Karina Book

TIGER: Karavan Stories 2023

Tiger is the result of the inaugural Karavan Stories Workshop & Anthology project. All the contributors gathered for a writing workshop at the end of April. Together, we discussed the intricacies of the short story, went through several writing exercises, decided on a theme for our anthology and began exploring ideas for individual stories. In the following months, we kept in touch, drafting and redrafting, until the book you are holding in your hands took shape.
The theme was inspired by a news story that dominated the headlines early this year: an eight-year-old tigress named Sheba escaped from a private farm in Gauteng and in the following days attacked a man and killed a few domestic animals before she was shot by officials. As it was impossible to safely contain and capture the wild feline in the area where she was eventually found, the decision was taken to euthanise her. Sheba’s death renewed debates around the injustice and cruelty inflicted on exotic animals held in captivity.
Touched by Sheba’s story, we chose her kind to inspire Tiger. Contributors could work with the theme in any way they wished, either reimagine it, see it as a springboard or a metaphor, or let their imaginations run wild. The stories which emerged interpret ‘tiger’ as the unknown, untamed or foreign in our lives – what we fear and what we long for, sometimes simultaneously. The authors play with phrases like ‘tiger mom’ and ‘when tigers smoked’ – the evocative Korean equivalent of ‘once upon a time’ – as well as wrestle with ideas, states and emotions which refuse to be captured in words. In their stories, they retrieve familiar fables and fairy tales to interpret the complexities of the present and speculate about the future …

Contributors: Lucienne Argent, ChatGPT, Gail Gilbride, Kerry Hammerton, Anna Hug, Desiree-Anne Martin, Karen Martin, Michelle A. Meyer, Warren Jeremy Rourke, Anita Shapiro, Caitlin Spring, Alexandra Wood

ISBN: 978-1-7764726-0-4

Publication date: December 2023

I would like to thank all contributing authors for embarking on this journey with Karavan Press: like the creature that inspired them, your stories purr, claw and pounce. A big thank you to Monique Cleghorn for the exquisite design of our anthology.
To our readers: enjoy!
Karina M. Szczurek
Cape Town, 2023

Karina Author, Book, Event

Three short-story writers and a bookshop

What better way to approach the end of the year in which Karavan Press published several short story collections than with celebrating three of them on one evening at one of the best bookshops in the country (and the world): Liberty Books. Please join Christy Weyer (and Cleo) as she interviews Dawn Garisch, Diane Awerbuck and Frankie Murrey about their exquisite stories on Tuesday, 5 December, 6 to 8PM.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Karina Author, Book

THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID premiers on M-Net on 25 November 2023

That’s What She Said is a provocative social documentary about eight unconnected men, who watch and respond to the theatre production Brutal Legacy about a woman’s harrowing story of domestic violence. Directed by Natasha Sutherland. Inspired by Tracy Going’s memoir, Brutal Legacy. The documentary premiers on M-Net tomorrow night, 25 November 2023, at 9PM. Watch the trailer here: That’s What She Said.

Karina Author, Book, Event

So, by Beatrice Willoughby launched at The Book Lounge

Listening to Finuala Dowling interviewing her daughter Beatrice Willoughby at the launch of her debut poetry collection – So, – at The Book Lounge last night felt like witnessing literary history in the making. The two have published and performed poetry together before, but with So, Beatrice is embarking on her own, individual path as a poet. She is bringing the love, nurture, talent, support, creativity of an entire community of creatives with her, and making it her own. So, is a remarkable debut. It will enchant you with its exquisite clarity.

Thank you to Beaty and Finuala for an evening of poetic magic, to The Book Lounge for hosting the event, and to everyone who was present for being there on this special evening.

Beatrice Willoughby, Kerry Hammerton and Melissa Sussens
Karina Author, Book, Event

STRIVING FOR SOCIAL EQUITY to be launched at The Book Lounge

Striving for Social Equity, edited by Joy Watson and Ogochukwu Nzewi, is a collection of essays on experiences of social injustice in South Africa. While a few seasoned writers have contributed stories, the book was an initiative to primarily amplify voices that would not ordinarily get published. The stories in the book are about personal experiences of social inequity, illustrating how the ‘personal’ becomes ‘political.’ Focusing on poverty, land and spatial inequality, the construction of identity, poor quality government services and experiences of violence, the book is a must-read for all who care deeply about South Africa. It’s a call to remaining the future of country and why we have to save it.

Don’t miss this crucial conversation!