Karavan Press and Protea Distribution are local distribution partners for FLUID: The Freedom to Be
THE BOOK
In these twenty short stories of inquiry, transgression, osmosis and transformation,
we embrace the fluid nature of humanity.
THE CONTRIBUTORS
The anthology’s contributors are largely established South African authors who
have a track record in the publishing industry, as well as exciting emerging writers. The writers include Peter-Adrian Altini, Diane Awerbuck, K. L. Bohle, Anna Hug, Kingsley Khobotlo, Yuwinn Kraukamp, Alex Latimer, Keith Oliver Lewis, Lerato Mahlangu, Shari Maluleke, David Medalie, Mabel Mnensa, Lerato Moletsane, Nadine Moonsamy, Shanice Ndlovu, Vuyokazi Ngemntu, Robyn Perros, Bridget Pitt, Lorraine Sithole, Jarred Thompson and Andrew Robert Wilson.
THE EDITORS
JOANNE HICHENS has to date edited seven highly praised anthologies of South African short stories, including Bad Company, Bloody Satisfied, Adults Only and Die Laughing. She has published several crime novels, including Divine Justice and Sweet Paradise, and a memoir, Death and the After Parties.
KARINA M. SZCZUREK is the (co)editor of, among others, Touch: Stories of Contact, Encounters with André Brink, Disruption: New Short Fiction from Africa and Hair: Weaving and Unpicking Stories of Identity. She is also the author of Invisible Others and The Fifth Mrs Brink.
FOREWORD: Lorraine Sithole
ISBN/EAN: 978-0-9946805-7-0
PUBLICATION DATE: May 2023
PUBLISHER: Tattoo Press
TATTOO PRESS is an independent small publisher, specializing in contemporary South African short fiction.
READ THE WINNING STORY: “Blue Boy Lagoon” by Keith Oliver Lewis
If you are a bookseller, please contact Protea Distribution to order copies of FLUID: The Freedom to Be. If you are a reader, please ask your local bookshop to order the book for you via Protea Distribution.
Karavan Press and Protea Distribution become local distribution partners for Dov and Joanne Fedler’s GAGMAN
WE ARE DELIGHTED TO ANNOUNCE THAT, TOGETHER WITH PROTEA DISTRIBUTION, KARAVAN PRESS IS THE SOUTH AFRICAN DISTRIBUTION PARTNER FOR DOV AND JOANNE FEDLER’S HAUNTING NOVEL, GAGMAN.
A prisoner in a WWII concentration camp discovers a superpower that could keep him alive – he can make the commandant laugh by telling jokes. Pushed to ends of his wit and humanity, Gagman is propelled into a spiralling madness in which he would sell his soul for a gag simply to live another day.
Evoking themes from The Tattooist of Auschwitz and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, Fedler weaves the story of a Faustian bargain brokered in hell, where redemption only comes in the form of a punchline. He must stay funny – or die.
Enhanced by Fedler’s own haunting illustrations, Gagman masterfully juxtaposes humour and pathos, while exploring themes of survivor guilt, desperate determination and the search for the meaning of life in the wake of the Holocaust. Swapping his yellow star for a tattered comic book, Gagman roams the new world and our consciousness determined to find answers to the deepest questions about loss, hope and belonging.
Gagman is a touching and unique tale of survival through unimaginable horror.
PRAISE FOR GAGMAN
“Gagman is a daring and uncompromising work, both allegory and achingly real — a confronting, haunting, and disturbing descent into hell, drawing on word and image to create a world in which to remain sane one must go mad. Dov Fedler totally inhabits his protagonist, and pushes his craft and his imagination to the limits to expose the horrors of Nazism, and to explore the redemptive power of art, humanity and humour.” — Arnold Zable
“Dov Fedler, in Gagman, has plunged the reader into a crazy world where the Holocaust collides with Superman and Nietzche and the result is a virtuosic graphic and written allegory. It is a very original take on a highly contested history – who can tell the story of the Holocaust? Through a pastiche of Talmudic scholarship and confronting black humour, Gagman is a way of looking into the abyss. A 21st century Scheherazade, a tale for our times.” — Sydney Jewish Museum
“Gagman is a searing and brilliant book which does more to expose the horrors of the Nazis than any book since Eli Wiesel’s Night.” — Alan Gold
“With a humour so searing and audacious it made me gasp, revered cartoonist Dov Fedler bears witness to the horrors of the Holocaust in this extraordinary work of startling originality and ingenuity.” — Suzanne Leal, author of The Deceptions
“Gagman is an extraordinary piece of work — strange and haunting and uniquely itself.” — John Maytham
“Can we transform suffering into art and, more outrageously, into humour? Two Jews walk into my heart with a book that made me laugh and cry at the same time. Gagman treads the edge of the forbidden joke, speaking to the histories of all marginalized people. A book of bitter and sweet nuance in which ‘everything is speakable’.” — Tyson Yunkaporta, author of Sand Talk
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
DOV FEDLER, one of South Africa’s legendary political cartoonists (now retired), has been working on this story for 35 years. His earliest dream was to work for Walt Disney but he ended up working for The Star newspaper as their cartoonist in the early 1970’s instead, and had a career that spanned half a century. Gagman is his fourth book. His previous titles include his memoir, Out of Line (Tracey McDonald Publishers, 2015), If You Can Write, You Can Draw (Joanne Fedler Media, 2018) and Starlite Memories (Tafelberg, 2020).
JOANNE FEDLER is an internationally bestselling author of 14 books, speaker and publisher. Her book Things Without a Name has been optioned for a TV mini-series. She is Dov’s writing mentor, editor and middle daughter.
Publisher: Brio Books (Booktopia)
Publication date: February 2022
ISBN: 9781922598554
If you are a bookseller, please contact Protea Distribution to order copies of Gagman. If you are a reader, please ask your local bookshop to order the book for you via Protea Distribution.
Book signings at EB Constantia
Do not miss these two wonderful authors – Penny Haw and Nancy Richards – at Exclusive Books Constantia on 9 and 16 October respectively.
A great opportunity to chat and get your books signed.
Karavan Press and Protea Distribution become local distribution partners for Penny Haw’s books NICKO and THE WILDERNESS BETWEEN US
We are delighted to announce that, together with Protea Distribution, Karavan Press is the South African distribution partner for Penny Haw’s novels, Nicko and The Wilderness Between Us.
Long-time journalist and columnist, and latter-day author, PENNY HAW has written for many South African publications including Business Day, Financial Mail and Sunday Times. Her children’s book, Nicko, was first published in 2017. It was followed by her debut novel for adults, The Wilderness Between Us, which again expounds her interest in strong women and her love for animals and nature. Penny’s two works of historical fiction will be published by Sourcebooks in 2022 and 2023. She lives in Hout Bay and, when not writing, Penny can be found hiking in the mountains or to the beach with her husband and three dogs.
NICKO
Based on the true story of Alice Kirk and Nicko, the baby vervet monkey who was abandoned near Alice’s farm in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, Nicko tells the remarkable tale of inter-species friendships between humans and animals, both domestic and wild.
Author Penny Haw is Alice’s granddaughter. Here, in Alice’s voice, Penny retells the story of Nicko and his antics, adventures and misadventures with his many friends, as she recalls hearing it throughout her childhood.
It is a heart-warming and humorous story about the love and playfulness of animals and their human friends, which will delight children and animal lovers of all ages.
Praise for the book
“The perfect antidote to modern life with all its stresses, Nicko is on my bookshelf next to Jock of the Bushveld. It’s that kind of a special heart-warming African animal tale. Nicko and his friends will worm their way into your heart and never leave.” Consuelo Roland, author of The Good Cemetery Guide and Lady Limbo
“Oh, what a pleasure! Full of common sense and understanding, and adorned by soft pencil drawings, which catch character and expression deliciously. A gentle delight to read in this modern world.” Jay Heale, reviewer of youth literature for Bookchat, the Children’s Book Network and Book Choice on Fine Music Radio
“A great read because it’s a book for all ages and it is written seemingly effortlessly. I found myself completely invested in the characters while glued to the edge of my seat. Nicko’s playful, mischievous personality leads him into many adventures with his hilarious friends. I greatly recommend this book to anyone.” Mia de Klerk, Grade 5, St Cyprian’s School
Publisher: PMH Publications
Publication date: 2020
ISBN: 978-1-990996-92-4
THE WILDERNESS BETWEEN US
Faye and her friends’ anorexic daughter Clare are thrown together when a flood separates them from their hiking group in the remote, mountainous Tsitsikamma region of South Africa. With Clare critically injured, Faye is compelled to overcome her self-doubt and fears to take care of the younger woman, who opens her heart to Faye.
As their new friendship takes the women on an unexpected journey of discovery, the rest of the group wrestles with the harrowing aftermath of their own near tragedy. When the hiking party is reunited, their number is reduced by one.
Juxtaposing physical and psychological intrigue, The Wilderness Between Us is a tale of two fragile women who unexpectedly find clarity, independence and renewed purpose as they fight to survive. It is a fast-moving story about family, friendship, adventure and the healing power of nature and compassion.
Praise for the book
“A thrilling read fraught with the tension of unravelling relationships, betrayal, broken bones and callously revealed secrets.” Tracy Going, television anchor, and author of Brutal Legacy
“Fans of Cheryl Strayed’s Wild should definitely add Haw’s book to their TBR list.” Diane Barnes, author of More Than
“I expected a tale of family, friendship and adventure, but the added layers of emotional angst and deep heart-searching of the main players took it to a whole new level.” Karen Byrom, The People’s Friend and National Federation of Occupational Pensioners Members’ Magazine, Scotland
Publisher: Köehler Books
Publication date: July 2021
ISBN: 978-1-64663-414-9
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