Azad Essa: From being Zuma’s Bastard to taking over India
From garnering acclaim as the ‘Accidental Academic’ to working the newsrooms of Al Jazeera in the exotic location of Doha, Azad Essa’s latest venture is set to see him break into the Indian subcontinent market. His book, Zuma’s Bastard, has been adapted by HarperCollins India.When Azad first released Zuma’s Bastard, we knew that it was bound to get people talking, if not in the president’s bedroom then at least in the SA book industry. With controversial subject matter, brash and insightful opinions, a foreword by Ferial Haffajee and an innovative underground marketing campaign to back it up (with 3,000 members and counting on the Facebook page), Zuma’s Bastard sounded the welcome call of a critical voice of the next generation.
The Moslems Are Coming is a series of adapted writings from his award-winning Accidental Academic Thought Leader blog, tackling race and religion head-on, giving fresh insight into the Israel-Palestine conflict, casting new light on old sterotypes, venting the frustrations and fears of the next generation – and ultimately offering us all hope for the future.
The cover for The Moslems Are Coming contains the same edgy, raw and brazen feel that made the Zuma’s Bastard cover such a visual success. Azad looks set to break boundaries with his latest publication. Follow all the discussions around Azad’s new book with the Twitter hashtag #MoslemsAreComing.
About the author:
Azad Essa is a journalist, columnist and aspiring filmmaker. He completed a multinational Global Studies MA in 2005 and spent several years in South African academia before launching his journalism career. He calls Durban home, but is currently working for the Al Jazeera Network in Doha, Qatar.
Praise for Zuma’s Bastard:
“Azad is a journalist for the 21st century. He is at the beginning of a professional life of activism, action and a whole lot of fun. I have no doubt that this will be the first book of many. I am honoured to be associated with it” – Ferial Haffajee, City Press editor-in-chief
“At once tjatjarag and lyrical, the digitally compressed and accelerated voice of a South Africa that no media tribunal could ever silence” – Nic Dawes, editor-in-chief Mail & Guardian
“Azad manages to weave the uncomfortable contradictions and truths of our fractured society into easy flowing, fast-paced prose… [His] writing shows sensitivity and depth, hooking you from the first paragraph and leaving you wanting more. This is insight. It’s a fresh, youthful take on one of the most complex, frustrating and interesting countries in the world. The book pays homage to its roots as a blog – showing a rich mix of strong opinion with breezy and accessible writing” – Matthew Buckland, Thought Leader founder and publisher of Memeburn.com
“The real power in this collection lies in its author’s age: the book is a missive from the generation who don’t remember apartheid, and it’s got a lot to say to those of us who do. If Essa is any indication, the next crop of writers is exactly what South Africa needs – the man is abrasive, engaged, uncowed” – Kevin Bloom, journalist and author of Ways of Staying
“Zuma’s Bastard compellingly offers fresh ideas to tired problems with a keenness and engagement that, I think, makes Azad one of the most lucid voices of our generation” – Khadija Patel, Khadijapatel.co.za
“Azad Essa, a Bollywood-soaked, Indian-battered, black South African-tinged, accidental academic and incidental journalist – who has seen India and Kashmir, India better, in Kashmir, Pakistan, the so-called Middle East and Europe – leaves no holy cows untaunted – nay he even imagines them as beefburgers… His popularity is catching but the moral questions he asks of us cannot be sidestepped. Read this book, buy the T-shirt, be with it and get angry because the author takes his jokes (often us) seriously” – Professor Ari Sitas, Head of Sociology, UCT
Book details
- Zuma’s Bastard: Encounters with a Desktop Terrorist by Azad Essa
Book homepage
EAN: 9781920137311
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