmann, Rokhaya Diallo, J. Henry Fair, Ali Fathollah-Nejad, Carey Harrison, Stephen Holmes, Eva Illouz, Ivan Krastev, Harsh Mander, Thomas Meaney, Eva Menasse, Fintan O’Toole, Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò, Carl Tham, David van Reybrouck and, James Wood.

    You can watch the forum in full here; my speech runs from 12:52 minutes,

  • Litafrika: Artistic Encounters II exhibition launch

    Litafrika: Artistic Encounters II exhibition launch

    The Litafrika: Artistic Encounters II launched in Zurich, Switzerland on June 16, 2023.

    “litafrika” is an open archive literary exhibition project in three parts (2022-2024) organised by Swiss partners Litar Foundation and Strauhof Zurich. It revolves around the central questions: “How do we read and narrate ‘Africa’ – a continent and its cultural diversity?” The exhibition trilogy follows a participatory process, where each edition will incorporate the themes and results from the previous edition to set a new focus. The project aims to be an intercontinental platform for a long-term dialogue with African and European authors, translators and publishers. Read more about the project by clicking here.

    Here are some images from the launch

  • Litafrika: Artistic Encounters II exhibition for Zurich

    Litafrika: Artistic Encounters II exhibition for Zurich

    The Litafrika: Artistic Encounters II, curated by Zukiswa Wanner, will be hosted in Zurich, Switzerland from June 16 – September 3, 2023.

    “litafrika” is an open archive literary exhibition project in three parts (2022-2024) organised by Swiss partners Litar Foundation and Strauhof Zurich. It revolves around the central questions: “How do we read and narrate ‘Africa’ – a continent and its cultural diversity?” The exhibition trilogy follows a participatory process, where each edition will incorporate the themes and results from the previous edition to set a new focus. The project aims to be an intercontinental platform for a long-term dialogue with African and European authors, translators and publishers.

    The first exhibition, “Poetry of a Continent” from 3 June – 4 September 2022, was curated by Christa Baumberger and Rémi Jaccard, in dialogue with partners from Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and other countries. It set out to contextualise the European perspective on African literatures. The starting point was the monumental anthology Afrika im Gedicht (Zurich 2015) edited by Al Imfeld (1935–2017). The book covers the period from 1960 to 2014 and contains more than 550 poems from all parts of the African continent. Imfeld had a lasting influence on the promotion of African literatures in Switzerland over decades. His articles and appearances introduced countless writers from Africa to German-speaking readers and he helped set up a range of funding institutions. Although the anthology grew from a Eurocentric starting point, it was largely the writers themselves who selected the poems included.

    The second exhibition “Soundscape Africa” in summer 2023 presenting current developments and tendencies curated by Zukiswa Wanner, kicks off on Saturday, June 16. Dubbed “Artistic Encounters” it aims to be an intercontinental platform for a long-term dialogue with African and European authors, translators and publishers. Wanner responds to the first part of the exhibition series with eight prose texts by contemporary authors. She shifts the emphasis from postcolonial poetry to contemporary novels to foreground the diverse stories of a younger generation of writers and artists. The featured artists are;

    • Ishmael Beah (Sierra Leone): Radiance of Tomorrow (2014) x          Shafik Manzi (Rwanda): visual artist
    • Virgília Ferrão (Mozambique): Os Nossos Feitiços (2022) x          Jussara Camblé (São Tomé and Príncipe): actress
    • Abubakar Adam Ibrahim (Nigeria): Season of Crimson Blossoms (2015) x          Maïmouna Jallow (Gambia): actress
    • Angela Makholwa (South Africa): Critical But, Stable (2020) x          Michael Soi (Kenya): visual artist
    • Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi (Uganda): The First Woman (2020) x          Ntombephi Ntobela (South Africa): visual artist
    • Yara Nakahanda Monteiro (Angola): Essa Dama Bate Bue (2018) x          Zubz the Last Letter (Zambia): musician
    • Fiston Mwanza Mujila (DR Congo): Tram 83 (2014) x          Prudence Katomeni (Zimbabwe): musician
    • Ondjaki (Angola): Os Transparentes (2012) x          Sereetsi & The Natives (Botswana): musician

    The exhibition launches on Saturday in Zurich with the following program;

    Artistic Encounters

    16 June – 3 September 2023

    Venue: Strauhof Zurich

    Vernissage 16 June Programme:

    12:30pm – Welcome and guided tour by Zukiswa Wanner

    5–6 pm – Welcome by Zukiswa Wanner (curator), Christa Baumberger (Litar) and Rémi Jaccard (Strauhof). Talk with the authors Virgília Ferrão (Mozambique) and Ondjaki (Angola, joining online), moderated by Zukiswa Wanner

    6.30 pm – Guided tour by Zukiswa Wanner

    For the full program please click here.

  • The Heart is A Bastard anthology launch

    The Heart is A Bastard anthology launch

    The University of East Anglia appointed Tsitsi Dangarembga the International Chair of Creative Writing in 2020 to deliver a program of literary events, classes and workshops. One of these workshops was an East African affair with writers from Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda writing in English and Kiswahili run by Tsitsi Dangarembga, Jean McNeil, Zukiswa Wanner, and Elias Mutani in July 2022.  

    The Heart is a bastard anthology

    From this workshop, stories were whittled down and the best were put in a new Paivapo Publishers anthology The Heart Is A Bastard edited in English by Zukiswa Wanner. The Kiswahili version of this book edited by Elias Mutani is called Moyo ni Mwanaharamu. Those whose work feature are Fatma Shafii, Maureen Waithaka, Julius M Chiwaya, Joanita Kente Tushabe, Noella Moshi, Nyasili Atetwe, Ruth Nyadzua Mwangome, Sia Chami, Precious Colette Kemigisha, Gladwell Pemba, Jibril Adam, Misigo Daniel Mwanzu, and Charlie Muhumuza.   The anthology launched at a ceremony at the Goethe-Institute on Saturday, May 27, 2023.