Litnet

"She will hope against all hope
that her day will seem brighter
through concealer and dark glasses."

"I remember now. I remember everything. I remember my brother’s defiance, my mother’s tears and heartache and defeatist attitude. The music school behind her eyes, and I would see the sea in his father’s knuckles."

"The big question stands: how did it get its name, the Lanzerac? How did she come upon the name?"

"This is an example of what I call the eighth petal of the sacred lotus in Breytenbach’s work. It indicates the ways in which Breytenbach plays with and stretches language and cognitive frameworks."

"Humans have participated in mass migrations since the earliest dawn of human society. ... Understanding how the Patagonian Afrikaans community has negotiated their identity and their relation to place is, therefore, a very current topic, and can be of value to the understanding of current migrant communities."

Pieter-Louis Myburgh’s Gangster State: Unravelling Ace Magashule’s Web of Capture was recently launched at the CapeTalk (and Kfm) studios, Cape Town. Myburgh was interviewed by Adriaan Basson.

"The days are paler: plump, acidic, 
Granny Smith apple days."

"Capernaum is a stirring take on poverty, child abuse and overpopulation. It won’t traumatise you or leave you despondent, though."

Mama runs until Saturday 13 April at the Artscape. Mama (portrayed by Chenal Kock and directed by Jeremeo Le Cordeur) is a character piece, showcased through poetry and physical theatre, that focuses on the Afrikaaps dialect. Menán van Heerden chats to Chenal and Jeremeo to find out more.

"The Bill erodes copyright protection. It makes it impossible for creators of academic work to protect their legitimate interests, such as being remunerated for their work and having their work’s integrity respected."

Hermann Giliomee's The rise and demise of the Afrikaners was recently launched at Exclusive Books Stellenbosch. Giliomee was interviewed by Albert Grundlingh.

"The National Arts Festival, now in its 45^th year, offers excellent theatre, dance, music, movement and interactive pieces for children to enjoy throughout the eleven days from 27 June to 7 July."

"spilling the silence
into quiet and the quiet into
quieter still"

"He was still a dream. Roberto, Roberto, Roberto. She had phoned him once. Once was all it took to realise that her dream of him didn’t quite match up to the reality of him. She didn’t even think of her own dignity and pride." 

"This literary festival, perhaps the most relaxed of the scores that take place in Australia every year, sprawls across a park in the city centre. It’s hard to resist its charm. And, this year, it’s pleasing to note that, over and above the Coetzee-Van Niekerk hour, there is a strong African presence."

National reading-for-enjoyment campaign, Nal’ibali, is launching a loyalty programme for South Africans committed to making a difference in children’s reading development. Known as FUNda Sonke, isiXhosa for ‘everyone read’, the programme seeks to grow and support the campaign’s network of more than 17 000 literacy volunteers, known as FUNda Leaders, nationwide.

"The biographical nature of both poetry and painting in Breyten Breytenbach’s work is less an indulgence than a subjective witnessing of both personal and world history."

"In the coming months, libraries will be running workshops to aid you in honing your writing skills. All of this will culminate on the 15^th of June when you will be able to submit your piece for consideration at participating libraries. The finalists' pieces will then be included in the #WritingmyCity anthology which will be launched at Open Book Festival 2019!" 

Due to public request, the South African Literary Awards (SALA) Call for Submissions is extended to 30^th April 2019.

"The compelling new production of Athol Fugard's classic play Statements after an arrest under the Immorality Act has scooped no less than five Kanna Award nominations."