{"product_id":"the-mad-paperback","title":"The Mad - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eIgnatius T. Mabasa\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eJ. Tsitsi Mutiti\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eThe Mad\u003c\/i\u003e, originally published in Shona as \u003ci\u003eMapenzi \u003c\/i\u003eand awarded the Zimbabwe Book Publishers Association Award, Mabasa's pen runs riot, using sarcasm, humor, and a disjointed writing style that gels with its troubled and unpredictable characters. Set in the second decade of Zimbabwe's independence, the novel paints a vivid portrait of poverty, violence, dehumanization, and postcolonial dislocation. It doesn't shy away from painful truths, instead laying bare the realities of marginalized communities in Zimbabwe and exploring madness, dreams, strife, and a search for something that seems elusive. Evocative of the hustle and bustle in the lives and minds of many Zimbabweans during this period, the story reeks with the experience of people struggling to survive poverty, violence, disintegration, fear, coloniality, and dejection. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eStructured in a way that echoes oral performance, with dramatic monologues, dialogue-driven exposition, and moral ambiguity that swim in a pool of decolonial language politics, \u003ci\u003eThe Mad \u003c\/i\u003eis not only a milestone in Zimbabwean literature but a powerful African literary work that redefines what the modern African novel can be. It uniquely contributes to the broader conversation around how African societies manage cultural continuity and rupture in the face of colonial legacies, poverty, and globalization. It is no surprise, then, that \u003ci\u003eThe Mad \u003c\/i\u003ehas been awarded the Zimbabwe Book Publishers Association Award and that \u003ci\u003eThe Times Literary Supplement \u003c\/i\u003ehas called \u003ci\u003eThe Mad \u003c\/i\u003e\"one of the most significant books to have come out of Africa.\"\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eIGNATIUS T. MABASA\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003eis a Zimbabwean storyteller, writer, and translator who mainly creates in his mother language, Shona. A former Fulbright scholar and former writer and storyteller in residence, Mabasa has been giving fresh impetus to Shona folktales for the past fifteen years by making them available in film form and on social media platforms. He resides in Harare, Zimbabwe.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 158\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.49 x 8.02 x 5.34 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 01, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48289218330873,"sku":"9780820376936","price":21.55,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0789\/2782\/3097\/files\/ZCmT4M7Jie9780820376936.webp?v=1776259183","url":"https:\/\/bookscloud.io\/products\/the-mad-paperback","provider":"BooksCloud Book Dropshipping","version":"1.0","type":"link"}