We’re Making Literary History in Southern Africa

ASTORIA, N.Y. - Jan. 19, 2016 - PRLog -- We’re Making Literary History in Southern Africa

New York, NY - January 19, 2016 — When the former president of your country pens the foreword to your book, you know you’ve written something special. Donald Molosi's We Are All Blue (http://www.squareup.com/market/themantle/we-are-all-blue) is that unique volume – the first time in Botswana’s history that drama moves from the stage to print. We Are All Blue is a collection of two award-winning plays – Blue, Black and White and Motswana: Africa, Dream Again – by the renown actor and playwright. Quett Masire, former president of Botswana, contributes a celebratory introduction.

Auspiciously, We Are All Blue is released at the same time Botswana celebrates 50 years of independence. This year also sees the debut of the film A United Kingdom, which stars David Oyelowo (Selma) and Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl) and is based on the courageous interracial marriage between Botswana’s first president, Sir Seretse Khama, and Ruth Williams. Because his exceptional play Blue, Black and White also centers on the marriage, Molosi is featured in the film (which is already generating awards buzz).

With the release of We Are All Blue, critic Lebogang Disele writes “Reclaiming Our Story (http://www.mantlethought.org/arts-and-culture/reclaiming-...),” an accompanying essay on the significance of Molosi’s work in helping rewrite Botswana’s history.

The Mantle is proud to offer We Are All Blue in print and ebook forms (details below) with special features including Masire’s foreword, a glossary of terms, and additional notes. Blue, Black and White and Motswana: Africa, Dream Again are also offered separately in print and ebook versions.

Both The Mantle’s publisher (Shaun Randol) and the author (Donald Molosi) are available for interviews.

Blue, Black and White (2011), the longest running one-man show in Botswana’s history, was the first-ever Botswana play staged off-Broadway in New York City, where Molosi won a best actor award. BBW is about the country’s first democratically-elected president, Sir Seretse Khama, and his interracial, transformative marriage. Winner of several awards, the play has been performed around the world.

Motswana: Africa, Dream Again is the story of Botswana and its people as they transition from a British protectorate to an independent state. The play premiered off-Broadway in 2012 where it won an award at the United Solo Festival, the world’s largest solo theatre festival. Written, directed, and performed by Molosi, the play has been performed across the U.S. and is on tour in Botswana and South Africa.

About the Books

We Are All Blue
paperback (111 pages, $14.95) and Kindle ($7.49)
drama | African history | historical narrative
5.5" x 8.5"
978-0-9965770-4-5

Blue, Black and White
​paperback (71 pages, $8.95) and Kindle ($3.49)
drama | African history | historical narrative
5.5" x 8.5"
978-0-9965770-6-9

Motswana: Africa, Dream Again
​paperback (31 pages, $8.95) and Ki (http://www.amazon.com/Motswana-Africa-Dream-Donald-Molosi...)ndle (http://www.amazon.com/Motswana-Africa-Dream-Donald-Molosi-ebook/dp/B019VPONX4/?utm_source=General+Interest&utm_campaign=6c2464941a-Announcing_WAAB_Contract_General_List&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_03375710a4-6c2464941a-) ($3.49)
drama | African history | historical narrative
5.5" x 8.5"
978-0-9965770-5-2

Donald Molosi (b. 1985) is an award-winning, classically trained actor and writer from Mahalapye, Botswana. Besides BBW and Motswana, Molosi has written and performed two other plays: No Idea (2010) is a about a Ugandan child soldier, for whichThe New York Times praised his performance; and Today It’s Me centers on the life of Philly Lutaaya, a Ugandan musician who bravely admitted to contracting HIV and advocated for the rights of AIDS patients before succumbing to the disease. His many U.S. appearances include a role in Broadway’s Damn Yankees. Molosi also contributed a short story to The Mantle’s 2014 anthology of African writing, Gambit: Newer African Writing.

About The Mantle: The Mantle, headquartered in Queens, New York, publishes emerging critics, writers, and intellectuals in the arts, international affairs, literature, and philosophy. We foster discourse with a global audience through critiques, essays, fiction, and interviews. We pay close attention to voices with limited exposure in their home countries and the English language, as well as individuals experiencing censorship. Read essays on our online magazine at www.mantlethought.org (http://www.mantlethought.org/?utm_source=General+Interest&utm_campaign=6c2464941a-Announcing_WAAB_Contract_General_List&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_03375710a4-6c2464941a-) and explore our print and ebook titles at www.mantlebooks.com (http://www.mantlebooks.com/?utm_source=General+Interest&utm_campaign=6c2464941a-Announcing_WAAB_Contract_General_List&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_03375710a4-6c2464941a-).