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In his sharply crafted, unnerving first collection of speculative
fiction shorts, Courttia Newland envisages an alternate future as
lived by the African diaspora. Robots used as human proxies in a
war become driven by all-too-human desires; Kill Parties roam the
streets of a post-apocalyptic world; a matriarchal race of mer
creatures depends on inter-breeding with mortals to survive;
mysterious seeds appear in cities across the world, growing into
the likeness of people in their vicinity. Through transfigured
bodies and impossible encounters, Newland brings a sharp, fresh eye
to age-old themes of the human capacity for greed, ambition and
self-destruction, but ultimately of our strength and resilience.
A middle-aged man with a guilty taste for schoolgirls looks for a
way to end his shame; a hotel receptionist begins a sexual
adventure with shattering consequences; a young man is troubled by
a persistent itch behind his shoulder-blades; a young African boy
confronts his bullying class-mates in a surprising way; and a
sculptor is asked to make a realistic life-size woman by a Japanese
client. In these and the other stories in this collection, there is
a delight in the dark, the grotesque, and the uncanny. In each of
the stories, most of the characters are Black, and it both does and
doesn't matter that this is so. As Courttia Newland's previous
books have led us to expect, he is a meticulous, insightful
observer of West London's Black communities, of their patterns of
speech, fashions, their pleasures and the pressures of racism and
exclusion they seek to escape. These are communities (and stories)
in which crime, violence and drugs are part of the realities of
life. But what is important here is not the sociology, but the
form, in particular Courttia Newland's reinvigoration of the
classic, popular short story form with its play with narrative
twists and the unexpected. Drawing inspiration from everything from
traditional horror movies to the contemporary sophistication of
Japanese works in this genre, Newland brings together the literary
and the popular in a uniquely Black British mix. In an afterword to
these stories, Newland writes of his frustration with the narrow
limits imposed by mainstream publishing expectations on Black
British fiction, trapped between the immigrant 'Windrush' novel and
the Yardie gangster novel with its American borrowings. "Music for
the Off-Key" is distinctively British in its materials, black in a
number of senses, and a thoroughly entertaining and sometimes
shocking break-out from limiting expectations.
SHORTLISTED FOR THE ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD 2022 LONGLISTED FOR THE
GORDON BURN PRIZE A monumental speculative fiction story of love,
loyalty, politics and conscience set in parallel Londons The Ark
was built to save the lives of the many, but rapidly became a
refuge for the elite, the entrance closed without warning. Years
later, Markriss Denny is one of the select few granted entry. He
carries with him a closely guarded secret: the ability of his
spirit to leave his body and transcend the known world. But once
in, he learns of another who carries the same power, and their
existence could spell catastrophe for humanity. Denny is forced
into a desperate race to understand his abilities, and in doing so
uncovers the truth about the Ark, himself and the people he thought
he once knew.
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The Global Village (Paperback)
Courttia Newland, Monique Roffey; Contributions by Olive Senior, Michael Gonzales, Catherine Selby, …
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R220
Discovery Miles 2 200
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Ships in 12 - 17 working days
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Ambitious and contemporary, this groundbreaking collection offers
new short fiction by exciting, fresh talents and established
authors from around the world. Covering a myriad of topics--love,
sex, death, war, crime, and the environment--each tale boasts a
unique perspective and voice, with settings that move from India to
New York to Cyberspace. With vibrant characters--including drug
smugglers, call-center workers, and tourists--each of the 26
stories tackles personal and social issues in funny, poignant, and
often dark ways.
"Publishers Weekly" has named "The Gospel According to Cane" a
2012-13 "Notable African-American Title."
"The emotional tension is sometimes almost unbearable as a mother
and son attempt to build a relationship out of their shared pain. A
unique and very moving novel."
--"Booklist"
"A mother's love is unbreakable, as Frank O'Connor Award-nominee
Newland demonstrates in his latest novel... The storytelling is as
captivating as the story itself. Newland, a Jamaican-born British
writer, seamlessly integrates the joy, fear, uncertainty, and
sadness... Newland's prose is beautiful. His novel--part homecoming
narrative in the vein of Toni Morrison's "Beloved" and part
haunting tale of loss similar to Ernest Gaines's "In My Father's
House"--will appeal to all lovers of literary fiction."
--"Library Journal"
"The characters are finely drawn with realistic ambiguity and
genuinely exhibit the durability of grief and pain."
--"Publishers Weekly"
"Newland delivers an intense portrait of mental conflict against a
gritty inner-city background. The book we are reading is Beverley
Cottrell's journal...This 'journal of my pain, ' becomes a spiral
of cathartic violence during which Newland deftly keeps the reader
guessing."
--"Kirkus Reviews"
"One of Britain's most important young black novelists...a truly
gifted storyteller."
--"Time Out London"
"Courttia Newland blazes a literary path difficult to challenge,
with a style so crisp, searing, and profoundly philosophical. His
"Gospel According to Cane" is grippingly disturbing, pulled from
the depth of human despair and sheer madness, possibly best
understood in the realm of psychiatry."
--"The Gleaner" (Jamaica)
"As Bev confesses in her journals to events that make her appear
less than the fragile idealist she first appeared, Newland's tale
gathers pace and tension. Violence becomes a real possibility.
Happy ending or sad? Newland delivers a bit of both in this
complex, cathartic portrait of an intelligent, if not always
sensible woman, who refuses any longer to be defined by
loss."
--"Toronto Star"
"The abduction of a child would devastate any family. But what if
that child returned, many years later, a young man and a stranger?
Could that be even worse? "The Gospel According to Cane" is a
gripping novel that's rich with both grief and great love. Courttia
Newland is a fierce talent."
--Victor LaValle, author of "Big Machine"
Beverley Cottrell had a dream life: a prestigious job, a beautiful
husband and baby boy. This is stolen from her one winter afternoon
when her son Malakay is kidnapped from a parked car. Despite a
media campaign, a full police investigation, and the offer of a
reward, Malakay is never found. Beverley's marriage soon dissolves
and her husband immigrates from England to the U.S. with a new
wife.
Beverley gives up her job, sells the house, and moves from the
leafy suburbs to the inner city to reside in a west London housing
project. She cocoons herself in grief, growing more isolated with
each passing year. After two decades she gives up any hope of
finding her son. She teaches children who have been expelled from
school in the local community center, bright kids thrown on
society's scrap heap.
Beverley starts to believe she has finally pieced her life
together--until a young man starts appearing wherever she goes.
Beverley is convinced that he's stalking her. One dark evening the
stalker gets past her security door and calls through her
letterbox. He tells her not to be scared. He says that he is
Malakay, her son.
"The Gospel According to Cane" is a novel about inner-city youth in
contemporary London. It's a meditation on pain and loss, the burden
of heritage, and how the past can blur the present. It's about
trust and the perceived lack of trust, disillusion, and its
consequences. A world where everyone is the victim, and no one is
to blame.
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Bare Lit (Paperback)
Kavita Bhanot, Courttia Newland, Mend Mariwany
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R353
R298
Discovery Miles 2 980
Save R55 (16%)
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Ships in 10 - 15 working days
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Writing Short Stories: A Writers' and Artists' Companion is an
essential guide to writing short fiction successfully. PART 1
explores the nature and history of the form, personal reflections
by the editors, and help getting started with ideas, planning and
research. PART 2 includes tips by leading short story writers,
including: Alison Moore, Jane Rogers, Edith Pearlman, David Vann,
Anthony Doerr, Vanessa Gebbie, Alexander MacLeod, Adam Thorpe and
Elspeth Sandys. PART 3 contains practical advice - from shaping
plots and exploring your characters to beating writers' block,
rewriting and publishing your stories.
A celebratory 20th anniversary edition of A landmark collection
from black writers across the literary spectrum 'The fact that IC3,
the police identity for Black, is the only collective term that
relates to our situation here as residents ('Black British' is
political and refers to Africans, Asians, West Indians, Americans
and sometimes even Chinese) is a sad fact of life I could not
ignore' from Courttia Newland's Introduction, 2000 First published
twenty years ago into a different literary landscape, IC3 showcases
the work of more than 100 black British authors, celebrating their
lasting contributions to literature and British culture. It spans a
wealth of genres to demonstrate the range and astonishing literary
achievements of black writers, including: Poetry from Roger
Robinson, Bernardine Evaristo, Jackie Kay and Benjamin Zephaniah.
Short stories from Ferdinand Dennis, Diana Evans, Catherine Jonson,
E.A. Markham and Ray Shell. Essays from Floella Benjamin, Linda
Bellos, Treva Etienne, Kevin Le Gendre and Labi Siffre. Memoirs
from Margaret Busby, Henry Bonsu, Buchi Emecheta, Leone Ross, and
many others. Featuring a new introduction from original editors
Kadija Sesay and Courttia Newland, this collection reflects on the
legacy of these writers, their extraordinary work, and stands as a
reminder that black British writers remain underrepresented in
literature today.
SOCIETY WITHIN takes us back to the Greenside Estate, West London, scene of Courttia Newland’s ground-breaking and hugely successful first novel, THE SCHOLAR. Newly arrived on the estate is Elisha: sweet, bright, sassy and just eighteen. As Elisha negotiates some new territory with more than fair share of dark corners, we take in the vividly interlocking lives of the other Greensiders: cool, ambitious Valerie, with some bad secrets to deal with; Little Stacey, looking for his first girl; Orin, dealing, stealing and trying to stay away from anything too lethal. Courttia Newland tells gripping stories from real lives – stories of dreamers and fighters, love and revenge, friendship and betrayal – in a language burning with energy, originality and conviction.
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