Women in Writing: Top picks off our feminists’ shelves by Lukanyo Mbanga

David Krut Bookstore heralds the female voice like no other eccentric bookstore you’ve ever seen. From novelists and biographers, to art critics and essayists, we go deep into the realm of contemporary works that are yet to be noted by the public eye. That’s it! We’re always a step ahead.

This week we’ll share some top picks to celebrate women in literature. They will delve you into African perspectives on gender, social justice and sexuality. They’ll place you into political arenas with renowned female leaders. They’ll throw you into the competitive world of sports and gender politics. And my personal favorite are our wide collection of Elif Shafak’s work who’ll give you eloquent teachings of love, loss and identity peppered by her strong political voice.

Let’s look take a look!

Pride and Prejudice is the first in the Gerald Kraak Anthology series. The kaleidoscopic collection comprises the most exceptional written and photographic entries for the annual Gerald Kraak Award, which was established in 2016 by The Other Foundation and the Jacana Literary Foundation.


The second offering in the Gerald Kraak annual anthology, As You Like It, is a collection of the short-listed entries submitted for the Gerald Kraak Award. This anthology offers a window into deeply located visions and voices across Africa.

Capturing the evocative recollections of Tequila Leila in the ten minutes after her death, Shafak’s spellbinding novel extracts the value of a fully-lived life from its untimely ending.

Acclaimed biographer Kati Marton set out to pierce the mystery of how Angela Merkel achieved her rise to become the unofficial leader of the West. And she found the answer in Merkel’s political genius: in her willingness to talk with adversaries rather than over them.

In this spirited account, Billie Jean King details her life’s journey to find her true self. She recounts her groundbreaking tennis career—six years as the top-ranked woman in the world, twenty Wimbledon championships, thirty-nine grand-slam titles, and her watershed defeat of Bobby Riggs in the famous “Battle of the Sexes.”

The Bastard of Istanbul tells the story of two families–and a secret connection linking them to a violent event in the history of their homeland. Filed with humor and understanding, this exuberant, dramatic novel is about memory and forgetting, about the need to examine the past and the desire to erase it, and about Turkey itself.

Are you drooling yet? Well there’s more where that came from. Our bookstore celebrates this age where women are lifting their banners high. Where once the female voice was slowly shaping, now— it’s shining. Visit our bookstore to bask in the light!