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Thanks to Kenyan literary scholar, Simon Gikandi, Nigerian author Chinua Achebe is often regarded as the inventor of African literature. This is the root of the thriving misconception that Achebe’s groundbreaking novel Things Fall Apart was the first novel to be published by an African. I also believed this misconception for a long time, so it was a delight to finally learn about all the fantastic novels that had been published to critical acclaim before Things Fall Apart. Admittedly, I already knew about some of these novels, but I had never quite put it together that they predate Achebe’s classic.
In our latest book recommendation, we have compiled a list of seven African novels you didn’t know were older than Things Fall Apart. From novels exploring race and colonialism set in pre-apartheid South Africa to fantastical tales that dive into the world of Yoruba mythology, these books prove that the African novel has long been alive, well before Achebe’s emergence.
Read our recommendations below.
mine boy
author: peter abrahams
Genre: fiction
publication year: 1946
Nigerian author and scholar Kolawole Ogungbesan once famously described South African author’s Peter Abrams’s novel Mine Boy as ‘the first African novel written in English to attract international attention’—and for good reason. Set in a South Africa yet to know apartheid but already rife with racism, Mine Boy received global acclaim for exploring the social and institutional injustices that working-class Black Africans experienced. It was one of the first novels to depict urban Black life in South Africa and helped lay the foundation for protest literature.
We see this through the life of Xuma, a young Black man who moves to Johannesburg in search of work. When he starts out at a mine, he is filled with hopes for a better future but soon confronts the brutal conditions of life in the mines and the deeply entrenched racism of the system. He becomes increasingly aware of the exploitation and inequality surrounding him, and his personal journey evolves into a broader political awakening.
forest of a thousand daemons
AUTHOR: d. o. fagunwa
GENRE: fiction
publication year: 1938
Originally published in 1938, this book is widely regarded as the first full-length novel published in an African language, before being translated 30 years later into English by Wole Soyinka.
The story follows Akara-Ogun, a brave hunter who journeys through a mystical forest filled with supernatural beings, treacherous creatures, and powerful spirits. As Akara-Ogun ventures deeper into the forest, he faces trials that test his courage, wisdom, and morality. He encounters monstrous beings, wise sages, and magical beings, each presenting symbolic challenges that reflect on human virtues and vices. His journey is both physical and spiritual, representing a quest for knowledge, personal growth, and understanding of the human condition.
ethiopia unbound
authOR: j. casely hayford
GENRE: fiction
publication year: 1911
Ethiopia Unbound is a pioneering work of African political thought and literature, blending fiction, autobiography, and political philosophy. The result is a thought-provoking novel that takes a critical look at Pan-Africanism, race, and colonialism.
In this book, we meet Kwamankra, a Ghanaian law student, and his friends, the British Whitely, who studies theology. Though worlds apart, both share an interest in Roman antiquity and have the habit of taking long walks together and debating about everything from Christ to Marcus Aurelius to African spirituality. From Britain, the two friends travel together to Ghana, where their thought-provoking debates continue. Through Kwamankra, Casely Hayford makes a case for the spiritual and cultural liberation of Africa in the face of colonial domination.
Cassava Republic Press is proud to announce the launch of their inaugural $20,000 Global Black Women’s Non-Fiction Manuscript Prize dedicated to exceptional works by Black women. Deadline: 30th June 2024. Learn more here.
palace walk
AUTHOR: naguib mahfouz
GENRE: fiction
publication year: 1956
Palace Walk is the first novel in Naguib Mahfouz’s critically acclaimed Cairo Trilogy, set in early 20th-century Egypt during British colonial rule and the 1919 revolution. The story follows members of the al-Jawad family, headed by the strict and authoritarian patriarch, Ahmad Abd al-Jawad. At home, Ahmad is rigid and controlling, demanding obedience and moral discipline from his wife, Amina, and their five children. However, outside the home, he leads a double life of indulgence, frequenting bars and engaging in romantic affairs.
In this complexly imagined book, Mahfouz explores the tensions between tradition and modernity, authority and rebellion, as each family member struggles with their personal desires and societal expectations. Amina is devoted but stifled, while her children—particularly Fahmy, the idealistic nationalist, and Kamal, the sensitive youngest son—embody the generational shifts occurring in Egyptian society. When a personal and national tragedies hit, the family’s world is shaken, and each character is forced to confront change and loss.
traveler to the east
Author: thomas mofolo
Genre: fiction
publication year: 1907
Mosotho author Thomas Mofolo’s Traveler to the East was already in its 50th year when Things Fall Apart was published. Now over a century old, it is one of the oldest African novels you can find. Originally written in Mofolo’s native Sesotho, the story follows a young man, Fekisi, who leaves his homeland in search of truth and enlightenment in the eponymous ‘East’.
Fekisi is a troubled young man whose kindness and earnestness set him apart in his community. He works as a herd boy, a job that gives him more than enough time to ponder about the world, God, and nature. In the end, he decides to leave is family and travel east in hopes of finding God. This way, he experiences a spiritual transformation, as he encounters new ideas, challenges, and ways of life that contrast with his traditional upbringing, in a story that works as an allegory of Christian conversion.
cry, the beloved country
AUTHOR: alan paton
GENRE: fiction
publication year: 1948
This is another novel set in in pre-apartheid South Africa. When Stephen Kumalo, a Black Anglican priest living in the village of Ndotshemi, receives a letter from a priest in Johannesburg, he must journey to the big city to find his missing son, Absalom. In the sprawling, racially segregated city, Kumalo confronts the harsh realities of urban life, disintegration of tribal values, and deep racial injustices.
On arriving in Johannesburg, Stephen learns that his son has been arrested for the murder of a white man named Arthur Jarvis, a social reformer and advocate for racial justice. This tragedy binds Arthur’s father, James, and Stephen in unexpected ways, leading to a mutual understanding of race relations and a shared desire for healing and change. The novels is a poignant commentary on social decay, forgiveness, and hope amidst despair, presented in a lyrical that highlights the devastating impact of apartheid on both Black and white South Africans.
the palm-wine drinkard
authOR: amos tutuola
GENRE: fiction
publication year: 1952
The Palm-Wine Drinkard was one of the first African novel written in English to gain international recognition. Rooted in Yoruba oral traditions and folklore, the novel follows the fantastical journey of an unnamed narrator, known only as the ‘Palm-Wine Drinkard’, who is deeply addicted to palm wine. When his tapster dies, he sets off on a quest to find him in the land of the dead.
The novel is a surreal, episodic adventure through magical realms populated by spirits, monsters, and supernatural beings. Along the way, the Drinkard faces numerous challenges and encounters strange, symbolic creatures. His journey becomes one of transformation and self-discovery, as he gains wisdom through his trials⎈
