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. (157)
41.
For Bread Alone by Mohamed Choukri, Paul Bowles EN
MoroccoDescription:
Choukri's book has become a classic of world literature.
42.
Gabriel's Moon by William Boyd EN
GhanaDescription:
From the internationally bestselling author twice recognized by the Booker Prize, William Boyd's most exhilarating novel yet travels from the vibrant streets of sixties London to the sun-soaked cobbles of Cadiz and the frosty squares of Warsaw, as a reluctant spy is drawn into the shadows of espionage and obsession Gabriel Dax is a young man haunted by the memories of a fire that took his mother's life. Every night, when sleep finally comes, he dreams about his childhood home in flames. His days are spent on the move as an acclaimed travel writer, capturing the changing landscapes of Europe in... continue
43.
Glittering City by Cyprian Ekwensi EN
NigeriaDescription:
'"Forget all your fears now. Have a fling this night"' Untrustworthy, charming Fussy Joe spins stories and breaks hearts in this rollicking story set in the 'sensational city' of 1960s Lagos. Penguin Modern: fifty new books celebrating the pioneering spirit of the iconic Penguin Modern Classics series, with each one offering a concentrated hit of its contemporary, international flavour. Here are authors ranging from Kathy Acker to James Baldwin, Truman Capote to Stanislaw Lem and George Orwell to Shirley Jackson; essays radical and inspiring; poems moving and disturbing; stories surreal and fa... continue
44.
ZimbabweDescription:
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2022 BOOKER PRIZE* *SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2023 RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE* *LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN’S PRIZE FOR FICTION* *LONGLISTED FOR THE ASPEN WORDS LITERARY PRIZE* *LONGLISTED FOR THE 2023 DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD* From the award-winning author of the Booker Prize finalist We Need New Names, an anthropomorphic blockbuster of a novel that chronicles the fall of an oppressive regime, and the chaotic, kinetic potential for real liberation that rises in its wake. Glory centres around the unexpected fall of Old Horse, a long-serving, tyrannical leader of the fictional country of Ji... continue
45.
Gold Dust by Ibrahim al-Koni EN
LibyaDescription:
Gold Dust is a classic story of the brotherhood between man and beast, the thread of companionship that is all the difference between life and death in the desert. It is a story of the fight to endure in a world of limitless and waterless wastes, and a parable of the struggle to survive in the most dangerous landscape of all: human society.
46.
Good morning comrades : a novel by Ondjaki EN
AngolaDescription:
Luanda, Angola, 1990. Ndalu is a normal twelve-year old boy in an extraordinary time and place. Like his friends, he enjoys laughing at his teachers, avoiding homework and telling tall tales. But Ndalu's teachers are Cuban, his homework assignments include writing essays on the role of the workers and peasants, and the tall tales he and his friends tell are about a criminal gang called Empty Crate which specializes in attacking schools. Ndalu is mystified by the family servant, Comrade Antonio, who thinks that Angola worked better when it was a colony of Portugal, and by his Aunt Dada, who liv... continue
47.
Description:
A teenage Elvis impersonator navigates the Lagos ghetto in this “searing chronicle of a young man’s coming of age in Nigeria during the late 1970s” (Publishers Weekly). Elvis Oke dreams of escaping the sprawling, swampy, cacophonous city of Lagos, Nigeria. Beset by poverty, floods, and beatings by his alcoholic father, he ekes out a living by impersonating his famous namesake. But soon he is tempted by a life of crime. Thus begins his odyssey into the dangerous underworld of Lagos, guided by his friend Redemption and accompanied by a restless hybrid of voices including The King of Beggars, Sun... continue
48.
Granada : A Novel by Radwa Ashour EN
EgyptDescription:
Radwa Ashour skillfully weaves a history of Granadan rule and an Arabic world into a novel that evokes cultural loss and the disappearance of a vanquished population. The novel follows the family of Abu Jaafar the bookbinder—his wife, widowed daughter-in-law, her two children, and his two apprentices—as they witness Christopher Columbus and his entourage in a triumphant parade featuring exotic plants, animals, human captives from the New World. Embedded in the narrative is the preparation for the marriage of Saad, one of the apprentices, and Saleema, Abu Jaafar's granddaughter—which is elegant... continue
49.
Gravel Heart by Abdulrazak Gurnah EN
TanzaniaDescription:
Moving from revolutionary Zanzibar in the 1960s to restless London in the 1990s, Gravel Heart is a powerful story of exile, migration and betrayal, from the Booker Prize-shortlisted author of ParadiseSalim has always believed that his father does not want him. Living with his parents and his adored Uncle Amir in a house full of secrets, he is a bookish child, a dreamer haunted by night terrors. It is the 1970s and Zanzibar is changing. Tourists arrive, the island's white sands obscuring the memory of recent conflict: longed-for independence from British colonialism swiftly followed by bloody r... continue
50.
Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie EN
Description:
NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST • From the award-winning, bestselling author of Americanah and We Should All Be Feminists—a haunting story of love and war. • Recipient of the Women’s Prize for Fiction “Winner of Winners” award. With effortless grace, celebrated author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie illuminates a seminal moment in modern African history: Biafra's impassioned struggle to establish an independent republic in southeastern Nigeria during the late 1960s. We experience this tumultuous decade alongside five unforgettable characters: Ugwu, a thirteen-year-old houseboy who works f... continue