Litnet

Booktown Richmond is proud to announce, for the second time, the South African Independent Publishers Awards - awards that recognise excellence in the burgeoning field of self-published books in South Africa.

"Letters of stone is a monument to a story which refused to be forgotten."

"African wild dogs – On the front line is a must-read for anyone interested in the future of this country or in the future of this planet."

"Food, people and stories haunt me all the time. I am always intrigued and excited about what people eat wherever I find myself."

"Die titel van die boek is 'n verwysing na die eindelose ruimtes hier, waar jy jou longe uit kan skree en niemand sal jou hoor."

"The Gruffalo, Julia’s most recognised title globally, has been translated into 43 languages (excluding the Zulu version currently in translation). Publishers understand that translations of children’s books are very important, for children to identify the words that they hear daily, see the words written down in books in their own language."

"The Seed Thief is one of those rare books which deliver on all fronts and leave you completely satisfied."

"In our own skins: Comfortable or itchy, but stuck with it."

"Research into our first people's languages is important for our national heritage."

"A God in Ruins is many things. It is the story of a British family set against the historical background of the past century. It is a novel about war and its aftershocks. It is a fine inquiry into human nature. But above all, it is a declaration of love for literature, its power and its manifold mysteries."

"I strongly recommend that all readers encounter for themselves the charming, humane, by turns hilarious and profound tales contained in this collection ..."

"Simply put: Am I reading her adult detective novels only because I liked (loved) Harry Potter?"

"The children of Kewtown, a very poor neighbourhood in Cape Town, understood the Babalela's cry; it actually became a mantra in their school. Again and again they wanted to hear the story, but very soon this outcry became part of how they saw themselves."

"Let me declare that the reading culture among the black South African youth is changing very fast."

Karina Magdalena Szczurek on André Brink and Ingrid Jonker: "No other woman in André’s life had left as indelible a mark on him as Ingrid. No other haunted me as much in the beginning of our relationship." 

T.V. Bulpin (1918–1999) was a writer about African big game hunters, South African travel and history.

NB Publishers: “It seems digital and print can live in harmony and it can be a mutually beneficial harmony at that.”

"Part The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, part Forrest Gump"

This week LitNet celebrates one of South Africa's greatest literary exports, Lauren Beukes.

This year over 450 entries were received for the prize from over two dozen countries, both from writers living on the African continent and from writers in the African diaspora.