Karen Jennings
South AfricaAbout
Karen Jennings is a South African novelist, poet, and short-story writer born in Cape Town in 1982. She holds master’s degrees in English literature and creative writing from the University of Cape Town, as well as a PhD in creative writing from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Her work frequently explores colonialism, historical memory, social inequality, and the overlooked lives of ordinary people. Jennings made her literary debut with Finding Soutbek (2012), which was shortlisted for the inaugural Etisalat Prize for Literature. Her other works include the short-story collection Away from the Dead (2014), the memoir Travels with My Father (2016), and the poetry collection Space Inhabited by Echoes (2018). Her novel An Island (2020) was longlisted for the Booker Prize in 2021 and won the K. Sello Duiker Memorial Award. Her novel Crooked Seeds (2024) was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2025. In First of December (2026), Jennings turns to the history of slavery and emancipation in the Cape Colony, examining how the forces of history shape intimate human lives. She has also supported emerging African writers through mentorship initiatives and founded The Island Prize, which helps unpublished African authors reach international readers.
