Jacaranda Books,The Africa Centre, Chakula and AFREADA, host the launch of debut Cameroon-set queer love story, These Letters End In Tears.About this Event
In partnership with The Africa Centre, Chakula and AFREADA, Jacaranda Books presents the launch of debut Cameroon-set queer love story, These Letters End in Tears by Musih Tedji Xaviere.
Xaviere will be in conversation with mentor and fellow author JJ Bola, moderated by AFREADA and OtherStories founder, Nancy Adimora at The Africa Centre.
These Letters End in Tears, is a queer Cameroon-set love story that powerfully charts the different ways that love, despite all odds, can persevere after the lovers; Fatima and Bessem are separated by the tragedy of discovery in a country where same-sex relationships are punishable by law.
Lauded by Kelechi Okafor as 'a gorgeous and heart wrenching debut' this important story sheds light on Cameroonian life, bringing themes of civil war, queer life, gender, religion and language as it operates in this country that is a metaphor for much of Africa.
About the Authors
Musih Tedji Xaviere (Njinikom, Cameroon) is a UK-based writer, activist, and Moth Storyteller. She is an alumna of the Goethe-Institut, the Moth, and the African Women Development Fund writing programs. With her debut novel, These Letters End in Tears, she won the 2021 Pontas and JJ Bola Emerging Writer’s Prize, and her short story, "Clever Girl," has appeared in Odd Magazine.
JJ Bola is a writer and poet, he has published two novels, No Place to Call Home and the Selfless Act of Breathing, in the UK & the North America, which have been translated in several languages including French, Brazilian-Portuguese, Spanish and Italian. He has a published a non-fiction book, Mask Off: Masculinity Redefined, three poetry collections and a children’s book called Fly Boy, which is about a young boy learning to manage his emotions so he can fly. JJ is also a UNHCR Ambassador and works as a Mental Health Social Worker.
About Your Moderator
Nancy Adimora is an award-winning publishing consultant and the founder of OtherStories, a 360° publishing consultancy + studio based between London and Lagos. She is also the founder of AFREADA, an African literary magazine. Most recently, Nancy worked at HarperCollins Publishers as the Head of Talent & Audience Development. In 2020 she was named a Bookseller Rising Star, and the following year she was listed as one of the 150 most influential people in UK publishing.
About our Partners
The Africa Centre is dedicated to championing contemporary Africa through education, arts, entrepreneurship, innovation and culture. Our mission is to education, connect, and advocate for Africa and its diaspora.
Coordinated by Vee Belina, the Chakula programme at the Africa Centre is a monthly series of events, workshops and dialogues geared towards supporting and empowering Black and African LGBTQ+ communities.
AFREADA is an online literary magazine, featuring original short stories from emerging writers across the Continent. A fusion of the two words, ‘Africa’ and ‘Reader’, we live for the well-crafted narratives and effortless reads that speak to our daily realities as Africans at home and abroad.
About Us
is an award-winning, diverse-owned independent publisher and bookseller who ‘has held the torch for diversity in publishing’ since 2014, for writers in the UK, Africa and the wider diaspora. We describe ourselves as a place where books are bigger than books because of our commitment not just to telling stories, but developing, showcasing and protecting our community’s writers, cultures, histories, pasts and futures.
Event Venue
The Africa Centre, 66 Great Suffolk Street, London, United Kingdom
GBP 5.00 to GBP 20.00