Litnet

Here is the full programme of The Alan Paton Book Festival 2018, as received from festival organiser Darryl David.

"We do have the agricultural plans jointly developed by role players in the agricultural sector, which are based on chapter six of the NDP! The government forked out millions to get all role players around the table to devise workable and implementable plans."

"I, Tonya is billed as a film about skating, about the rivalry between Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan. In truth, it is so much more than that. It is a searing depiction of domestic violence, it takes on society’s expectation of how a woman should act, and it finally delivers an endearing portrait of a rather difficult woman who refused to be a victim."

"It’s a fierce film that does, refreshingly, not offer real redemption to any of the characters, but that does portray them as terribly flawed and utterly human."

"One lesson is that no amount of investment in water infrastructure, by itself, can root out water shortage. The dramatic growth in Las Vegas’s population and tourism industry over recent decades has stretched the city’s allocation from the Colorado River – which it shares with several states and other cities – as well as its available groundwater reserves. It remains vulnerable, but drastic changes in its approach to water management have helped the city avoid running out of water."

Monday 5 March, 20:30, Drostdy Theatre, Stellenbosch: "Come join InZync for our first event of 2018 as we publish the long-awaited ConVerse, a collection that showcases some of the best new voices in South African poetry in translation, including Koleka Putuma, Jolyn Phillips, Sindiswa Busuku-Mathese, Nathan Trantraal and Mbongeni Nomkonwana."

"The President’s Keepers brought to light abuse of and corruption at these agencies, and this raid is evidence of how the priorities are perverted."

"A casualty of power is a brief novel, but it packs a strong punch, vividly and effectively raising matters of importance and urgent relevance to millions of Africans – and others, for African situations are never unique – and their intelligent depiction can enlighten readers all over the world."

"My opinion about the general development of indigenous languages in South Africa is that each and every one of us – and every organisation – must promote, and create conditions for, the development and use of all official languages: the Khoi, Nama and San languages; sign language; and all other languages commonly used by communities (see section/article 6(5)(a) and (b) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa)."

"My latest book is called Jouw toekomst is mijn toekomst (2017) and contains the stories of four students with a refugee background. These are courageous stories that offer a different perspective on people who have made the crossing to Europe."

"It’s apparent that the appeal board has missed out on the other important aspects of the film, which include same-sex relationships, safe sex, love, the challenges of patriarchal societies, finding the balance between modernity and tradition, negotiating the rural and urban landscapes, as well as the beauty that is embedded within the isiXhosa culture and the traditional rite of passage into manhood."

"What if we tried to get a whole city on a stage! These were the starting questions of the 100% project! What would we face if Stellenbosch was represented by a cross section of 100 people?"

"Althea’s rapist moved back in with his wife of six years in early November."

"In fact, Nama is, for all practical purposes, the only extant Khoekhoe variety (and, indeed, the only Khoisan language of any kind) still spoken in South Africa today. Most of the remaining Nama speakers in South Africa (perhaps around 2 000 of them) are aged at least 50 or upwards, however, although attempts are now being made to reintroduce the language as an additional subject at schools in the Northern Cape." 

"In the end, like in the book, it boils down to helping one another. There is great blessing in giving a glass of water to a poor and thirsty person. It is a form of healing."

"[I]n the mid-70s as he [Raymond] was putting together his collection of 20th-century English poetry ... From this initial stage, today the final product amounts to what is now known as the Danowski Poetry Library – a 75 000-volume collection of rare and first editions of modern and contemporary poetry at Emory University. It includes every poetry volume in English published world-wide in the 20th century."

"The motivation for the play is clear, and this can be a very important piece of theatre: the refugee crisis is, sadly, an ongoing one, and in some wealthy parts of the world, like Trump’s America, refugees – or people fleeing to have better lives – are not welcome." 

"The postponement of SONA is a metaphor for where we are as a country. We are a country in waiting. The dreams of 1994 and our hopes as citizens have been deferred. Again."

"The characters and the surroundings are drawn with the accuracy of a master painter, as the author’s descriptions evoke the hopelessness echoed in the area and in the lives of its inhabitants."

Navigate was launched at The Book Lounge on 31 January 2018. Paul Reeves captured the evening with his photos.