Chatto & Windus to publish Bulawayo's 'exhilarating' second novel

Chatto & Windus has acquired NoViolet Bulawayo's second novel Glory, a "punchy, funny, piercing" novel inspired by the fall of Robert Mugabe. 

Becky Hardie, deputy publishing director, acquired British Commonwealth rights, excluding Canada, from Alba Ziegler-Bailey at the Wylie Agency. Glory will be published in hardback, e-book and audio on 7th April 2022. 

The synopsis reads: "Glory is an energy burst, an exhilarating ride. A bold, vivid chorus of animal voices calls out the dangerous absurdity of contemporary global politics, and helps us see our human world more clearly. It tells the story of a country seemingly trapped in a cycle as old as time. And yet, as it unveils the myriad tricks required to uphold the illusion of absolute power, it reminds us that the glory of tyranny only lasts as long as its victims are willing to let it. History can be stopped in a moment. With the return of a long-lost daughter, a #freefairnredibleelection, a turning tide — even a single bullet."

Hardie said: "NoViolet burst into our lives with her debut We Need New Names, which took hearts, minds and prize lists by storm. We are so excited she’s back, with this spectacularly inventive, powerful and witty novel. Just as kids like Darling, Bastard and Chipo got to the heart of the matter in NoViolet’s first book, here animals hold up a mirror to our world in a way that’s impossible to ignore."

Bulawayo's 2013 debut We Need New Names (Chatto & Windus), was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and the Guardian First Book Award. It won a Betty Trask Award, Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award, Hurston-Wright Legacy Award, the Etisalat Prize and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for First Fiction.