Mertonian debut novelists making their mark
Two Mertonians are causing a stir in the publishing world: Nussaibah Younis (2004), and Veronika Dapunt (2003) are each releasing their debut novels in spring 2025, and both have already won recognition for their work.
Nussaibah Younis’ Fundamentally was the subject of an eight-way auction between publishers, won by Weidenfeld & Nicolson (UK) and Tiny Reparations Books (US); and a ten-way auction for the TV rights won by Boffola Pictures. Fundamentally is on the American Booksellers’ Association Indies Introduce Top 10 Debut Novel list.
Nussaibah read Modern History and English at Merton and went on to have a career in peacebuilding, becoming a globally recognised expert on contemporary Iraq. Her debut novel draws on her life experiences and, surprisingly for the subject matter, is a dark comedy. Described as ‘bold and hilarious’, Fundamentally tells the story of Nadia, an academic working for the UN in Iraq who is tasked with the rehabilitation of ISIS brides. Nussaibah describes in an interview in The Bookseller how before drafting the novel, she joined a stand-up comedy group, where she tested out some of the material. This was part of her decision to ‘find the fun and joy in the scenes’ and to ‘centre comedy first’. The resulting novel is, by all accounts, an utterly compelling read, described by writers as ‘bold yet subtle, witty and constantly surprising’ (Charlotte Mendelson, The Exhibitionist) and ‘impossibly funny whilst darkly probing’ (Parini Shroff, The Bandit Queens). Nussaibah herself is described as a ‘fantastic comic writer: caustic, pitiless, unafraid, with razor-sharp powers of observation’ (Jonathan Coe, Middle England).
Fundamentally will be published on 25 February 2025.
Veronika Dapunt’s Death and Other Occupational Hazards was runner up for the Comedy Women in Print Prize 2023 and the subject of a three-way auction won by Transworld, a division of Penguin Random House UK, with US rights acquired by Sourcebooks.
Veronika read PPE at Merton and went on to a career in Law before turning her attention to creative writing. Her debut novel is described as ‘an original and darkly comedic murder mystery about a female personified Death whose hard-earned sabbatical in modern-day London is rudely interrupted by a string of unexpected murders. Quirky, fun and witty, this is Death like you've never seen her before.’ Veronika said that ‘when I started writing Death and Other Occupational Hazards, I never imagined the journey it would take me on — from the Comedy Women in Print Prize to my dream publishers.’ The novel is intended to be both entertaining and thought-provoking, as it touches upon themes related to the nature of existence in addition to environmentalism, dysfunctional food supply systems and corruption.
Death and Other Occupational Hazards will be published on 10 April 2025.
