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Books > Local Author Showcase > Biography
Moshitadi is a mother wound recovery coach. In The Girl Who Survived Her Mother, she details the years of her torturous relationship with her mother, maps the intergenerational nature of the trauma in her family, and reveals how she was finally able to begin her journey of healing. Today she helps clients around the world face their most shameful question -- how do I love myself when the person who carried me and gave birth to me cannot?
Antjie Krog is ’n (ook internasionaal) bekroonde digter, joernalis, vertaler en akademikus. Sy debuteer op die jong ouderdom van 18 met die bundel Dogter van Jefta (1970) waarna talle bekroonde digbundels en publikasies volg. As joernalis by Die Suid-Afrikaan lewer sy in die 1990’s verslag oor die Waarheids-en-versoeningskommissie en verwoord haar ervarings oor dié proses in Country of my skull, wat in 1998 gepubliseer is en onder meer die Alan Paton-toekenning vir niefiksie en die Olive Schreiner-prys ontvang. Sy vertaal ook Nelson Mandela se biografie, Long walk to freedom, in Afrikaans as Lang pad na vryheid. Sy wen drie keer die gesogte Hertzogprys – vir Lady Anne (1990), Mede-wete (2017), asook vir haar jongste poësiebundel, Plunder, in 2023. Mees onlangs het sy die Tienie Holloway-medalje van die SA Akademie ontvang vir Vetplantfeetjies, saam met medewerkers Fiona Moodey en Ingrid de Kock, vir haar kinderdigbundel oor die natuur en inheemse plantegroei. Hierdie huldigingsbundel is die 16de in die reeks van die SA Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns wat literêre kunstenaars huldig wat met die Hertzogprys bekroon is, en wat die Afrikaanse letterkunde oor dekades heen verryk het.
A tribute to her father, Makaziwe Mandela shares the most definitive portrait of Nelson Mandela to date, revealing the man behind the anti-apartheid movement that changed the world. One of Time magazine’s Most Important People of the Twentieth Century, Nelson Mandela continues to be a symbol of equality and justice: a Nobel Prize winner, South Africa’s first Black president, and an unrelenting leader in the movement to dismantle racial inequality. Written by his daughter, her story uncovers the family man behind the international peacemaker persona. This volume presents an extraordinary assembly of historic biography and imagery alongside never-before-published family stories and personal photographs, Nelson Mandela’s letters to friends and family, journal entries written during his incarceration, and a unique collection of rarely seen charcoal drawings and paintings he began at 83 years old. Chapters chronicle Mandela’s childhood growing up in Mvezo, his time in Johannesburg as leader of the African National Congress, the importance of his familial relationships, decades of imprisonment, and his role as president and philanthropist. An enthralling read illustrated by powerful historic imagery, this tome delves into the life of the man that continues to galvanize so many.
In 2011 while riding his motorbike through Mali, on his way home from London to Johannesburg, Stephen McGown was taken captive in Timbuktu by Al Qaeda. He was held captive for almost six years giving him the unenviable record of Al Qaeda’s longest held prisoner. Together with writer Tudor Caradoc-Davies, he wrote his book Six Years With Al Qaeda: The Stephen McGown Story. In this inspirational biography Steve uncovers the extraordinary lengths he went through to survive; from learning French and Arabic, converting to Islam and accepting a name given to him by his captors. His aim was to raise his status among Al Qaeda, keep himself alive and hopefully make his way back home. Thousands of kilometres away in Johannesburg, the shock of his kidnapping hit his wife Cath and the rest of the McGown family. Working every option they could find, from established diplomatic protocols to the murky back channels of the kidnap game, they set to work on trying to free Steve. Months turned to years and while the captive-captor dynamic was ever-present, Steve witnessed first hand what no westerner has ever seen before, giving him a nuanced perspective on one of the worlds most feared terrorist organisations.
Azille Coetzee gaan studeer in Nederland, kry ’n Nederlandse lover en besluit om in Europa aan te bly. Maar iets voel nie reg nie … Daar is tog altyd die vraag: Watter herkoms hou die styfste vas, Afrika of Europa? Dié is ’n uiters leesbare verhaal van identiteit, reis en liefde: intiem, eerlik en slim.
In April 2017, Pravin Gordan addressed a packed audience in St George’s Cathedral in Cape Town. It was a week after President Jacob Zuma had fired him as Finance Minister, a move that signalled South Africa had been well and truly captured. Gordhan urged the crowd not to give up hope and to ‘join the dots’ in understanding what was taking place. At this moment he became a moral authority to many, someone who could fight the corruption. Seasoned journalists Jonathan Ancer and Chris Whitfield take a magnifying glass to someone at the centre of South Africa’s most tumultuous period and try to understand the man behind the public image. They go back to Durban in 1949 when Gordhan was born, tracing the significant events and influences that shaped his life and prompted him to become involved in politics as a pharmacy student at the University of Durban-Westville. Ancer and Whitfield have interviewed close former activists to build a picture of his time in the underground and the role he played in the struggle including his detention and torture. It was during this time he worked closely with Zuma, the man who would, on the back of a bogus intelligence report, fire him as finance minister. The book will examine why Gordhan has been dragged into major controversies like the rogue unit saga, the intelligence report and other smears against him. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s right-hand man has made many enemies: public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane, Julius Malema and Ace Magashule to name a few. Joining the Dots is an in-depth and satisfying read about a man who has been at the centre of South African public life.
"So here I am, at a psychiatric hospital, looking for myself in a building I’ve never been in before. A few nights ago, I was ready to rid myself of myself. I still am, only, in a different way. This time, I want to do away with what I hope will soon be my former self. I don’t know what is wrong with me, I never have. All I know is that my head is clouded with loud voices screaming in different frequencies; none of them making sense. With only a stony face to hide it all behind, and a pained smile to offer my friends and colleagues." Patient 12A is Lesedi Molefi’s absorbing memoir, reflecting on his time spent in a psychiatric clinic in 2016. With vulnerability and candour, Lesedi reflects on the moments, large and small, that led him here. It is at once a personal history, an observation of how childhood experiences can have a profound effect on the adults we become, and a commentary on how mental illness remains a difficult conversation in black families. But more than anything, Patient 12A is Lesedi’s attempt to filter out the noise in his head to find the truth, however uncomfortable that may be.
This is a story about a woman; a story about her struggle. As the survivor of great tragedy; this is a story about triumph. Despite only being 33 years old, Zoleka Mandela has endured enough to fill several lifetimes. While she may be a member of South Africa's own royal family, Zoleka has not led a sheltered life. She has travelled down paths which most would not dare; from the horror of losing two children within two years, to the shadowy journey through cocaine addiction and rehab, and being diagnosed with cancer. Though she was robbed of her children, stripped of her sobriety, and subject to a disease that necessitated a double mastectomy, Zoleka Mandela is not a victim. She is a survivor, and her story serves as testimony to the strength of the human spirit in fighting against life's challenges. Zoleka is a living example of success in spite of overwhelming challenges. Zoleka is now clean and cancer-free. Zoleka Mandela had her last session of chemotherapy in April this year, and has been sober for 36 months. Through her story, it is impossible not to have faith in the good things in life, and possible to believe that anything is achievable. Zoleka's book is an ideal read for those exposed to life's challenges and traumas - from a mother who has had to deal with the loss of a child, or families who have had to endure the pains of cancer, or those who have dealt with the stress of addiction - it is a universal read exhibiting the power of healing.
This is the first full biography from childhood of the eminent British
Architect Sir Herbert Baker. Written with the full cooperation of his
family and with access to his archive and private papers, it gives an
account of his remarkable life as the leading architect to the British
Empire. From London, through the commemoration of the empire's war dead
in France, via South Africa and Australia to India, he celebrated the
might of an empire that once ruled a quarter of the world. He was an
intimate friend of many of most fascinating men of his age, including
Cecil Rhodes, Lawrence of Arabia, John Buchan, Jan Smuts and, of
course, his fellow architect Sir Edwin Lutyens. After a Victorian
architectural apprenticeship in London and on to becoming the most
prolific architect of his age in South Africa, he built the new
imperial capital of New Delhi in India with Lutyens, before returning
to London. These built or rebuilt such landmark buildings as the Bank
of England, South Africa House, India House, Rhodes House, and the
stands for Lords Cricket Ground, as well as numerous churches and
private houses.
In Lucas Mangope: A Life, journalist Oupa Segalwe incisively
examines the public and private life of this
traditional-leader-cum-elected politician, whose rise and fall
coincided with the collapse of apartheid and that of the ill-advised
homelands project. Segalwe compellingly traces how complex currents of
self-enrichment, duty to his people, and serving the interests of all
those he was indebted to played out. A balanced account of the
life and times of the enigmatic Mangope.
Nonkululeko Gobodo made her mark in business as the first black female Chartered Accountant in South Africa, a great and rare feat for a black woman growing up in apartheid South Africa. If she was told at 17 years old, while pregnant, that she would be a valiant voice of her generation, she would have laughed it off in disbelief. Nonkululeko’s career has always been about embodying black excellence, and in this book, she bares her own perspective on deep-seated issues of racism, prejudice against women, discrimination, and mental brokenness; themes that continue to taunt our minds today. The book is a culmination of her passion to see black people and women awakened to their true selves. It is a reflective celebration of self, courage and the remarkable spirit of resilience that lies within us all. The clarity in her voice comes through so well that it feels like she’s in the room with you, narrating her life story in an unhurried conversation. Her discerning view on the ego and one’s ability to be both wise and foolish, strong and weak, is meditative and inspiring. True to the book’s title, she comes into her own through her unordinary journey of trauma, healing and self-love that has awakened her to her true purpose. Be inspired and motivated, get your copy today.
Widely considered to be the most important biography of Nelson Mandela, Anthony Sampson's remarkable book has now been updated by acclaimed South African journalist, John Battersby. Over a decade after his presidency of South Africa, Nelson Mandela remains an inspirational figure to millions of people -- both in his homeland and far beyond her borders. He is, without doubt, one of the most important figures in global history. Mandela's opposition to apartheid and his 27 year incarceration at the hands of South Africa's all-white regime are familiar to most. In this utterly compelling book, eminent biographer Anthony Sampson, who knew his subject since 1951, reveals the man behind the events that rocked a continent -- and changed the world. With unprecedented access to the former South African president -- the letters he wrote in prison, his unpublished jail autobiography, extensive conversations, and interviews with hundreds of colleagues, friends, and family -- Sampson depicts the realities of Mandela's private and public life, and the tragic tension between them. Newly updated by distinguished South African journalist John Battersby, Mandela is the ultimate biography of one of the twentieth century's greatest statesmen.
Harry Oppenheimer, the international gold-and-diamond magnate, presided over the corporate dynasty of Anglo American and De Beers for more than 25 years. Yet, two decades after his death, the Oppenheimer empire is no more. As the political opposition’s key financial backer, the founder (along with Anton Rupert) of the Urban Foundation after the Soweto uprising in 1976, and a ubiquitous philanthropist, Oppenheimer helped propel the process of reform. Nevertheless, in some quarters he is demonised as the archetype of ‘white monopoly capital’ and scapegoated, along with Nelson Mandela, for the country’s disappointing democratic dividends. In the first, full-scale biography of Oppenheimer, based on unrestricted access to his subject’s private papers and extensive interviews with family members and close associates, Michael Cardo eschews both the corporate hype and the political propaganda to produce a vivid, fully-rounded portrait. He brings to life the places, people, events and relationships that shaped Harry Oppenheimer’s long and rich career at the intersection of business and politics. Cardo also tackles thorny questions of legacy and Oppenheimer’s complicity with the oppressive racial order of the past.
Ivor Swartz kom van die Gaatjie in Grabouw, 'n hooplose plek. Sy pa is vroeg dood en sy ma maak hom en sy sibbe alleen groot. Hulle oudste broer terroriseer die gesin en een aand skiet Ivor en sy vriend sy broer en hy sterf later in die hospitaal. Ivor gaan tronk toe en met sy uitkoms begin sy lewe van voor af. Vandag is hy 'n jeugpastoor met 'n passie vir Here wat sy storie gebruik om ander te inspireer. 'n Storie van die verlore seun wat huis toe kom.
Werk soos ’n miljardêr vertel die verhaal van Dan, ’n werknemer, wat bloot van salaristjek tot salaristjek leef. Hy streef daarna om sy eie besigheid te begin maar hy staar verskeie uitdagings in die gesig. Een van dié uitdagings is hoe om, sonder enige geld, ’n besigheid te begin. Maar alles verander op ’n dag toe hy voor ’n groot besluit te staan kom. Die boek is propvol waardevolle wenke oor hoe om rykdom te skep, jouself beter te leer ken en hoe om volhoubare besigheidsisteme te bou.
Navigating motherhood from the age of 18, Kim Stephens shelved her inner journo and embraced a life of media sales and sports marketing, working with some of the biggest sports brands globally, and locally, whilst pursuing her own ultra-running ambitions. Arguing vehemently against the possibility that she was running from her own truth, Covid-19 wiped out Kim’s possibilities for continued escape. After three children, two divorces and a gradual sexual awakening, Kim found herself at 40-something virtually unemployed, with all the time in the world to write, sip gin and study a general response to one of the world’s most draconian lockdowns. Her humorous observations of middle-class South African behaviour through the various levels of lockdown earned her a certain notoriety and a degree of viral success, and with that the courage to put it all into a book. Hold the Line tells the story of teenage pregnancy, the situational blindness of white South Africa, the disappointment of divorce and the deep joy found through true awakening. Stitched together with the lockdown writing that Kim penned for a growing base of followers, she shares a more in-depth life story with her usual candid self-deprecation. Written to rattle a few truths from within its readers, Hold the Line ends ironically as the world begins to follow a potential third World War via TikTok.
Holding My Breath is a candid, heart-breaking and very funny memoir of life in one of Johannesburg’s busiest emergency rooms. Biccard’s warmth and humanity shine through the often harrowing tale, creating an unputdownable, uplifting and inspiring book. The first customer today reports that, the previous night, his right nipple had moved away from its usual location. He noticed its absence when he looked in the mirror and later found it in his armpit. ‘Wow,’ I say with a slight frown. I have never heard of a migrating nipple before. ‘Let’s have a look.’ I slide the door shut and motion to him to pull his T-shirt off. ‘Oh, it has moved back now,’ he says.
‘I wanted to be who I felt I was. Broken. A wreck. A nobody.’
’n Blik op die binnekring van die Krugersdorp-kultus “Daar was bloedspatsels oor die koffietafel, die banke en die banke se kussings. Peter en Joan was oortrek van steekwonde in hul rûe, nekke en agterkoppe. Nicholas het sy pa en ma gesigte na onder in ’n bloedbad op die mat in die sitkamer gekry. Hulle het hul hek en huis vir hul moordenaars oopgemaak, want hulle het ’n afspraak met hulle gehad.” Elf wrede moorde oor ’n tydperk van vier jaar ruk die gemeenskap van Krugersdorp en haal landwyd nuusopskrifte. Eindelik word al hierdie moorde verbind met Cecilia Steyn en haar kultusgroep, Electus per Deus (uitverkies deur God). Lede van die groep aanbid die grond waarop Cecilia loop en sal selfs vir haar moord pleeg. Die moordenaars is slim, gewone mense – ’n onderwyseres, ’n finansiële makelaar, ’n kind wat tussen die moorde deur steeds ses onderskeidings in matriek behaal en boonop keuring kry om medies te gaan studeer. Hul slagoffers het bloot ’n sake- afspraak nagekom, min wetend dat dít ’n afspraak met die dood was. Wie is Cecilia Steyn? Hoe kan een mens vyf ander manipuleer om moord te pleeg en namens haar in die hof te lieg? Watter rol het Satanisme gespeel? Hoe ontduik onervare misdadigers die polisie vir so lank? Jana Marx beantwoord dié en ander vrae in ’n waremisdaad-verhaal wat gelei het tot een van die opspraakwekkendste moordsake in die land se geskiedenis. Met behulp van onderhoude uit diegene in die binnekring, hofgetuienis en polisiedossiere oor ’n tydperk van vier jaar poog Marx om die publiek se vrae te antwoord en ’n blik te gee op die binnewerkinge van só ’n kultus.
Dana Snyman deel in Seun die deel van sy storie waaroor hy nog nooit
gepraat het nie: sy ervaringe in die 1980’s. Dit is die tyd van PW
Botha se vinger, van die Voëlvry-toer, AWB-saamtrekke, onderhandelinge
en die laaste dae van diensplig. Dana word oneervol ontslaan uit die
weermag, maar eers maak hy ’n draai in Saal 24. Werkloos en
doelloos eindig hy in ’n gewese bediendekamer in Pretoria. Dié
rou, selfonthullende memoir vra: hoe word ’n seun ’n
man? Met Seun neem Dana lesers in sy vertroue.
Mteto Nyati knew as a schoolboy in Mthatha, working at his mother’s store, that he wanted to fix and build things. After completing his studies at Natal University, he turned down a Rhodes scholarship and headed for Jo'burg to take up a position at Afrox. He was the only black engineer and the advice he received was ‘don’t mess up’. He didn’t and today is one of South Africa’s top CEOs. This is his inspirational story.
In this humorous coming-of-age memoir, young Costa finds himself in the middle of a matriarchal triangle. His sulky mother Victoria is forced to share her kitchen with both her conservative Greek mother-in-law and her bossy sister-in-law. A raucous war in the kitchen takes place, not only for oven territory but also for the affection of their beloved "Kostaki". An intricately woven portrait of the Greek immigrant experience of a family, trying to navigate South Africa in the 1960’s and 70s.
On the face of it, life looks good for Sara-Jayne. She’s a popular radio personality, a bestselling author and she’s recently been reunited with her long-lost father, nearly 40 years after she was given up for adoption as a baby. Best of all, she’s just found out she’s about to become a mother, with Enver, the ‘love of her life’. She's convinced that she’s finally heading towards her "happily ever after". But six weeks after discovering she’s pregnant, Enver relapses on heroin and disappears, leaving Sara-Jayne devastated. She checks into The Clinic, where despite the little life growing inside her, she realises she’s never felt more alone. In her much-anticipated follow up to the bestseller Killing Karoline, Sara-Jayne is now forced, for the sake of her unborn child, to find a way to save herself. But first she has to unravel why everyone always leaves her. Why like that song she's always looking for love in all the wrong places? And why she is so obsessed with mad, bad love?
Brief Hours and Weeks is the author's account of growing up in a small, tightly knit, first-generation Polish-Jewish community in Cape Town in the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. Observing through at first naive and then later more sophisticated eyes, he describes his childhood and youth in a protective off-the-boat immigrant Jewish family in very British-Commonwealth South Africa as apartheid becomes increasingly coercive. Through vivid and candid personal stories, he brings to life a time, place, culture, people, and set of mores that no longer exist. At 21, he leaves Africa to study in America. |
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