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)
11.
Arrow of God by Chinua Achebe EN
NigeriaDescription:
"My favorite novel." —Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie “A magical writer—one of the greatest of the twentieth century.” —Margaret Atwood “African literature is incomplete and unthinkable without the works of Chinua Achebe.” —Toni Morrison The second novel in Chinua Achebe’s masterful African trilogy, following Things Fall Apart and preceding No Longer at Ease When Things Fall Apart ends, colonial rule has been introduced to Umuofia, and the character of the nation, its values, freedoms, religious and socio-political foundations have substantially and irrevocably been altered. Arrow of God, the second ... continue
12.
Auf dem Strom by Hermann Schulz DE
TanzaniaDescription:
Als der Missionar Friedrich Ganse nach einer Reise nach Bujora zurückkehrt, ist seine Frau Eva tot und seine Tochter Gertrud lebensgefährlich erkrankt. Der herbeigeeilte Schamane des afrikanischen Dorfes hilft Gertrud mit seinen Heilkünsten, und doch sieht er nur einen Weg, das Leben des Kindes zu retten: Vater und Tochter müssen die lange Fahrt mit dem Boot flussabwärts auf sich nehmen, damit Gertrud im Krankenhaus behandelt werden kann. Fünf Tage und fünf Nächte ist er mit dem Kind unterwegs. Unterbrochen wird ihre Fahrt mit dem Boot durch kurze Landg&... continue
13.
Black Mamba Boy by Nadifa Mohamed EN
SomaliaDescription:
Jama is a half-feral child scavenging in the streets of a great seaport. After his mother dies, Jama decides to search for his never-seen father. So begins Jama's extraordinary journey of more than a thousand miles north all the way to Egypt.
14.
Black Moses : A Novel by Alain Mabanckou EN
CongoDescription:
The "heart-breaking" (New York Times Book Review), rollicking, award-winning novel that has been described as "Oliver Twist in 1970s Africa" (Les Inrockuptibles) "One of the most compelling books you'll read in any language this year." —Rolling Stone Winner of the Hurston-Wright Legacy Award Longlisted for the Man Booker International Prize Shortlisted for the Albertine Prize Shortlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize Longlisted for the PEN Translation Prize Greeted with wildly enthusiastic reviews on publication, Alain Mabanckou's riotous novel begins in an orphanage in 1970s Congo-Brazza... continue
15.
ZimbabweDescription:
Bones is a powerful, heart-rending novel that provides a sensitive evocation of Marita, a farm worker, whose only son joined the freedom fighters in Zimbabwes war of liberation. He does not return after the war and Marita is determined to find him or find out what happened to him. This is perhaps a single clear theme in a landscape where women, particularly the poor and the marginalised, suffer many layers of oppression. Maritas courage and endurance are reconstructed through the memories of those who knew her in a language steep in poetry and Shona idiom. Bones, which won the Noma Award in 19... continue
16.
Broken Glass by Alain Mabanckou EN
Description:
Set in a Congolese bar called Credit Gone West, tells the story of a former teacher who is charged with documenting the stories of the bar's partrons.
17.
Butterfly Burning by Yvonne Vera EN
Description:
Butterfly Burning brings the brilliantly poetic voice of Zimbabwean writer Yvonne Vera to American readers for the first time. Set in Makokoba, a black township, in the late l940s, the novel is an intensely bittersweet love story.
18.
Children of the New World : A Novel of the Algerian War by Assia Djebar EN
AlgeriaDescription:
A compelling war novel, as seen by women, sheds light on the current Iraq conflict.
19.
Chiquinho : A Novel of Cabo Verde by Baltasar Lopes da Silva EN
Country: Africa / 
Cape Verde
Cape Verde
Description:
Originally published in Portuguese in 1947, Baltazar Lopes's Chiquinho offers a rich and compelling exploration of Cabo Verde's unique identity. Tracing the arc of its young protagonist's life as he approaches adulthood, the novel follows Chiquinho as he leaves his village, journeys to São Vicente Island to further his education, returns home as drought and famine strike the archipelago, and makes the difficult decision to join his father in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Reflecting the challenges faced by the Creole intellectuals of the so-called Claridade generation, this long-overdue English t... continue
20.
Circles in a Forest by Dalene Matthee EN
Country: Africa / 
South Africa
South Africa
Description:
Born and bred into the tawny magnificence of Africa, Saul would fight to save the vanishing world of his inheritance.