Borderline Fiction

byDerek Owusu, Derek Owusu (Read by)

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Brought to you by Penguin.

Loneliness means you don’t have to disappoint anyone until you develop the habit of talking to yourself

At nineteen, Marcus is young and in love … again. When his latest crush, Adwoa, starts showing him true affection, Marcus is ready to reconsider his lifestyle – the drugs, the casual encounters. At least for a little while.

Now, before he knows it, Marcus is twenty-five. And history risks repeating itself.

Told through two parallel narratives – one past, one present – Borderline Fiction is a highly original and deeply affecting contemporary tale written with an intensity of emotion and vulnerability. The novel is a close-up, sometimes uncomfortable, sometimes funny examination of what it means to be a young black man navigating today’s world.

Tortured, beautiful, anxious and poetic, Borderline Fiction is a memorable glimpse into the inner world of a young man searching for an authentic way to love and be loved.

‘Glaringly fresh and true’ COURTTIA NEWLAND
‘Full of originality and raw, pure, gutsy talent’ CHRISTIE WATSON
‘Masterful’ TROY ONYANGO

© Derek Owusu 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

About Derek Owusu

Derek Owusu is a writer, poet and podcaster from north London. He discovered his passion for literature at the age of twenty-three while studying exercise science at university. Unable to afford a change of degree, Derek began reading voraciously and sneaking into English Literature lectures at the University of Manchester. Derek edited and contributed to Safe: On Black British Men Reclaiming Space. That Reminds Me, his first solo work, won the Desmond Elliott Prize 2020.
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Details
  • Imprint: Penguin Audio
  • ISBN: 9780241833360
  • Length: 391 minutes
  • Price: £14.00