The Age of Magic

A Nigerian immigrant to Senegal explores the increasing influence of China across the region, a Kenyan student activist writes of exile in Kampala, a Liberian scientist shares her diary on the Ebola crisis, a Nigerian journalist travels to the North to meet a community at risk, a Kenyan journalist travels to Senegal to visit a gay rights activist and a South African writer recounts a tale of family discord and a murder in a remote seaside town. In a collection that ranges from travel writing to memoir to reportage and meditative essays, editor Ellah Wakatama Allfrey has brought together some of the most talented writers of creative non-fiction in Africa.

When Lucy Khambule receives an unexpected call from a convicted serial killer, nicknamed The Butcher by the media, her life takes a dramatic turn. The Butcher wants Lucy to tell his story. Intrigued by his approach Lucy decides to take this opportunity to fulfill her dream of writing a book.

One of the cornerstones of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s fame, Devil on the Cross is a powerful fictional critique of capitalism. It tells the tragic story of Wariinga, a young woman who moves from a rural Kenyan town to the capital, Nairobi, only to be exploited by her boss and later by a corrupt businessman. As she struggles to survive, Wariinga begins to realize that her problems are only symptoms of a larger societal malaise and that much of the misfortune stems from the Western, capitalist influences on her country. An impassioned cry for a Kenya free of dictatorship and for African writers to work in their own local dialects, Devil on the Cross has had a profound influence on Africa and on post-colonial African literature.

n this collection of stories, Pheroze Nowrojee takes his readers on journeys into varied Kenyan, East African, and other landscapes, delving into lives and personalities equally diverse. Whether actively transforming their surroundings or being transformed by what is around them, his complex characters reflect our common humanity in sometimes ordinary and sometimes surprising—but always compelling—ways. Exquisitely told, laden with humour and beauty and poignancy, these stories are a vital addition to the East African anthology.

Questions for Ada The artistry of QUESTIONS FOR ADA defies words, embodying the pain, the passion, and the power of love rising from the depths of our souls. Ijeoma Umebinyuo’s poetry is a flower that will blossom in the spirit of every reader as she shares her heart with raw candor. From lyrical lushness to smoky sensuality to raw truths, this tome of transforming verse is the book every woman wants to write but can’t until the broken mirrors of their lives have healed. In this gifted author’s own words—“I am too full of life to be half-loved.” A bold celebration of womanhood.