Jonathan Amid
Jonathan Amid was in 1986 in Israel gebore. Hy is van kleins af lief vir kuns, musiek, films, stories en boeke en bly die afgelope drie dekades in Stellenbosch, waar hy op skool was en by die Universiteit Stellenbosch geswot het. Hy verwerf ‘n BA in Geesteswetenskappe, en daarna ‘n BA Hons en ‘n Meestersgraad in Engelse Letterkunde (beide cum laude). Hy ruil ongeveer die afgelope dekade die lesingsaal vir die volgehoue uitdaging van voltydse tekspraktisyn (manuskripontwikkeling-, keuring en redigering in Afrikaans en Engels), private skryfkonsultant en vryskutresensent wees. Honderde resensies oor meestal plaaslike fiksie en nie-fiksie verskyn uit sy pen in die dagblaaie en op Netwerk24, op LitNet, Skrop.co.za, en in die nuwe gedaante van die Vrye Weekblad.
Staring down the barrel: Mike Nicol’s Of Cops & Robbers
2013-09-04 "Whether you read his latest work as a playful homage to the hard-boiled heroes of the 1930s, find the crossing of boundaries between fact and fiction a source of interest, or just want to read a white-knuckle thriller about the not-quite state of the nation, Nicol’s your man."
Zebra Crossing: An electrifying novel
2013-08-28 "Without unqualified exultation it would be fair to say that Zebra Crossing is one of the very best works of socially conscious fiction produced in 2013, one that provides ample evidence of tremendous literary ability and a fine understanding of form."
Lees gerus ’n Ander mens
2013-07-31 "Die gepaste titel dui ooglopend op die feit dat diegene wat in die getuiebeskermingsprogram geplaas word, ’n nuwe identiteit moet aanneem, en wesenlik 'nuwe' of 'ander' mense moet word om te oorleef en met hulle lewens aan te gaan."
Koljander: Geurige dis vir die fynproewer
2013-06-12 "Die roman behoort in ’n wye smaak te val, terwyl daar ruimskoots vir die fynproewer voorsiening gemaak word."
Die dans met die dooies: Karsten se nuutste ’n Roman van Groot Belang
2013-05-27 "Die opgrawe van die beendere dien as plot-drywer en vlek ook die sentrale tema van opgrawing en identifikasie oop: fisiese sowel as psigiese opgrawing, die oopgrou van ’n verlies van onskuld ..."
Video: Leon de Kock and Michiel Heyns in conversation
2013-03-22 Michiel Heyns and Leon De Kock in conversation with Jonathan Amid18 March 2013
JS Gericke Library Auditorium
Mackenzie’s Pale Horses atmospheric, thought-provoking fare
2012-11-27 "Pale Horses really starts to hit its stride when De Jong visits the devastation of the “scene of the crime”, only to find that the missing community lived on land expropriated from a white farmer."
Home is where the hurt is: Diane Awerbuck’s Home Remedies
2012-11-07 After finishing Diane Awerbuck’s latest novel, Home Remedies, successor to Gardening at Night, I sat dumbfounded, almost in tears, thinking to myself: How do I describe this evocative novel to someone who loves reading?
Vierde aflewering in Pine Pienaar-reeks skiet tekort
2012-10-29 "Sonder om oorkrities te wees: daar word weinig verder as die braaivleis-brandewyn-en-boepens-verpersoonliking van manlikheid hier gekyk."
A state of grace on the Crocodile Flats
2012-10-11 "The people of Crocodile Flats are in dire need of something to lift their spirits – and a vision of pious purity and pure piety by a young girl is just the ticket."
'n Raaiselroman met bek en binnegoed
2012-09-13"Alhoewel die oplossing van ? moordraaisel in ? mate die aksie van die narratief bepaal, is Steinmair se roman allermins geskoei op die noue navolging van genre-konvensies ... "
Seasons of sorrow: Carol Thompson’s Betrayed – A mother’s battle for justice
2012-03-09 "Thompson’s Betrayed – A Mother’s Battle for Justice ultimately demands to be read. It avoids forms of easy manipulation and rose-tinted glasses when looking at its subject matter, and continuously reminds us of the precariousness of life in a society beset by crime."
Ants in the Big Onion: A bustling, warm-hearted romp
2012-02-21 I would recommend Ants in the Big Onion to readers that can look past the perfunctory title and jarring cover design, those willing to suspend disbelief in service of a genuinely warm-hearted, good-natured and mostly well-written frolic in the deep end of the new South Africa.
The Big Stick: Where Laughter meets Fear in Tentative Motion
2012-02-02 The Big Stick is South African-born Richard de Nooy’s follow-up to the acclaimed Six Fang Marks and a Tetanus Shot, the second part of what the author terms a “loose trilogy”.