Litnet

"Nothing grows here now except silence and birdsong by day and the call of the jackal by night."

"waar vrede my na rus bring
op ’n heilige plek
waar ek eendag sal vergaan."

"dan hou ek liefs
vir jou
’n bladsy oop"

"as ek sluk aan asems
wat om my fluister
oor lewe en dood"

"kom leef ’n tyd en meer saam met my, my Lentenooi
hier waar die somerlag koeltesoekers uitnooi"

Tobie Cronjé lees PG du Plessis se teks "Het olifante elmboë?" voor. Die verhaal het oorspronklik in Het olifante elmboë? Outobiografiese verdigsels soos bygelieg deur PG du Plessis, in 1987 deur Tafelberg uitgegee, verskyn.

The lovely Karoo town Cradock will play host to Deon Meyer, Coenie de Villiers and André Schwartz from 12 to 15 June 2024. That is when the Schreiner Karoo Writers Festival will take place.

The Commonwealth Foundation has announced five regional winners of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, the world’s most global literary prize. 

Koos Kombuis gee hoog op oor Karin Brynard se speurroman Tuisland. Hy vertel ook waarom hy van chicklit hou en neem Marian Keyes se My favourite mistake onder die loep. Daarna gesels hy ook oor bundels van die skrywer-musikante Corrazerwas (Tussenspel) en Andries de Beer (Aalmoes vir die bootman).

"Hierdie boek behoort wyd byval te vind. Nie net by ouers wat die ontsaglike verlies van ’n kind moes beleef het nie maar ook oor kinders grootmaak en die huwelik waar die ouers ’n sterk span vorm."

Lisa Robinson has moved from Durban to Cape Town to be with Grant, the prospective next First Minister of the Good Hope Territory. The GHT is the safest and most prosperous country in the southern hemisphere – at a price.  Life here is picture-perfect. The Mother City is pristine. Everyone has a job. Tourism is booming. But this shiny new state has decided that Lisa is a problem, and problems here disappear quickly and quietly.

"Perhaps the country most deeply affected by the ICC warrants, other than Israel itself, would be the USA. While itself not an ICC states party, US criticism of the Palestine case – in light of its previous support for the ICC warrants against Putin and Bashir, among others – exposes not only its double standards, but the shallowness of its much-touted moral compass."

Will voting be based on competence or identity? Freek Robinson talks to William Gumede, chairperson of the multiparty convention.

"Nie almal wat oor gebeure in verlede tye skryf, kan as historici beskou word nie. Het Karel Schoeman dié titel verdien?" Dan Sleigh het voor sy dood oor Karel Schoeman as historikus geskryf, en sy dogter Jean Sleigh het die teks aan LitNet gestuur om te plaas as meningsartikel.

"The unlikely secret agent is meer as net ’n historiese drama. Dit herinner ons aan die krag van gewone mense om buitengewone dinge te doen in die aangesig van ongeregtigheid."

Met Frazer Barry se lied "Plakkaat oppe paal" hoop hy "die liedjie inspireer Suid-Afrikaners om nugter te dink oor die politieke bestel en hoe hulle hul stem kan gebruik om die politieke leiers verantwoordelik te hou."

"But suddenly the agenda has become denser and more complex. International issues, bad old South African racial politics, and opportunistic political engineering have all made an appearance. So let’s pinpoint some of the key issues."

From 30 May – 14 June 2024, the acclaimed St Olaf Choir (USA), under the baton of its renowned conductor Anton Armstrong, will tour South Africa, with eight concerts and numerous choir collaborations and workshops in Pretoria, Johannesburg, Soweto, KZN and Cape Town. Composed of 75 mixed voices, the St Olaf Choir is hailed as one of the USA’s premier a cappella ensembles, renowned for its artistry and beauty of sound.

There is no shortage of good advice, personal finance books and well-worn practices, so the question is: Why can’t people change? We know what to do, but then inexplicably don’t seem to do it. What keeps tripping us up? Many of our money troubles are caused by behavioural traps that keep us locked in a cycle. The book contains real-life case studies of people who overcame financial difficulties and highlights the small steps they took to change the course of their lives. No matter what your income level or financial background, this book is tailored to help everyone.

There’s captivating music and even a Pulitzer Prize-nominee for the June programme at The Drama Factory: "Love Letters is a wonderful, funny and moving play which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Our music extravaganza this month includes Guitar Heroes with Mel Botes, celebrating the music of iconic guitar heroes. Also don’t miss Franky Jones’ beautiful tribute to legendary singer Edith Piaf in Edith Piaf, the untold story."