Sola Njoku, Khumbo Mhone, Josephine Sokan, Moso Sematlane, Aba Amissah Asibon, Kabubu Mutua, Doreen Anyango, Salma Abdulatif Yusuf, Zanta Nkumane, Emily Pensulo, N A Dawn

Captive: New Short Fiction from Africa

Herausgeber: Zadok, Rachel; Moffett, Helen

• Broschiertes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

Brittle Paper's "Anticipated African Books of 2024" From Short Story Day Africa, eleven writers from Africa and the African diaspora explore the identities that connect us, the obsessions that bewitch us, and the self-delusions that drive us apart. Passion and apathy, creation and destruction, honesty and deception—the blurred lines between these powerful forces are fundamental to the human condition. In three parts, the writers of Captive investigate these liminal spaces and rail against the boxes in which others seek to confine them, as writers, as Africans, and as humans. Journey from the fantastical Heaven’s Mouth where time stands still, to a London bus where a neurodiverse woman steals love to the songs of Tom Jones . . . flip the page to Ghana to examine a fertility fetish, or a post-apocalyptic Lesotho where sentient AI uses our emotions against us . . . visit the deceptively beautiful islands off the Tanzanian coast, where the ocean is always hungry, and women pay the price. Captive is a riot of imagination, a collision of worlds, and a testament to the shape-shifting nature of the soul.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Catalyst Press
• Seitenzahl: 458
• Erscheinungstermin: 7. Mai 2024
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 208mm x 147mm x 29mm
• Gewicht: 564g
• ISBN-13: 9781946395948
• ISBN-10: 1946395943
• Artikelnr.: 67195551

Autorenporträt

Inhaltsangabe

Part 1: Claustrophobia, Inescapable Obsession
1.     If the Honey is Sweet, Why Does the Bee Sting? – Salma Yusuf
When Swafiya's husband tells her he wants to take a second wife, she is at
an impasse -- until a visit to a mysterious woman who lives in a cave on
the beach gives her the courage to make the best decision for herself and
her daughter.
2.     The Sting – Sola Njoku 
A new mother discovers the sting of her husband’s betrayal in a clothing
store dressing room and begins to obsess over their relationship and his
affairs.
3.     Wednesday’s Delight – Aba Asibon 
Wednesday lunch dates with a daughter he never knew existed give a retired
gentleman a new lease on life, yet he grapples with the meaning of
fatherhood and how to connect with her. 
4.     On Chancellor’s Street – Kabubu Mutua
Two students negotiate their shared space while friendship and love blossom
during a coup in Kenya.
5.     In Madam’s House – Emily Pensulo 
A young woman, who was raised to believe failure is in her DNA, is seduced
by material luxuries and envies the life of her Madam while she is away in
the Maldives. 
6.     Manifesting – Doreen Anyango
An up-and-coming professional Ugandan couple find that the dream house
they've been sacrificing for years to build, and the "perfect life" they
strive to present to the public, are increasingly meaningless as the wife
struggles with the aftermath of a miscarriage and her growing dread that
her husband is unfaithful.
7.     The Third Commandment – Khumbo Mhone
When Upile sends her second-born away to hide her existence from the Sons
of the Nation and save her life, the weight of her secret alienates her
oldest daughter and fractures the family.
8.     My little darling won’t you dance/eat with me? – Yovanka Paquete
Perdigao
Omar is delighted when he is unexpectedly recruited to a virtual reality
company, but when he tests their new L<3VE app, he discovers that love can
devour you.
9.     The Day the City Wept – Moso Sematlane 
In post-apocalyptic Maseru, where AI Sentients seek to use emotion to
control humans, a revolutionary televises his final act of rebellion while
his lover watches.
10.  Girl’s Best Friend – N.A. Dawn
While fleeing her predatory babysitter, fourteen-year-old Joana finds
herself face-to-face with the paranormal.
11.  Good Things Come – Josephine Sokan 
A neurodiverse young woman steals love on a London bus to the beats of Tom
Jones.
12.  Heaven’s Mouth – Zanta Nkumane 
A man returns to his home town, where time stagnates, so he can move on
with his life.
 
Part 2: Metamorphosis, Cycles and Identity
1.     Vanishing – Kabubu Mutua
A young man is left standing at the altar when the love of his life leaves
town with his dowry.
2.     I Am What I Am Not – N.A. Dawn
An all-knowing cosmic intelligence relishes the creative process of
spawning a universe, but finds itself longing for a more human experience
than godhood allows.
3.     Exodus – Emily Pensulo 
Lucia loses her faith after her pastor's unexpected indiscretion.
4.     Prayer Times – Salma Yusuf
This unusual story takes the form of a long poem, which weaves together the
prayer rituals of the Muslim faith, the role played by gender expectations
in Mombasa families, the tradition of daf-drumming, and the influence of
social media in the life of the young woman narrator, who makes a small but
significant stand for herself.
5.     The River – Moso Sematlane 
A group of childhood friends is scarred and forever altered when a man sits
down to watch their wrestling match, and after they left a friend walk home
alone.
6.     Corpse Driver – Khumbo Mhone
In New Blantyre, a futuristic taxi transports bodies to their graves in the
sugar district with mysterious consequences.
7.     Gray – Sola Njoku
A footloose middle-aged woman’s infatuation consumes a young man who
crosses her path. 
8.     Mvelicanti's Gift – Zanta Nkumane 
Nkosi, a two-legged prince, faces the prejudices of his people in a tale
that turns the ideas of what it means to be able-bodied on its head.
9.     Akua’ba – Aba Asibon
Tano grapples with the cultural expectations placed on and neglects the
fertility Akua’ba her mother had crafted for her.
10.  Ẹlẹ́dẹ̀ Kekere (Little Pig) – Josephine Sokan 
On Ibukan's 18th birthday he starts to transform into a lizard and see
things he shouldn't.
11.  Nankya’s Ghost – Doreen Anyango
A mother's gift (passed down from her own mother) for telling her daughter
folk tales comes alive when she returns from death as a dragonfly. In this
guise, she is able to protect her child and home from her abusive former
husband and the woman with whom he has replaced her.
 
Part 3: Self-awareness, Illusion, Delusion and Deception
1.     Pasture – Aba Asibon
A male nurse leaves home and his fiancée for greener pastures in New York,
only to discover that the life of an immigrant is not as wonderful as his
cousin made it out to be.
2.     Sleight of Hand – Josephine Sokan
A woman's stealing to fill the void of loneliness becomes a demon that can
never be purged.
3.     The Darkness Wins Sometimes – Doreen Anyango 
This story, in the form of a spontaneous letter from a woman to her best
friend, is a powerful and poignant tribute to the strength of friendships
between women. It traces a history of support and sharing -- from boarding
school adventures to romantic disasters with the wrong men, abortion,
struggles with alcohol, early widowhood and more -- that will ring true for
many.
4.     N’ganga – Emily Pensulo
Henry's neighbour suggests he visits a N'ganga to heal a persistent cough
with unexpected results.
5.     Section 47 – Sola Njoku
A mother's anxiety for her child in a prejudiced world brings her greatest
fear to pass. 
6.     Elsewhere – Kabubu Mutua
Two workers from Kenya live in the Arabian Peninsula, seduced by the luxury
and the sand that cleans their lungs, until an enticing ghost appears, and
their very existence comes under threat.
7.     Petals – Zanta Nkumane 
A drone bee has an existential crisis, longing to break free of biological
destiny.
8.     The Girl with Three Faces – Khumbo Mhone
In a retelling of well-known fairy tales, Sindi discovers a magic
wish-granting mirror, and discovers that the only true way to find
adventure is to venture into the world herself.
9.     Changes in Ownership – Moso Sematlane 
A furniture store clerk in a small town soothes his loneliness and broken
soul in the unwilling arms of a man who cannot love him.
10.  With Open Palms Barred – N.A. Dawn
A dying dignitary ruminates on the life he's led and opportunities missed.
11.  The Circle of History – Salma Yusuf
In this story of intergenerational betrayal, loss and restoration, Narman's
grandmother finally tells her the truth about her origins, in an eerie tale
set on the East African coast and its islands.