'A sweet, charming, funny story about finding friendship, finding yourself, and love' Netgalley Reviewer 'I was waiting for a book like this!' Netgalley Reviewer ***INCLUDED IN THE AFRICA CENTER'S ROUND-UP OF 50 NOTABLE AFRICAN BOOKS OF 2021*** ___________________________________ Zainab Sekyi is on a quest to find herself. . . She's moving to New York City to pursue her lifelong dream to become an illustrator, but she doesn't just want to get a job. She's also on a mission to make enough money to go on a night out, buy a whole bottle of wine (not just a glass) and, most importantly of all, to fall in love. But as she grows accustomed to the hustle and bustle of city life - with the help of her new roommate Mary Grace, and life-long friend, Densua - she begins to hear the voices of her ancestors in her mind. . . Could understanding her family's past hold the key to Zainab's future? A charming romcom about one woman learning to fall in love in one of the most magical cities on earth, Ayesha Harruna Attah's novel is perfect for fans of Uzma Jalaluddin, Kiley Reid and Angela Makholwa. ___________________________________ Readers love Zainab Takes New York. . . 'If you're looking for a cute fun read, here is your next book' Netgalley Reviewer, 5 stars 'This was just the most beautiful book, from it's gorgeous cover to the immersive storyline. I haven't read anything quite as engaging as this in recent years!' Netgalley Reviewer, 5 stars 'Ayesha has a way of writing that makes it hard to put the book down.' Netgalley Reviewer, 5 stars 'This book is filled with so many lessons from incredible characters.' Netgalley Reviewer, 5 stars 'Charming' Netgalley Reviewer, 5 stars ___________________________________ Praise for Ayesha Harruna Attah: 'Beautifully written story that stimulates rich mental imagery' ***** Reader Review 'Very beautifully written' ***** Reader Review 'One of the best books I've read in the last 10 years!' ***** Reader Review 'Amazing worth reading' ***** Reader Review 'I couldn't put this book down' ***** Reader Review 'Thank you for a beautiful story' ***** Reader Review

Twin sisters Hassana and Husseina have always shared their lives. But after a raid on their village in 1892, the twins are torn apart. Taken in different directions, far from their home in rural West Africa, each sister finds freedom and a new start. Hassana settles in in the city of Accra, where she throws herself into working for political and social change. Husseina travels to Salvador, Brazil, where she becomes immersed in faith, worshipping spirits that bridge the motherland and the new world. Separated by an ocean, they forge new families, ward off dangers, and begin to truly know themselves. As the twins pursue their separate paths, they remain connected through their shared dreams. But will they ever manage to find each other again? “Uplifting . . . sizzles with sister-love and magic. What an incredible storyteller!”—Yaba Badoe, author of A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars

This volume of exiles’ accounts “[uses] the stories as springboards to discussing Iraqi history, politicization, and diasporic experiences in depth” (International Journal of Middle East Studies). With the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Iraqis abroad, hoping to return one day to a better Iraq, became uncertain exiles. Return to Ruin tells the human story of this exile in the context of decades of U.S. imperial interests in Iraq—from the U.S. backing of the 1963 Ba’th coup and support of Saddam Hussein’s regime in the 1980s, to the 1991 Gulf War and 2003 invasion and occupation. Zainab Saleh shares the experiences of Iraqis she met over fourteen years of fieldwork in Iraqi London—offering stories from an aging communist nostalgic for the streets she marched since childhood, a devout Shi’i dreaming of holy cities and family graves, and newly uprooted immigrants with fresh memories of loss, as well as her own. Focusing on debates among Iraqi exiles about what it means to be an Iraqi after years of displacement, Saleh weaves a narrative that draws attention to a once-dominant, vibrant Iraqi cultural landscape and social and political shifts among the diaspora after decades of authoritarianism, war, and occupation in Iraq. Through it all, this book illuminates how Iraqis continue to fashion a sense of belonging and imagine a future, built on the shards of these shattered memories.

'Remarkable' Chika Unigwe, author of On Black Sisters' Street AKORFA AND SELASI WERE ONCE INSEPARABLE. NOW, THEY MUST REPAIR THEIR BROKEN RELATIONSHIP OR LOSE EACH OTHER FOREVER. Growing up in the same small Ghanaian town, Selasi and Akorfa were more than just cousins, they were best friends. The girls shared everything: their dreams, their desires, their every secret. But as they enter their teens Selasi begins to change, until Akorfa barely recognises the sullen, withdrawn girl she once knew so well. Years go by before they cross paths again, and their lives look very different now. Although they are separated by continents, they have each found success in their careers: Akorfa works in international development in the US; Selasi is a restaurateur running the hottest spot in Accra. It takes a crisis to pull them back together, forcing both women to confront shocking secrets and childhood trauma that neither one has been willing to address. Now they must bridge the gulf between them to stop history repeating itself. From the author of Reese's Book Club pick His Only Wife, Nightbloom is a powerful story about female friendship, the relationships that shape us and the people we never quite leave behind. 'I was hooked on Peace's writing! I found Nightbloom a blistering story, written with razor sharp precision.' Huma Qureshi, author of Things We Do Not Tell the People We Love

Zainab Salbi was eleven years old when her father was chosen to be Saddam Hussein's personal pilot and her family's life was grafted onto his. Her mother, the beautiful Alia, taught her daughter the skills she needed to survive. A plastic smile. Saying yes. Burying in boxes in her mind the horrors she glimpsed around her. "Learn to erase your memories," she instructed. "He can read eyes." In this richly visual memoir, Salbi describes tyranny as she saw it - through the eyes of a privileged child, a rebellious teenager, a violated wife, and ultimately a public figure fighting to overcome the skill that once kept her alive: silence. Between Two Worlds is a riveting quest for truth that deepens our understanding of the universal themes of power, fear, sexual subjugation, and the question one generation asks the one before it: How could you have let this happen to us?

Based on true events, a story of courage, forgiveness, love, and freedom in precolonial Ghana, told through the eyes of two women born to vastly different fates. Aminah lives an idyllic life until she is brutally separated from her home and forced on a journey that transforms her from a daydreamer into a resilient woman. Wurche, the willful daughter of a chief, is desperate to play an important role in her father's court. These two women's lives converge as infighting among Wurche's people threatens the region, during the height of the slave trade at the end of the nineteenth century. Through the experiences of Aminah and Wurche, The Hundred Wells of Salaga offers a remarkable view of slavery and how the scramble for Africa affected the lives of everyday people.

Set in the 1990s in West Africa, Saturday's Shadows is a novel about the slow, yet unpredictable implosion of a marriage. It is also a tale of love and devotion, as well as a study in the psychology of tyrants and how their rule destroys not only their subjects but themselves. Influenced by Naguib Mahfouz's Palace Walk (Anchor, 1956) and William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying (1930), Saturday's Shadows allows its four characters to narrate how they will do almost anything to find themselves.

New Monologues for Women features forty monologues from plays published by Bloomsbury Methuen Drama recently. The monologues are selected by the editor, Geoffrey Colman, on account of their relevance to drama school students and recent graduates entering the profession. Each monologue is preceded by an introductory paragraph, written by the editor, outlining the setting, character type, and point in the plot. Suggestions are offered for staging, character interpretation, points of significance in the text, and how to draw from decisions made in professional productions. This collection is the go-to resource for the auditioning actor with an insatiable appetite for new, original and excellent material.

Winner of the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction Winner of the Freedom to Read Award Winner of the Hubert Evans Prize In the midst of an unfolding international crisis, renowned journalist Deborah Campbell finds herself swept up in the mysterious disappearance of Ahlam, her guide and friend. Campbell’s frank, personal account of a journey through fear and the triumph of friendship and courage is as riveting as it is illuminating. The story begins in 2007, when Deborah Campbell travels undercover to Damascus to report on the exodus of Iraqis into Syria, following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. There she meets and hires Ahlam, a refugee working as a “fixer”—providing Western media with trustworthy information and contacts to help get the news out. Ahlam has fled her home in Iraq after being kidnapped while running a humanitarian center. She supports her husband and two children while working to set up a makeshift school for displaced girls. Strong and charismatic, she has become an unofficial leader of the refugee community. Campbell is inspired by Ahlam’s determination to create something good amid so much suffering, and the two women become close friends. But one morning, Ahlam is seized from her home in front of Campbell’s eyes. Haunted by the prospect that their work together has led to her friend’s arrest, Campbell spends the months that follow desperately trying to find Ahlam—all the while fearing she could be next. The compelling story of two women caught up in the shadowy politics behind today’s most searing conflict, A Disappearance in Damascus reminds us of the courage of those who risk their lives to bring us the world’s news.

'Deeply compelling... Sexy.' Roxane Gay 'Takes you on a dizzying tour of love addiction, rehab, homophobia, betrayal, obsession and the aching need for a mother's unconditional love. At different times throughout, you'll find the protagonist needy, reckless and selfish but also smart, intuitive and trapped between two cultures - because as we all know, humans are nothing if not complicated. Roxane is right: this deserves five stars.' Stylist Told in vignettes that flash between the US and the Middle East, Zaina Arafat's powerful debut novel traces her protagonist's progress from blushing teen to creative and confused adulthood. In Brooklyn, she moves into an apartment with her first serious girlfriend and tries to content herself with their comfortable relationship. Soon, her longings, so closely hidden during her teenage years, explode out into reckless romantic encounters and obsessions with other people which results in her seeking unconventional help to face her past traumas and current demons. As heard on Radio 2 Book Club, this captivating novel is perfect for readers who love Maggie Nelson and Garth Greenwell. Opening up the fantasies and desires of one young woman caught between cultural, religious and sexual identities, You Exist Too Much is a captivating story charting two of our most intense longings - for love, and a place to call home. What people are saying about You Exist Too Much: 'Real and deliciously messy.' Attitude 'An elegantly written debut... A thought-provoking exploration of love and belonging, and how the two come together to create a sense of self.' New European 'Exquisitely written and crafted with a compelling lightness of touch.' Living Magazine 'A nuanced, sparky debut.' Observer 'A wonderfully written, queer, coming-of-age story.' i newapaper 'A novel of self-discovery following a Palestinian-American girl as she navigates queerness, love addiction and a series of tumultuous relationships.' The Millions, One of the Most Anticipated Books of the Year 'Powerful... With You Exist Too Much, Arafat announces herself as a provocative and insightful writer.' Irish Times