Popular African Historical Fiction Books
Find historical fiction books written by authors from Africa for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (119)
61.
Nos richesses - Prix Renaudot des lycéens 2017 by Kaouther Adimi FR
AlgeriaDescription:
En 1935, Edmond Charlot a vingt ans et il rentre à Alger avec une seule idée en tête, prendre exemple sur Adrienne Monnier et sa librairie parisienne. Charlot le sait, sa vocation est de choisir, d'accoucher, de choisir de jeunes écrivains de la Méditerranée, sans distinction de langue ou de religion. Placée sous l'égide de Giono, sa minuscule librairie est baptisée Les Vraies Richesses. Et pour inaugurer son catalogue, il publie le premier texte d'un inconnu : Albert Camus. Charlot exulte, ignorant encore que vouer sa vie aux livres, c'est aussi la sacrifier aux aléas de l'infortune. Et à ceu... continue
62.
Our Riches by Kaouther Adimi EN
Description:
The powerful English debut of a rising young French star, Our Riches is a marvelous, surprising, hybrid novel about a beloved Algerian bookshop A Library Journal Best Book of the Year Finalist for the PEN Translation Prize Winner of the French American Foundation Prize
63.
Out of Darkness, Shining Light : A Novel by Petina Gappah EN
ZimbabweDescription:
“Engrossing, beautiful, and deeply imaginative, Out of Darkness, Shining Light is a novel that lends voice to those who appeared only as footnotes in history, yet whose final, brave act of loyalty and respect changed the course of it. An incredible and important book by a masterful writer.” —Yaa Gyasi, author of Homegoing “This is how we carried out of Africa the poor broken body of Bwana Daudi, the Doctor, David Livingstone, so that he could be borne across the sea and buried in his own land.” So begins Petina Gappah's powerful novel of exploration and adventure in nineteenth-century Africa—... continue
64.
Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz EN
EgyptDescription:
Palace Walk is the first novel in Nobel Prize-winner Naguib Mahfouz’s magnificent Cairo Trilogy, an epic family saga of colonial Egypt that is considered his masterwork. The novels of the Cairo Trilogy trace three generations of the family of tyrannical patriarch al-Sayyid Ahmad Abd al-Jawad, who rules his household with a strict hand while living a secret life of self-indulgence. Palace Walk introduces us to his gentle, oppressed wife, Amina, his cloistered daughters, Aisha and Khadija, and his three sons—the tragic and idealistic Fahmy, the dissolute hedonist Yasin, and the soul-searching in... continue
65.
Paradise by Abdulrazak Gurnah EN
TanzaniaDescription:
By the winner of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature A BBC RADIO 4 Book at Bedtime SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE _______________________ 'A poetic and vividly conjured book about Africa and the brooding power of the unknown' Independent on Sunday 'Gurnah evokes his world in poetic prose which is pure and lucid - a small paradise in itself ... The pleasures, sadnesses and losses in all the shining facets of this book are lingering and exquisite' Guardian 'An obliterated world is enthrallingly retrieved' Sunday Times _______________________ Born in East Africa, Yusuf has few qualms about the j... continue
66.
Paraiso / Paradise by Abdulrazak Gurnah ES
Description:
Una historia de iniciación que ilumina la crudeza y la belleza de la África precolonial, por el premio Nobel de literatura 2021. Cuando los padres de Yusuf, de doce años, le dicen que vivirá con su tío Aziz durante una temporada, el chico se muestra entusiasmado. Pero lo que Yusuf no sabe es que su padre lo ha empeñado para saldar una deuda imposible de pagar, ni tampoco que Aziz no es pariente suyo, sino un rico y acaudalado comerciante con el que viajará por África central y las riberas del Congo en vísperas de la primera guerra mundial. A través de los ojos de ese chiquillo descubriremos un... continue
67.
Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie EN
NigeriaDescription:
Fifteen-year-old Kambili's world is circumscribed by the high walls and frangipani trees of her family compound. Her wealthy Catholic father, under whose shadow Kambili lives, while generous and politically active in the community, is repressive and fanatically religious at home. When Nigeria begins to fall apart under a military coup, Kambili's father sends her and her brother away to stay with their aunt, a University professor, whose house is noisy and full of laughter. There, Kambili and her brother discover a life and love beyond the confines of their father's authority. The visit will li... continue
68.
Radiance of Tomorrow by Ishmael Beah EN
Country: Africa / 
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Description:
A haunting, beautiful first novel by the bestselling author of A Long Way Gone. "Every story begins and ends with a woman, a mother, a grandmother, a girl, a child. Every story is a birth..." So begins Radiance of Tomorrow, Ishmael Beah's first novel, one dogged by memories of horror but glimmering with an improbable hope. When Beah ' s memoir, A Long Way Gone, was published in 2007, it soared to the top of bestseller lists, becoming an instant classic: a harrowing account of Sierra Leone ' s civil war and the fate of child soldiers that " everyone in the world should read " (Carolyn See, The ... continue
69.
River Spirit by Leila Aboulela EN
Description:
The spellbinding new novel from New York Times Notable Author and Caine Prize winner Leila Aboulela about an embattled young woman’s coming of age during the Mahdist War in 19th century Sudan. Leila Aboulela, hailed as “a versatile prose stylist” (New York Times) has also been praised by J.M. Coetzee, Ali Smith, and Ben Okri, among others, for her rich and nuanced novels depicting Islamic spiritual and political life. Her new novel is an enchanting narrative of the years leading up to the British conquest of Sudan in 1898, and a deeply human look at the tensions between Britain and Sudan, Chri... continue
70.
She Would Be King by Wayétu Moore EN
LiberiaDescription:
Wayetu Moore is an inspiration . . . her book is a gift Imbolo Mbue The book is unforgettable . . . irresistibly evocative and fierce. She Would Be King is a masterfully wrought alternate history of magical black resistance Star Tribune This novel dazzles with beauty and transcendent, transformative humanity Sarah Jessica Parker In the west African village of Lai, red-haired Gbessa is cursed at birth and exiled on suspicion of being a witch. Bitten by a viper and left for dead, she survives to discover a new life with a group of African American settlers in the colony of Monrovia. Then Gbessa ... continue