Stefan Tobler, publisher of the UK based independent publishing house And Other Stories, and Jill Schoolman, at Archipelago in North America, are delighted to announce a simultaneous acquisition of THE FOLLY by the celebrated South African writer Ivan Vladislavić from agent Isobel Dixon at Blake Friedmann. The publication of THE FOLLY is scheduled for the Autumn of 2016 in the UK and Commonwealth.

Mr and Mrs Malgas are going quietly about their lives when an eccentric squatter called Nieuwenhuizen arrives on the vacant plot next to their home with a grandiose plan to build an elaborate mansion. Slowly, Father, as Nieuwenhuizen prefers to be called, draws Mr Malgas into his grand scheme, while Mrs Malgas keeps an anxious watch from her lounge window… Menacing, hilarious, playfully serious, THE FOLLY is a South African classic with universal resonance.

'And Other Stories and Archipelago are both wonderfully innovative and dynamic publishers. THE FOLLY will be in very good company on their lists.' Ivan Vladislavić

'Archipelago is delighted to be publishing Vladislavić's THE FOLLY. The novel explores friendship and community (and home improvement) with his own unique blend of humor, empathy, and quirky detail. It's a gem, and Vladislavić is one of the most inventive and compassionate writers working today.' Jill Schoolman, Publisher, Archipelago Books

‘Ivan Vladislavić could well be the next South African writer to win the Booker Prize and become a household name. He deserves it. Part of his genius is that he tries something new with every book and so we're excited that our fourth book by him will also be published by Archipelago in the US in 2016, as Jill Schoolman at Archipelago is as excited as we are about his writing.’ Stefan Tobler, Publisher, And Other Stories

And Other Stories have successfully published two of Vladislavić’s novels, DOUBLE NEGATIVE (2013) and THE RESTLESS SUPERMARKET (2014) in Europe and North America. And Other Stories intend to build on this success with the publication of 101 DETECTIVES, Vladislavić’s collection of short stories, in June 2015, in North America and Europe. Random Umuzi have published all of Ivan’s books in South Africa, and published THE FOLLY earlier this year.

Praise for THE FOLLY

‘An exquisite intellectual delight’ – Southern African Review of Books

‘An uncanny ability to mine the stranger, more obsessive features of white South African life’ – SA Times

‘His stylistic virtuosity, sardonic wit, playful inventiveness and his cool intimations of menace transmute the banal into something rich and strange loaded with comic and philosophical significance.’ – Mail & Guardian

Praise for Ivan Vladislavić:

'Ivan Vladislavić is one of a handful of writers working in South Africa after apartheid whose work will still be read in fifty years.' – Jan Steyn, The White Review

‘Vladislavić is a rare, brilliant writer’ – Sunday Times (SA)

‘One of the most imaginative minds at work in South African literature today.’ – André Brink