Ivan Vladislavic is stateside to promote his new novel DOUBLE NEGATIVE, published by And Other Stories. On 4 November he will be be appearing at 192 Books in New York. There he will be in conversation with Teju Cole, who wrote the introduction to the And Other Stories edition of DOUBLE NEGATIVE. Ivan will also be appearing at Seminary Coop Bookstore in Chicago on 30 October and The New School in New York on 31 October.
DOUBLE NEGATIVE focuses on apartheid-era university dropout Neville Lister whose life is changed when he is sent to photographer Saul Auerbach to gain some sense of perspective and purpose. So begins a delicate, funny and beautifully written exploration of the art of depiction, and the haunting power of photographs, those 'odd little memorials that owe a lot to chance and intuition'. This spare, memorable novel tracks the changing face of Johannesburg over the decades and the crooked path of Neville's career, and throws new light on our ways of seeing and recording, on how and what we remember, and the art of getting lost.
DOUBLE NEGATIVE is out in the UK and US in November, and is also published by Random Umuzi in South Africa, Editions Zoe in France and Contrasto in Italy. In April 2014 And Other Stories publish his novel THE RESTLESS SUPERMARKET.
See more on Ivan’s website here.
Praise for Ivan Vladislavic:
'Vladislavić seeks the poetry of the city he has known and loved for 30 years ... He finds the human behind Johannesburg's sorry reputation.' -- Ross Leckie, The Times (South Africa)
'Ivan Vladislavić is one of a handful of writers working in South Africa after apartheid whose work will still be read in fifty years.' --The White Review
'One of the most imaginative minds at work in South African literature today.' -- André Brink
'Ivan Vladislavic is the most significant writer in South Africa today.' -- Focus on Africa
Praise for DOUBLE NEGATIVE:
‘One of those novels that you keep thinking about long after you’ve read them. Not for some shocking storyline or a bizarre setting but because it has so many layers that it takes a while to understand them. … DOUBLE NEGATIVE is a multi-layered, complex novel, deceptive in its first-impression gentleness.’ Maia Nikitina, Bookmunch
‘Then, last but not least, next month's exciting new author Ivan Vladislavić. … He's a big name in South Africa and we think he will be here in the future. A lot of British and American writers are already fans. His novel DOUBLE NEGATIVE, which focuses on photography, growing up and generational differences, comes out in November. I love the honest complexity of life in his books. Things are not black and white. And then we're looking forward to publishing his novel THE RESTLESS SUPERMARKET in April 2014 - about the end of apartheid and the new South Africa from an unusual perspective. It takes the zero tolerance approach to punctuation of Eats, Shoots and Leaves to a hilarious yet poignant conclusion.' – Stefan Tobler, publisher of And Other Stories, Interview with Culture Critic
‘Ivan Vladislavic is a master of the art of painting the reality of South Africa… The light irony of the narrator, the distance he maintains without arrogance creates an enticing complicity for the reader… There are some stunning scenes, not just visual but audible too... ‘ – Le Temps
‘Elegantly written, brought to life by a quiet humour and strong imagery.’ – Jeune Afrique