BOOK BITES | Fflur Dafydd, Megan Giddings, Lebohang Masango

The Library Suicides ★★★
Fflur Dafydd
Hodder & Stoughton

Identical palindromic twins Ana and Nan plot to avenge the death of their mother Elena, an acclaimed author. The twins believe literary critic Eben's vitriolic reviews of her work drove her to jump to her death. Desperate to refute these accusations, Eben requests access to Elena's diaries, housed in the National Library where the twins work, purporting to want to write her biography. The twins agree and put their plan in motion. The novel is set in a dystopian world, where after the Great Disease, the government enforced a paperless society for hygiene purposes and no citizen is allowed a single piece of paper. Elena's diaries, written on real paper, are in the National Library's archives, where access and movement is controlled and monitored. The twins manage to steal the facility's master control, locking their colleagues and visitors inside the building in an attempt to get to Eben in the archives. But the situation quickly spirals out of control. Dafydd's writing is elegant and amusing in a hard-as-nails way, as she makes fun of her characters, who are subject to a rollercoaster of embarrassing set-ups. — Gabriella Bekes 

The Women Could Fly ★★★★
Megan Giddings
Macmillan

Imagine a world where women’s bodies are policed and witch trials still exist. Each US state has slightly different laws, but all require women to marry by 30 or register for constant monitoring. Josephine’s mother was a suspected witch when she disappeared 14  years ago. After all, she was black, and in mostly-white Michigan, that makes a woman all the more likely to succumb to the temptation of sin. Josephine, 28, feels the pressure to settle down, but her mother’s will offers an alternative, on condition Josephine completes one simple task. The Women Could Fly is fury and wonder intertwined in an enchantingly thoughtful read. — Tiah Beautement

The Soft Life: Love, Choice and Modern Dating ★★★
Lebohang Masango
Kwela

Feminist thinker, author and anthropologist Masango interviews five black women to explore “the soft life” — that of ease, of luxury, of opulence. They’re in their late 20s and early 30s, from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Lihle, Jolie, Camilla, Nomonde and Bongi are ambitious and successful, and share with us their intimate, sometimes painful and relatable stories, providing an insider perspective on their lives on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Pinterest. Masango’s book is a fascinating study as it carefully examines the lives of these dynamic women, especially their relationships wit  wealthier men, and challenges how we, as a society, view this. — Shaun Lunga