Litnet

"Accounts of imprisonment and torture under apartheid all too readily serve narrow political ends – but this book is the exception which proves the old rule. As such, this story will need to do much heavy lifting on that never-ending South African agenda of understanding and its twin, forgiveness."

"As citizens we need to start paying attention to our families and community members. We all need to care enough to report crimes, even if it is uncomfortable to do so."

"Well, HIV/AIDS has plagued South Africans for decades now and claimed many lives, but every time people speak about the virus, they always talk about the promiscuous/irresponsible adult and never about the kid who was born with it; I had a burning desire to tell a tale of a kid who maternally contracts the virus and has no say in the matter."

Imbali Academic Publishers and Graffiti Books invite you to the online launch of Portaits of pain by Melanie Moen. Karin Schimke will be in conversation to her.

The 2021 AKO Caine Prize shortlist has been announced, revealing five stories of “impressive craft and intelligent language”, chosen from a multitude of submissions spanning over 22 countries.

"Coupled with the stunning photography of Proust, one the country’s foremost architectural and landscape photographers, the narrative provides for an interesting guide throughout the book."

"I was acutely aware of the sensitivities of this story, and my approach with the extended Langenhoven family was cautious."

Compelling and revelatory, For my country shows what it takes to stand up for one’s principles and defy the most powerful man in the country.

"The boy who never gave up is a book that I could not put down. Apart from being the story of a teenager’s epic journey through Africa, it is also an inspiring book, a book of hope. I would not at all be surprised to see the story of this famous doctor one day being turned into a film."

"It’s rewarding and challenging to write for readers who are no longer children but who feel things intensely."

"The meal plans include dairy-fee, basic, budget and seven-day options. They also include inspirational testimonials from people of all walks of life and income brackets who successfully follow the Banting lifestyle, and the book serves as an easy-to-follow guide."

"In structural terms, the novel is fairly complex, with all these story strands travelling at different paces – even different directions – through the book, interleaved with each other. Juggling so many different elements can be tricky, but generally speaking Lawrence manages to keep all his balls in the air, which is impressive."

’n Verteenwoordigende groep vakspesialiste en deskundiges uit ’n verskeidenheid velde en subvelde is genader om termlyste by te dra.

"Besides, our youth in schools cannot read only about love and witchcraft from those old books written by old authors. We must start passing fresh information on to them by writing about the problems and concerns of today."

"I thoroughly enjoyed reading Shaping Addo. Reardon writes both knowledgeably and entertainingly about the history of the park as well as its current endeavours."

"I didn’t set out to be so honest, particularly about my childhood. I was going to write a short grief memoir, but the more I wrote, the more I understood that one’s childhood plays a role in how we grieve, that how we deal with loss as adults is connected to how we face loss as children, and so I went down that road, open to exploring my childhood." 

"But beyond the good that this means for visually impaired readers and the South African publishing industry, the collection’s poems are worth their own engagement. To me, the poems’ most interesting elements come from their portrayal of various humans’ attempts to relate to one another earnestly."

To celebrate the release of Christine, Melinda Ferguson Books (an imprint of NB Publishers) is thrilled to announce an exciting competition that offers one lucky reader the chance to win a return ticket to Amsterdam in 2022.

"By the fading light is a book to be read and reread. To remind us of where we were as a country. To savour the language. To laugh. But mostly to stare misty-eyed into the distance."

"This debut novel by acclaimed poet Timothy Ogene bears the traces of the author’s lyrical talent, his Nigerian origins, his expansive reading of world literature and his life-cherishing attentiveness to natural and human phenomena, both physical and spiritual. The text is, nevertheless, unpretentious in every way; as a narrative, perhaps a bildungsroman, the predominant tonal quality is a sort of quietness, a retrospective serenity."