Books and writers
Information about the latest books and the people behind them
Book review: Lacuna by Fiona Snyckers
2019-07-10"Lacuna is the story of Lucy Lurie, a fictional woman who shares a name with one of the main characters in Disgrace (published exactly two decades ago in 1999). It is a feminist ‘reply’, for want of a better word, to JM Coetzee’s most famous — or infamous (depending on one’s reading) — novel."
Reader impression: The rise and demise of the Afrikaners by Hermann Giliomee
2019-07-09"Despite the ambitious title of this book, and the feeling it left of not being detailed enough, The rise and decline of the Afrikaners is still very much worth the read."
Reader impression: Lawfare: Judging politics in South Africa by Michelle le Roux and Dennis Davis
2019-07-09"Despite the criticism that it received, Lawfare is one of the most interesting and stimulating books that I have read in a long time. It is a book that makes important legal cases from the past accessible in a language easy to understand for the average person."
63 days to optimal health by Sally-Ann Creed: a book review
2019-07-03"I would definitely suggest that those who are too scared of going low-carb would do well with Creed’s book."
North Facing by Tony Peake: a review
2019-07-01"North Facing is one of a recent stable of coming-of-age books set in South Africa where moral issues are revisited in later life."
The African Library: Tears of the brain by OK Matsepe translated
2019-06-26"The recent English translation, in 2018, forms part of the admirable work done by the Centre for Multilingualism and Diversities Research based at the University of the Western Cape, and the two translators are Seleka Tembane and Lucy Ndlovu."
Photo gallery: Schreiner Karoo Writers Festival 2019
2019-06-20The 9th Schreiner Karoo Writers Festival took place from 6 to 9 June this year in Cradock. Amy Coetzer documented the new display on Cradock writers in the Great Fish River Museum (part of the literary walking tour), book launches, talks, performance poetry and music performances and letters from Olive Schreiner.
Green as the sky is blue by Eben Venter: a reader's impression
2019-06-19"There is enough variation to keep the book interesting, and I have to conclude that Green as the sky is blue is a thoroughly enjoyable book. The book also had a nice feel of Zen Buddhism to it, in the way that Simon concludes that some things are just beyond expression, that it is what it is and that one must flow with life and not always resist by overtly abstract reasoning."
Press release: Open Book Festival announces first group of authors
2019-06-13Join The Book Lounge and The Fugard Theatre for the ninth Open Book Festival which takes place from 4 to 8 September this year.
Invitation to the launch of Holding the fort by Toni Strasburg
2019-06-11Kwela and Love Books invite you to the Johannesburg launch of Holding the fort by Toni Strasburg on 18 June, and on 25 June in Cape Town.
Lacuna: an interview with Fiona Snyckers
2019-06-04"It is about a woman by the name of Lucy Lurie (clearly inspired by Coetzee’s character of the same name), who is trying to recover from a gang rape. What makes her situation more unbearable is that a male writer, John Coetzee, has written a bestselling book about her experience. She feels as though it was her story to tell."
James Matthews: a revolutionary poet @ 90
2019-05-30"Indeed, it is hard to think of South African political poetry without the name of James Matthews. He was firmly identified with local expressions of Black Consciousness in the early 1970s, and his poetry shaped our generation’s understanding of the injustices, brutality and inhumanity that apartheid visited upon our communities across the country."
The love song of André P Brink by Leon de Kock: a review
2019-05-30"Leon de Kock’s well-judged biography presents us with a complex portrait of a great writer beset by a fundamental loneliness. All the sex, all the affairs and all the marriages were a frequently misguided attempt to end this loneliness."
Press release: Final few weeks to submit your Cape Town stories for #WritingmyCity
2019-05-29There’s only a few more weeks to submit your Cape Town stories to enter the Cape Town Library Book: Writing my City competition. The final deadline for submissions is 15 June.
Press release: Eastern Cape Literature Festival 2019 to celebrate indigenous languages, written works
2019-05-29Amazwi South African Museum of Literature is proud to announce the 2019 Eastern Cape Literature Festival, which will take place at the new Amazwi museum complex in Makhanda from 3-7 July 2019.
Press release: Third Gerald Kraak Prize winner announced
2019-05-29The Jacana Literary Foundation, in partnership with the Other Foundation, is proud to announce the 2019 recipient of the Gerald Kraak Prize. Congratulations to OluTimehin Adegbeye, whose essay, "Mothers and Men", made her this year’s worthy winner.
Like family, yet never
2019-05-24On Wednesday 22 May Ena Jansen’s book Like family was launched at the Book Lounge in Cape Town. The book deals with the contact zone between the domestic worker and the family she works for. Jansen chose to share the stage with Sindiwe Magona and Myrtle Witbooi.
Franschhoek Literary Festival 2019: personal reflections
2019-05-22"We all want our books to sell well and to reach the widest possible audience. Being invited to Franschhoek is an invaluable leg-up for any writer’s career. May the festival continue to go from strength to strength."
Schreiner Karoo Writers Festival: 6–9 June 2019
2019-05-21Here is the programme of the 9th Schreiner Karoo Writers' Festival – which takes place in Cradock from the 6th to the 9th of June 2019.
Franschhoek Literary Festival 2019 in pictures
2019-05-20The Franschhoek Literary Festival took place from 17 - 19 May 2019. Izak de Vries was the paparazzo on behalf of LitNet.