In our final episode for the season, Lebohang Masango about the choices we make at the intersection of love and money, and Joy Watson tells me about her favourite anti-heroines. The soft life can be a life of luxury, of champagne and overseas travel, or it could mean money being less of a perpetual worry. The book is about women who pursue this and…

In this bonus episode, we bring you a live recording of a book club hosted on 1 March 2023 with Alistair Mackay. It took place at the Book Lounge, and we talked about Alistair’s novel, It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way, a brilliant queer speculative fiction set in Cape Town in the very near future. This season of A Readers’ Community as well as this l…

Ritual can be a powerful narrative device. On the one hand, it’s likely to bring together a bunch of characters and to bring a simmering plot to the point of boiling over. On the other hand, they are often associated with a significant life event, with a moment of transition, or with magic and divine intervention. One of the sites where rites and r…

With the lack of equity, reparation and justice experienced by the majority of South Africans since the end of Apartheid, there is a sense in the present moment of what we might call an ‘apology fatigue’. In ‘Unsettling Apologies’, Melanie Judge and Dee Smythe have put together a collection of critical writings on public apology that explores the p…

In this episode, join Vasti as she tries to find her way back into reading poetry. She speaks to Nondwe Mpuma, whose collection Peach Country was a wonderful invitation back into the form. Nondwe writes about home, in the Eastern Cape, and the landscape matters - its seasons and its patterns, and the daily rituals and habits that are matched to the…

The prevalence and fear of gender based violence really cannot be overstated. The statistics and stories and experiences invade our lives, we encounter it in the news, fiction and non-fiction. For every story we read we raise our guard, we feel more afraid. And on the other side of this fear is male violence. Kopano Ratele suggests that one of the …

In this episode, we talk to Chase Rhys about their recent collection, 'Misfit: Stories vannie anne kant'. A lot of the stories in this collection are about being an outsider, about not quite belonging in any space one enters into, about intersections of identity, about being more than one thing at once – in other words, in hybrid identities, and th…

We are back with the fourth season of A Readers’ Community. We’re really covering a wide range of books and ideas in this season - like thinking about home through poetry, what we can hope for from public apologies, about the choices we make at the intersection of romantic love and money, about being a misfit, an outsider, and much more. First epis…

In this, the final episode of the season, we take a trip through some crime writing via Rofhiwa Maneta's, 'A Man, a Fire, a Corpse', a book about his father, the top cop of Soweto - Captain Amos Maneta. Mervyn recommends 'Young Blood' by Sifiso Mzobe, 'Hammerman' by Mike Nicol, 'The Heist Men' by Andrew Brown, 'Unforgiven' by Liz Macgregor, and 'Ho…

We explore queerness in speculative fiction, featuring Keely Shinners talking about their debut novel, How to Build a Home for the End of the World, and with recommendations from Colin Pegon. Colin and Vasti talk about ‘The Left Hand of Darkness’ by Urusula K Le Guin, ‘Ancillary Justice’ by Ann Leckie, ‘It Doesn’t Have to Be This Way’ by Alistair M…

We go on some literary journeys through South African cities, featuring Tshidiso Moletsane talking about his debut novel, Junx, and with recommendations from Dela Gwala. Dela recommends ‘Our Move Next’, curated by Kelly-Eve Koopman, Sarah Summers and Vasti Hannie; ‘The Eternal Audience of One’ by Rémy Ngamije, ‘Zoo City’ by Lauren Beukes, and ‘The …

We explore the connection between sex and death in literature, with a conversation with Yewande Omotoso about her book, ‘An Unusual Grief’, and with recommendations from Efemia Chela. Efemia recommends ‘Blackass’ by A Igoni Barrett, ‘Luster’ by Raven Leilani, ‘Detransition, Baby’ by Torrey Peters, and ‘In the Heart of the Country’ by JM Coetzee. Ho…

Vasti talks to Terry-Ann Adams about their book, 'White Chalk', and gets recommendations from Omphile Raleie of Bookamoso about narratives of the everyday in fiction. Omphile recommends ‘The GoldDiggers’ by Sue Nyathi, ‘The Ones with Purpose’ by Nozizwe Cynthia Jele, ‘Bows and Butterflies’ by Xoli M, and ‘Searching for Simphiwe’ by Sifiso Mzobe. Ho…

Season 3 of A Readers' Community is coming your way. First episode out on 11 May 2022. Subscribe so you don't miss it. To get in touch, email areaderscommunity@gmail.com. A Readers' Community is a literary podcast featuring conversations about South African books.

The Open Book Podcast Series is back, and it's moved to its own platform. Click here to find it on Apple Podcasts, or here to find it on Spotify, or search 'Open Book Podcast' on your preferred app. The series presents a taste of the kind of conversations you would experience at the Open Book Festival, which occurred annually in Cape Town in pre-pa…

In this final episode of the season, we look at stand out reads from 2021 so far, featuring a conversation with Mphuthumi Ntabeni, author of The Wanderers. Jess’s favourite picture book of the year so far is The Rock From the Sky by Jon Klassen, while the book that has meant most to Colin this year is The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr, and Luami’s st…

In this episode about memoirs, we bring you a conversation with Robert Hamblin about his just-published book, ‘Robert: A Queer and Crooked Memoir for the Not So Straight or Narrow', and staff recommend their favourite memoirs. Megan’s favourite is ‘The Glass Castle’ by Jeanette Walls, Luami loved ‘Priestdaddy’ by Patricia Lockwood, and Carmen’s rec…

An episode about comic books, graphic novels, and graphic biographies. We speak to the dream team behind Kwezi, South Africa’s first superhero comic, Loyiso Mkize, Clyde Beech and Mohale Mashigo (aka Carol Mashigo). Jess talks about the graphic biography ‘Kusama’ by Elisa Macellari, the adaptations of ‘Animal Farm’ and ‘1984’ by George Orwell, as w…

This episode is all about books to read when you’re struggling to read. We speak to A’Eysha Kassiem, author of Suitcase of Memory, as well as Naledi Mashishi, whose debut novel is Invisible Strings The book that rescued Mervyn from a reading slump recently is Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong, while Megan was saved by Empire of Pain by Patrick Radd…

In this episode, we talk to Desiree Lewis and Gabeba Baderoon, the editors of a new collection, 'Surfacing: On Being Black and Feminist in South Africa', and the Book Lounge staff recommend local fiction they’ve loved recently. Jess recommends ‘Hibiscus Coast’ by Nick Mulgrew, Belinda loved ‘Young Blood’ by Sifiso Mzobe, and Thandi suggests ‘When t…

In this episode, Mervyn talks to Damon Galgut about his new novel, The Promise, a few months before it won the Booker Prize in November 2021. We chat about the difficulty of categorising science fiction and fantasy in a bookstore, and hear some sci fi recommendations from staff. Carmen recommends ‘The Parable of the Sower’ by Octavia Butler and Lua…

This special festive episode brings you conversations with Patric Tariq Mellet and Angela Makholwa, as well as recommendations from Book Lounge staff from the 2020 Festive Reading Guide. Jess recommends ‘Kantiga Finds the Perfect Name’ by Mabel Mnensa, ‘A Journey Through the Greek Myths’ written by Marchella Ward and illustrated by Sander Berg, and…

We discuss what’s been happening behind the scenes in the book world and Mervyn has a conversation with Mohale Mashigo about her life as a writer, and get recommendations from Book Lounge staff. Mohale mentioned ‘What it Means When a Man Falls from the Sky’ by Lesley Nneka Arimah, ‘Paradise’ by Toni Morrison, ‘Maru’ by Bessie Head, ‘The Vanishing H…

We speak to Tiffany Kagure Mugo about her book, ‘Quirky Quick Guide to Having Great Sex’, and to Mia Arderne about her new novel, ‘Mermaid Fillet’, and get recommendations from Book Lounge staff.Mia recommends ‘Kinnes’ by Chase Rhys, Thandi recommends ‘The Vanishing Half’ by Brit Bennett, Belinda enjoyed ‘Adults’ by Emma Jane Unsworth, and Megan lo…

This episode is all about literary prizes. Our guest is the 2020 winner of the Caine Prize, Irenosen Okojie, and Book Lounge staff talk about some Booker-longlisted novels. Luami recommends ‘How Much of These Hills is Gold’ by C Pam Zhang, Unathi recommends ‘The Shadow King’ by Maaza Mengiste, Jess enjoyed ‘Such a Fun Age’ by Kiley Reid and Mervyn …

This episode is a celebration of queer stories. We speak to Mark Gevisser about his new book, ‘The Pink Line’, which tracks shifts in queer frontiers globally in the 21st century, and Book Lounge staff members recommend books with queer themes. Jess recommends ‘Juliet Takes a Breath’ by Gabby Rivera for teenagers and ‘The Whispers’ by Greg Howard f…

We speak to Dr Nechama Brodie about her new book, ‘Femicide in South Africa’, and to Sifiso Mzobe about his new short story collection, ‘Searching for Simphiwe’, and get recommendations from Book Lounge staff. Noma recommends ‘Hood Feminism’, Werner enjoyed ‘The Man in the High Castle’ by Phillip K Dick and Megan loved ‘Hamnet’ by Maggie O’Farrell.…

In this week’s episode, we speak to Rémy Ngamije, the Rwandan-born Namibian author of 'The Eternal Audience of One', about his meteoric rise from being an unpublished writer to a star on the African literary scene in less than a year, and we hear book recommendations from Book Lounge staff.Unathi recommends ‘The Hate U Give’ by Angie Thomas and Lua…

We sit down with Lauren Beukes to chat about her new book, ‘Afterland’, and some Book Lounge staff members recommend books they loved recently. Colin recommends ‘The Resurrection of Winnie Mandela’ by Sisonke Msimang. Megan recommends ‘The Recovery of Rose Gold’ by Stephanie Wrobel. Jess suggests ‘Here in the Real World’ by Sara Pennypacker for 8-1…

Introducing ' A Readers' Community', a brand-new podcast by the Book Lounge. We'd love to hear your requests for a recommendation for your next read. Send us a voice message telling us what you're in the mood to read and two books you loved to booklounge@gmail.com. Hosted by Vasti Calitz. Produced by Andri Burnett.…