WINNER of the James Tait Black Prize 2021.

WINNER of The Republic of Consciousness Prize 2021.

Lush and frothy, incisive and witty, Shola von Reinhold's decadent queer literary debut immerses readers in the pursuit of aesthetics and beauty, while interrogating the removal and obscurement of Black figures from history.

Solitary Mathilda has long been enamored with the 'Bright Young Things' of the 20s, and throughout her life, her attempts at reinvention have mirrored their extravagance and artfulness. After discovering a photograph of the forgotten Black modernist poet Hermia Druitt, who ran in the same circles as the Bright Young Things that she adores, Mathilda becomes transfixed and resolves to learn as much as she can about the mysterious figure. Her search brings her to a peculiar artists' residency in Dun, a small European town Hermia was known to have lived in during the 30s. The artists' residency throws her deeper into a lattice of secrets and secret societies that takes hold of her aesthetic imagination, but will she be able to break the thrall of her Transfixions?

From champagne theft and Black Modernisms, to art sabotage, alchemy and lotus-eating proto-luxury communist cults, Mathilda's journey through modes of aesthetic expression guides her to truth and the convoluted ways it is made and obscured.

About the Author
Shola von Reinhold is a writer and artist, LOTE is her debut novel.

Reviews
It's funny and weird and dazzlingly clever. -- Alice Winn * The Guardian *
a celebration of eccentric esprit -- Houman Barekat * The Guardian *
Lote is a magical, revolutionary piece of writing * FRIEZE *
An inspirational, cutting, exquisitely written, multilevel excavation of forgotten Black lives and an Afro-queer celebration of art, aesthetics, literature, and society. -- Paul Mendez * author of Rainbow Milk *
An inspirational, cutting, exquisitely written, multilevel excavation of forgotten Black lives and an Afro-queer celebration of art, aesthetics, literature, and society. -- Paul Mendez * author of Rainbow Milk *


Awards
Winner of Republic of Consciousness Prize 2021 (UK) and James Tait Black - Fiction 2021 (UK).



Book Information
ISBN 9781913090111
Author Shola von Reinhold
Format Paperback
Page Count 472
Imprint Jacaranda Books Art Music Ltd
Publisher Jacaranda Books Art Music Ltd
Weight(grams) 376g
Dimensions(mm) 196mm * 128mm * 30mm