Popular African Short Story Books
Find short story books written by authors from Africa for the next part of the Read Around The World Challenge. (32)
21.
Secret Lives and Other Stories by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o EN
KenyaDescription:
'One of the greatest writers of our time' Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Ngugi wa Thiong'o is renowned for his political novels and plays, yet he honed his craft as a short story writer. First published in 1975, Secret Lives and Other Stories brings together a range of Ngugi's political short stories. From tales of the meeting between magic and superstition, to stories about the modernising forces of colonialism, and the pervasive threat of nature, this collection celebrates the storytelling might of one of Africa's best-loved writers.
22.
Sit Down and Listen: Stories from South Africa by Ellen Kuzwayo EN
Country: Africa / 
South Africa
South Africa
Description:
'For so many years now,' writes the author of this delightful collection, 'we have owned our stories while owning so little else.'
Ellen Kuzwayo's autobiography Call Me Woman was an international bestseller. At last we hear her extraordinarily distinct voice again, this time in a series of stories culled from her rich personal experience as community leader, social worker, teacher and black woman in South Africa.
These tales explore the complex life of contemporary black South Africa through the traditional form of story-telling. But the stories themselves are no... continue
23.
Soweto, Under the Apricot Tree by Nicholas Mhlongo EN
Country: Africa / South Africa
South Africa
Description:
Imbued with a sense of place, this short story collection captures the vibrancy of Soweto and surrounds. Told with satirical flair, life and death intertwine in these tales where funerals and the ancestors feature strongly. Take a seat under the apricot tree and let a born storyteller enthral you with tales both entertaining and thought-provoking. -- Publisher's description.
24.
The Collector of Treasures and Other Botswana Village Tales by Bessie Head EN
Country: Africa / South Africa
South Africa
Description:
Botswana village tales about subjects such as the breakdown of family life and the position of women in this society.
25.
The Quarter by Naguib Mahfouz EN
EgyptDescription:
Meet the people of Cairo's Gamaliya quarter. There is Nabqa, son of Adam the waterseller who can only speak truths; the beautiful and talented Tawhida who does not age with time; Ali Zaidan, the gambler, late to love; and Boss Saqr who stashes his money above the bath. A neighbourhood of demons, dancing and sweet halva, the quarter keeps quiet vigil over the secrets of all who live there. This collection by pre-eminent Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz was recently discovered among his old papers. Found with a slip of paper titled 'for publishing 1994', they are published here for the first time.... continue
26.
The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie EN
NigeriaDescription:
A collection of twelve stories includes the tale of a medical student in hiding with a poor Muslim woman, and a woman who discovers a devastating secret about her brother's death.
27.
There is a Country : New Fiction from the New Nation of South Sudan by Nyuol Lueth Tong EN
Country: Africa / 
South Sudan
South Sudan
Description:
There Is a Country collects eight engrossing pieces by South Sudanese authors--the first collection of its kind, from the youngest country in the world. Wrestling with a history marked by war and displacement, the work here presents a fresh and necessary account of an emerging nation, past and present. In vivid, gripping prose, There Is a Country's stories explore youth and love, life and death: a first glimpse of what South Sudanese literature has to offer.
Chad
Senegal30.
Waiting For an Angel by Helon Habila EN
Description:
WAITING FOR AN ANGEL marks the debut of one of Africa's most promising new writers. Lomba is a young journalist living under military regime in Lagos, one of the most dangerous cities in the world. His mind is full of soul music and girls and thenovel he is writing. But his room-mate goes mad and is beaten up by soldiers, his first love is forced to marry a man she doesn't love, and his neighbours are planning a demo which is bound to incite riot and arrests. Lomba can no longer bury his head in the sand. He must write the truth about this reign of terror . . . WAITING FOR AN ANGEL captures th... continue