"This charismatic memoir by an acclaimed artist and academic brims with energy as it interweaves his personal coming-of-age story with socio-political insights."
In The Jive Talker, artist, author and academic Samson Kambalu has created an illuminating memoir that follows his journey from a Malawi-born boy who loved philosophy, football and fashion, to a globally-acclaimed artist, associate professor of fine art at Ruskin College and fellow at Magdalen College, Oxford.
Amidst the exuberance and turmoil of childhood in Malawi, Kambalu is clear that he “began to regard myself as an artist when I was seven years old, a few days after I started school at Chitawira Full Primary. We were learning how to read clock faces. In one arithmetic exercise, my answers were all wrong but my teacher still gave me ten out of ten because my clock faces looked good. She said I was an artist.”
This artist’s eye permeates the entire book, with splendidly descriptive writing showcasing Kambalu’s artistic verve. Heart-breaking on the loss of his father, with the preface highlighting how his deceased mother’s presence permeates the book, The Jive Talker dances with wit — this is autobiography at its immersive, illuminating best.
A bawdy, brilliant and heartbreaking memoir by the award-winning Malawian-born artist.
| Primary Genre | Biographies & Autobiographies |
| Other Genres: |
A bawdy, brilliant and heartbreaking memoir by the award-winning Malawian-born artist. With exuberant prose, a cast of extraordinary characters and a rebellious spirit, Samson Kambalu tells the story of how a little boy obsessed with fashion, football, Nietzsche and Michael Jackson won a free education at the Kamuzu Academy ('The Eton of Africa') and began his long journey to art school, and international artistic and academic success.
The Jive Talker features in the following genres: Biographies & Autobiographies, Place qualifiers, Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Africa, Malawi, Biography, Literature and Literary studies, Biography: general, Biography: arts and entertainment, Autobiography: arts and entertainment
Paperback, Hardback. £11.69, down from the £12.99 cover price. Temporarily Out Of Stock.
The Jive Talker was written by Samson Kambalu and published by September Publishing
The Jive Talker has 272 pages
£11.69, reduced from £12.99. Temporarily Out Of Stock.
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