Popular African Adult Books

Find adult books written by authors from Africa for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (27)

11.

Maryam's Maze by Mansoura Ez-Eldin EN

Rating: 3 (1 vote)
Country: Africa / Egypt flag Egypt
Description:
Maryam's Maze is an enigmatic novel by one of the most promising authors of a vibrant new generation of Egyptian writers. Set in the house of Yusuf el Tagi, Maryam's Maze relates the story of a woman struggling to find her way through the confusion of the world around her. Using the literary device of the 'double, ' Maryam's Maze narrates a story that on one level touches on universal human emotions. At the same time the inner maze of dreams and memories in which the young Maryam finds herself stirs greater resonance in issues of modern Egyptian life. Echoing themes found in her earlier short ... continue

12.

Master Harold...and the boys by Athol Fugard EN

Rating: 4.5 (2 votes)
Description:
Drama set in South Africa during apartheid.

13.

Song of Lawino & Song of Ocol by Okot p'Bitek EN

Rating: 4.5 (3 votes)
Country: Africa / Uganda flag Uganda
Description:
Two African literary works by Okot P'Bitek available together in the African Writers Series.

14.

The book of Memory by Petina Gappah EN

0 Ratings
Country: Africa / Zimbabwe flag Zimbabwe
Description:
In The Book of Memory, an albino woman named Memory is languishing in a maximum security prison in Harare, Zimbabwe, where she has been tried and convicted of murder. As part of her appeal, her lawyer insists that she write down what happened; that is, the events that led to the killing of her adoptive father, Lloyd Hendricks. But who was Lloyd Hendricks? Why does Memory feel no remorse for his death? And did everything happen exactly as she remembers? Moving between the townships of the poor and the suburbs of the rich, and between past and present, the 2009 Guardian First Book Award–winning ... continue

15.

The Day the Leader Was Killed by Naguib Mahfouz EN

0 Ratings
Country: Africa / Egypt flag Egypt
Description:
From the Nobel Prize laureate and author of the acclaimed Cairo Trilogy, a beguiling and artfully compact novel set in Sadat's Egypt. The time is 1981, Anwar al-Sadat is president, and Egypt is lurching into the modern world. Set against this backdrop, The Day the Leader Was Killed relates the tale of a middle-class Cairene family. Rich with irony and infused with political undertones, the story is narrated alternately by the pious and mischievous family patriarch Muhtashimi Zayed, his hapless grandson Elwan, and Elwan's headstrong and beautiful fiancee Randa. The novel reaches its climax with... continue

16.

The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi EN

Rating: 4 (7 votes)
Country: Africa / Nigeria flag Nigeria
Description:
"A tender, potent, and compulsively readable novel of a Nigerian-Indian family and the deeply held secret that tests their traditions and bonds"--

17.

The Girl on the Train : A Novel by Paula Hawkins EN

Rating: 2 (1 vote)
Country: Africa / Zimbabwe flag Zimbabwe
Description:
The #1 New York Times Bestseller, USA Today Book of the Year, now a major motion picture starring Emily Blunt. The debut psychological thriller that will forever change the way you look at other people's lives, from the author of Into the Water and A Slow Fire Burning. “Nothing is more addicting than The Girl on the Train.”—Vanity Fair “The Girl on the Train has more fun with unreliable narration than any chiller since Gone Girl. . . . [It] is liable to draw a large, bedazzled readership.”—The New York Times “Marries movie noir with novelistic trickery. . . hang on tight. You'll be surprised b... continue

18.

The Girl with the Louding Voice : A Novel by Abi Daré EN

Rating: 5 (9 votes)
Country: Africa / Nigeria flag Nigeria
Description:
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A READ WITH JENNA TODAY SHOW BOOK CLUB PICK! “Brave, fresh . . . unforgettable.”—The New York Times Book Review “A celebration of girls who dare to dream.”—Imbolo Mbue, author of Behold the Dreamers (Oprah’s Book Club pick) Shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and recommended by The New York Times, Marie Claire, Vogue, Essence, PopSugar, Daily Mail, Electric Literature, Red, Stylist, Daily Kos, Library Journal, The Everygirl, and Read It Forward! The unforgettable, inspiring story of a teenage girl growing up in a rural Nigerian village who longs to ge... continue

19.

The Happy Marriage by Tahar Ben Jelloun EN

0 Ratings
Country: Africa / Morocco flag Morocco
Description:
The story of one couple - first from the husband's point of view, then from the wife's. The husband, a painter in Casablanca, has been paralyzed by a stroke at the very height of his career and becomes convinced that his marriage is the reason for his decline. Walled up within his illness and desperate to break free of a deeply destructive relationship, he finds escape in writing a secret book about his hellish marriage. When his wife finds it, she responds point by point with her own version of the facts, offering her own striking and incisive reinterpretation of their story.

20.

The Kindness of Enemies by Leila Aboulela EN

0 Ratings
Country: Africa / Egypt flag Egypt
Description:
While researching the life of Imam Shamil, a nineteenth-century Muslim leader who led a resistance against Russia during the Caucasian War, a history professor discovers that one of her students is descended from the historical figure and also possesses his priceless sword.