On November 8, Audible will be releasing A.J. Hartley’s Steeplejack in audiobook form, with Noma Dumezweni narrating. Hartley’s YA debut set in a 19th century South African fantasy world, centers on 17-year-old Anglet Sutonga, who works as a steeplejack (repairing chimneys and spires throughout the city) in Bar-Selehm. Caught up in a web of unexplained deaths and the sudden theft of one of the city’s most valued historic icons, Ang must discover what links these events together before chaos breaks out.
Noma Dumezweni is an award-winning U.K. actress, known to many fans as Captain Erisa Magambo from Doctor Who, and most currently for her portrayal of Hermione Granger in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Born in Swaziland to South African parents, Dumezweni’s heritage makes her an exciting actor to have on the project.
Here is what A.J. Hartley had to say about Dumezweni’s work on the audiobook:
I met Noma (who practically blew up the internet when it was announced that she would be playing Hermione Granger in London’s West End) about six years ago when she was working for the Royal Shakespeare Company and we stayed in touch thereafter. She was my first choice for this role (and I’m so gad that Audible took my request to heart!), because she is amazingly talented–an actor of great technical ability, intellect, and extraordinary passion–and has special insight into the world of Steeplejack having been born and raised in Swaziland and South Africa, which were the major inspirations for the world of Bar-Selehm. For a while, it looked like it wasn’t going to work out, because the Cursed Child rehearsal and performance schedule was so demanding, but we got there at last, and I can assure you… it was worth the wait!
You can preorder the Steeplejack audiobook on Audible and Amazon.com for its November 8 release date.