From new voices and memoirs to reimagined classics and much anticipated sequels, 2024 promises a rich and varied selection of book releases.
'Knife' by Salman Rushdie
In 2022, celebrated novelist Salman Rushdie was stabbed multiple times in New York, just before giving a public lecture about — ironically — freedom of expression.
In his newest book, 'Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder', he writes about the life-threatening attack that left him severely injured, blind in one eye, and struggling to resume writing.
Born in India, and with over a dozen books to his name, this is the second memoir for multiaward-winning Rushdie, 76. He was forced into hiding because of an assassination fatwa (religious edict) issued by Iran’s leader for allegedly blasphemous content in the 1988 novel, The Satanic Verses.
'Heaven is a Library' by Petina Gappah
The Zimbabwean novelist has penned her memoir, 'Heaven is a Library,' scheduled to come out in 2024. Acclaimed Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges once said: “I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.”
Petina Gappah. The Zimbabwean novelist has penned her memoir, ‘Heaven is a Library’, scheduled to come out in 2024. PHOTO | COURTESY
Gappah relates stories of her “nutty childhood” in Zimbabwe with delightful anecdotes of her eccentric father and the 10 libraries that influenced desire to pursue writing and international law.
Her novels and short-story collections have won Guardian First Book Award and McKitterick Prize, among others.
'Children of Anguish and Anarchy' by Tomi Adeyemi
Lovers of fantasy will be pleased that the Nigerian-American writer is releasing the third title in her epic 'Legacy of Orisha' trilogy. 'Children of Anguish and Anarchy' picks up on the adventures of the young heroine Zelie against a backdrop of magic, warfare, romance, and Nigerian mythology.
‘Children of Anguish and Anarchy’ by Tomi Adeyemi. PHOTO | COURTESY
The first book in this young adult series popular with grown-ups, 'Children of Blood and Bone' is slated for a movie version by Paramount Pictures.
Mark Twain’s 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' is among the great American novels of the 19th century, about a runaway adolescent boy who voyages down in the Mississippi River with the escaped slave, Jim.
Now, on the 130th anniversary, Pulitzer Prize finalist Everett reimagines the story from the perspective of 'James'.
'James' by Percival Everett. PHOTO | COURTESY
People and places remain the same, but the duo’s escapade and 1840s slavery era is completely turned on its head by the erudite and witty narration of 'James'.
'Womb City' by Tlotlo Tsamaase
'Womb City' is the first novel by the Botswanan author of short-story fiction and poetry.
In a futuristic Botswana, babies are crafted in government labs, wives controlled by their husbands and the fast-rising star of the heroine is entangled in a crime cover-up that threatens both her career and marriage. Tsamaase crafts a dystopian fantasy world filled with myths, misogyny, corruption and horror.
'The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years' by Shubnum Khan
From the South African writer comes the historical horror and tragic love story of Sana and her father, who have moved into a once-grand, gothic mansion on the coast, after escaping from India and a terrible loss.
'The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years' by Shubnum Khan. PHOTO | COURTESY
Before long she is opening doors, exploring rooms and the resident ghost that witnessed the tragedies almost a century before.
'Naomi Osaka' by Ben Rothenberg
The American sportswriter brings us the story behind the tennis sensation, Naomi Osaka. In 2018, she won the US Open against her role model, the powerful Serena Williams, at just 20 years old.
‘Naomi Osaka' by Ben Rothenberg. PHOTO | COURTESY
Subtitled 'Her Journey to Finding Her Power and Her Voice', the book traces her family beginnings in Japan, where her parents met to pursue tennis dreams in the USA. Rothenburg brings us into Osaka’s world, her sporting struggles, personal vulnerability and the bitter-sweet truth of international fame.
