{"product_id":"october-paperback-3","title":"October - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eZoë Wicomb\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA South African academic returns to her homeland where she tries to connect her past and the present in this novel by the \"extraordinary\" (Toni Morrison) award-winning author of \u003cem\u003eYou Can't Get Lost in Cape Town\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eOctober\u003c\/em\u003e, acclaimed fiction writer Zoë Wicomb tells the story of Mercia Murray, a South African woman of color in the midst of a difficult homecoming. Abandoned by her partner in Scotland, where she has been living for twenty-six years, Mercia returns to South Africa to find her family overwhelmed by alcoholism and buried secrets. Poised between her new life in Scotland and her South African roots, Mercia recollects the past and assesses the present with a keen sense of irony. \u003cem\u003eOctober\u003c\/em\u003e is a stark and utterly compelling novel about the contemporary experience of a woman caught between cultures, adrift in middle age with her memories and an uncertain future. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWinner of the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize, Zoë Wicomb is an essential voice of the South African diaspora, hailed by fellow writers--such as Toni Morrison and J. M. Coetzee--and by reviewers as \"a writer of rare brilliance\" (\u003cem\u003eThe Scotsman\u003c\/em\u003e).\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eZoë Wicomb\u003c\/strong\u003e (1948-2025) was a South African writer living in Glasgow, Scotland, where she was emeritus professor at the University of Strathclyde. She is the author of \u003cem\u003eStill Life\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe One That Got Away\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003ePlaying in the Light\u003c\/em\u003e, all published by The New Press, as well as \u003cem\u003eYou Can't Get Lost in Cape Town\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eDavid's Story\u003c\/em\u003e. She was an inaugural winner of the Windham-Campbell Prize in fiction.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 256\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.64 x 8 x 5.25 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e November 03, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":68075231805688,"sku":"9798893851106","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0698\/5629\/7208\/files\/nY0Kawte8p9798893851106.webp?v=1794455435","url":"https:\/\/barneysbooksellers.com\/products\/october-paperback-3","provider":"Barney's Book Sellers","version":"1.0","type":"link"}