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.
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”.
The Loss Library and Other Unfinished Stories: artful and ingenious
2012-01-18 Jonathan Amid reads Ivan Vladislavic's latest offering and comes to the conclusion that it is all but unmissable.
Triumph of the Pennywhistle: Occasionally stirring but entirely overwrought debut
2011-12-15 While I was reading Sofi Adelbrand’s debut novel Triumph of the Pennywhistle(the author’s real name is Runa Prinsloo) a few questions relentlessly battered against the hinges of my reading experience: Is there a limit to the ways that certain stories can be ...
A Sailors’ Honour: Ambitious, Intelligent and Enjoyable Thriller
2011-12-07 As the winner of the University of Johannesburg Prize and the K Sello Duiker Memorial Award, Chris Marnewick has made a name for himself as a thriller writer who believes his novels should contain certain non-negotiable elements: gripping, complex ...
Things I Thought I Knew: Lyrical and gripping sophomore effort from Kathryn White
2011-12-01 Having read this stunning new novel in one sitting I am willing to wager a large amount on the fact that White’s novel will go some distance in establishing her as a compelling new voice on the South African literary scene.