Litnet

"Here, political prisoners were kept among murderers and thieves. It was large enough for prisoners to disappear, particularly in the maze of solitary cells reserved for political detainees."

In 2013, historian Jan-Ad Stemmet opened a box at the Archive for Contemporary Affairs at the University of the Free State and realised he had found a collection of documents that would rewrite the story of Nelson Mandela’s release.

Achmat Dangor passed away on 6 September 2020. Below, LitNet shares an article that was published in October 2004 on LitNet titled "Tasting the sweet fruit of literary success".

Penguin Random House en LAPA se nuwe fiksie is bekendgestel. | Announcing new fiction from Penguin Random House and LAPA.

"With her wide experience of the world, her firm but generous moral sense, and her sharp, inquiring mind, Elsa Joubert represented the very best of the Afrikaans intellectual tradition. I am honoured to have been her friend."

"It’s going to be the festival of the year, beams Darryl David! 'It might very well be the only festival of the year, but boy will it make up for the many that we missed!'"

"Loose talk, especially pillow talk, can be dangerous. In the arms of a lover, Nelson Mandela’s wife, Winnie, whispers that Nelson will be visiting Durban."

"Permeated as it is by compassionate irony, this is a deeply satisfying novel, a narrative that feeds the soul and expands the understanding."

"He is not a career politician. Mashaba’s decision to accept the call to leadership within the DA resulted from his desire to serve the people of Johannesburg."

You are invited to the launch of Heart of a strong woman by Xoliswa Nduneni-Ngema on 24 August 2020. She will be in conversation with Fred Khumalo.

LitNet and the Jakes Gerwel Foundation will present a mentorship programme for promising young English and Afrikaans writers in Somerset East from 12 October to 1 November 2020. The programme is intended specifically for short-prose writers – applications are now open.

"It’s important that we understand that femicide is not something that happens only when there is a big story in the news – but it is systemic, and it has been happening over a long period of time; it exists as part of a broader society that has allowed and encouraged violence to be used as a solution or as a means to an end." 

"Space doesn’t allow for a fuller discussion of the author’s conclusions, the main conclusion of which is that a major geopolitical contest between America and China is both inevitable and avoidable."

"Pam Christie’s entire career’s work shines a bright light on our educational fault lines, and now, with this book, she invites us into the decolonial space, which is an impossible space to embrace – maddeningly impossible – yet one which must be occupied and rendered pedagogical."

"I think the way we think about and talk about protests and why they happen has the ability to shape our receptiveness to listening, and I wanted to explore this idea in The fall."

"This is a book that is really worth the read; I am even considering rereading it sometime, which is something that I very rarely do with books."

"It was during a morning beach walk on one of these trips that he pointed out all the 'sea stars' in a rock pool. I was already writing the book, and that scene automatically made it in."

The winner of the Ingrid Jonker Prize for a debut volume of poetry in English published in 2018 and 2019 has been announced.  

"Please could Helen Moffett write the ending to my life story? Listening to Helen’s delightful Charlotte as an audiobook had me weeping in delight as I learned how things turned out in the end for the unobtrusive Charlotte Lucas, one of Elizabeth Bennet’s closest friends in Pride and prejudice."

"Writing is a solitary occupation, and writers enjoy being able to exchange ideas with other writers. The Circle provides them with this opportunity."