Professor William Lungisani Chigidi is one of the illustrious academics and writers to ever emerge in the post-independence Zimbabwean literary landscape. His works are memorable especially to a generation of Zimbabwean students who studied literature in the late eighties or thereabouts. His academic writings particularly in indigenous knowledge systems, African oral and written literature,…
Beaven Tapureta, Reporting from Harare, Zimbabwe In the cool evening of October 10 a gathering of ‘the mad’ writers, publishers, artists, arts journalists, academics, friends and family enjoyed the memorable official launch of The Mad, a newly co-published English translation of Ignatius T Mabasa’s 1999 Shona novel Mapenzi, a classic. A charming mood prevailed at…
Tanaka Chidora is a Zimbabwean academic and writer, recognized for his bilingual works in English and Shona. He translated Tsitsi Dangarembga’s The Book of Not and published acclaimed poetry in Because Sadness is Beautiful? His forthcoming novel, Born Location, has garnered recognition, alongside his awards for short stories, including the inaugural Carnelian Heart Publishing award.
Afrofuturism, or simply African Futurism, was the main theme for the 2025 National Arts Merit Awards (NAMA) in Zimbabwe. It was an awakening, as it became clear that the judges made their selections for nominations and winners according to this cultural trend. Do Zimbabwean–or African–artists fully grasp the art of Afrofuturism? To look into the…
Chidima Anekwe is a Nigerian-American short story writer and essayist and two-time Pushcart Prize nominee. She is recently graduated from Yale University, where she studied English Literature. Her writing has appeared in or is forthcoming from MAYDAY, Torch Literary Arts, SWING, Chapter House Journal (formerly Mud City), The Madrid Review, and elsewhere. She has received…
A Short Story by Samantha Rumbidzai Vazhure It has been a year since Harusiyi died. The homestead is brimming with progeny from all over the country and abroad for magadziro aHarusiyi, the Karanga ceremony to bring back the spirit of the deceased into the home to look after the family. Mudzimu will, going forward, be…
Joram was about to exit the hut when his father’s wife said he couldn’t leave yet. She had an urgent issue to discuss with him. He stopped, wondering what could be more urgent than all the things they had done together. He sat on the bed and waited for her to continue. She sat on…
Reviewed by Beaven Tapureta The Testament of Black Jesus (2024), an epic by the award-winning protest poet Philani Amadeus Nyoni, presents a black saviour who, according to the poet’s words, ‘rises to speak great and dangerous words’. The saviour has a responsibility thrust upon her by past events, to spread the legacy, good or bad,…
Story by Beaven Tapureta Some writers go on retreats with a specific structure which subtly or openly calls for participants to have a refined product at the end. There are benefits, of course, drawn from these retreats which involve working with experienced facilitators who closely follow your development for weeks or months. In terms of…
It’s my first time in Kampala; this city that’s as cacophonous as a hen yard. Traders selling their merchandise by the roadside seem to be in a contest to see who can sing in the loudest tone as they try to arrest the attention of passers-by. Several young men stand in circles, watching and cheering on a fellow who’s inside the circle, dancing to Lingala music from a huge cassette player.
