Striving for Social Equity

August 26, 2025September 4, 2025 Karina Author, Book, Festival

Open Book Festival 2025: Karavan Press & Holland House Books

The first weekend of September is Open Book Festival time (5-7 September 2025), and we – Karavan Press, Holland House Books and our wonderful authors – are thrilled to be part of these inspiring, thought-provoking and soul-restoring conversations.

Friday, 5 September 2025

11:00-12:00

12:30-13:30

14:00-15:00

16:00-17:00

Saturday, 6 September 2025

10:00-11:00

14:00-15:00

16:00-17:30

18:00-19:00

Sunday, 7 September 2025

14:00-15:00

Karavan Press author Nick Mulgrew is also in town for the festival, but will be wearing his publisher’s hat for the occasion and participating in a celebration of ten years of uHlanga Press. Congratulations, uHlanga, Nick and all your amazing poets. Every uHlanga poetry collection is a celebration of beauty and our humanity. Thank you for ten years of outstanding publishing!

For the full programme see: Open Book Festival

Book tickets: Webtickets

February 13, 2024 Karina Author, Book, Festival

Karavan Press authors at Time of the Writer: Reflections, Resonance and Revival

14 – 21 March 2024

For the full programme this year, click here:

TIME OF THE WRITER 2024

November 14, 2023 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!

October 18, 2023 Karina Festival

Karavan Press at the Cape Flats Book Festival 2023

The Cape Flats Book Festival will be taking place on 4 and 5 November this year, and I cannot encourage you enough to attend this wonderful festival. Last year was the first time Karavan Press participated and we had an amazing time. We are so happy to have been invited back and can’t wait!

The programme is packed with literary goodness. The venue – West End Primary School – is great. Books will be on sale. Parking and delicious food are available at the school throughout the weekend. The atmosphere is celebratory. And we have heard that Oaky will be there. You do not want to miss it!

This is what we are doing:

4 November

5 November

For more details see:

Cape Flats Book Festival

Hope to see you all there!

September 2, 2023 Karina Author, Book, Event, Festival

Karavan Press and Friends at Open Book Festival 2023

In their latest newsletter, The Book Lounge, wrote the following about Karavan Press:

Karavan Press is a small publishing house owned and run by Karina Szczurek, seriously punching above its weight. We are so grateful to Karina for publishing so many wonderful books that we thought we should shine a light on some of the books she is responsible for that will be featured at Open Book Festival:

Everyone Dies by Frankie Murrey ~ An exquisite debut collection of stories – I will be cajoling Frankie on to the stage to talk about Everyone Dies. – Mervyn

A Crowded Lonely Walk by Sipho Banda ~ In this riveting poetry collection, Sipho Banda delves into the daily happenings of the ubiquitous but anonymous working class, and restores dignity to those whose lived experiences so often go overlooked. – Belinda

Glass Tower by Sarah Isaacs ~ Glass Tower is the winner of the inaugural Island Prize for debut fiction from Africa.

Inside your body there are flowers by Diane Awerbuck ~ an incredibly versatile writer who returns to the genre for which she is best known – the short story – in this new collection which is nothing short of superb.

The Bitterness of Olives is set in Gaza and Israel and is Andrew’s finest novel. Empathetic, thought provoking, beautifully written with the pace of a thriller. – Mervyn

Striving for Social Equity edited by Joy Watson and Ogochuku Nzewi ~ an invaluable gathering of voices touching on the very real challenges facing South Africans today.

What Remains by Dawn Garisch ~ new collection of stories from one of our best-loved writers that deals with relationships, ageing and so much more.

Karina will be participating in a discussion about the future of publishing.
The Book Lounge

We are immensely grateful for the encouragement and support! And this is how we will be “punching” at Open Book Festival 2023:

Open Book Festival 2023 Programme

Watch out for Karavan Press authors and Friends (we are lucky distribution partners for Glass Tower by Sarah Isaacs and Cat Therapy by Gail Gilbride):

Book your tickets here:

Open Book Festival – Webtickets

September 1, 2023 Karina Book

Karavan Press title: Striving for Social Equity edited by Joy Watson and Ogochukwu Nzewi

Dear Readers,

We’re putting this precious book into your hands. May the stories in it touch your hearts and your sense of patriotism – may it inspire you to be a part of changing the gross inequities in our society. May it grant you grace in truly ‘seeing’ others who are different. May it inspire you to reimagine what our future can look like. We have a beautiful country, let’s find ways of saving it.

Yours in striving for social equity,
Joy Watson and Ogochukwu Nzewi
August 2023

CONTRIBUTORS:

Cover illustration: Zoe Maralack

Publication date: September 2023

ISBN: 978-1-7764581-7-2