Unrecognised, ignored and forgotten.

The Forgotten Scientist: The Story of Saul Sithole is the untold story of a pioneering black scientist who made a great contribution to the fields of anthropology and ornithology in South Africa. Saul Sithole was so committed to his craft that even the weight of apartheid did not stop him from giving 62 years of his life to the scientific world of birds and fossils. Saul never received the official recognition he deserved – until now.

This book validates his contribution, sharing his life’s work and laying out a story that will inspire future generations of scientists.

Exit! is the story of Grizelda Grootboom life of prostitution and her ultimate escape from it all.

Grizelda’s life was dramatically changed when she was gang raped at the age of nine by teenagers in her township. Her story starts there. It is a story about the cycle of poverty, family abandonment, dislocation and survival in the streets of Cape Town. She reveals the seedy and often demonised life of a prostitute; she describes the clubs and beds of the prostitution and drug industry over a twelve-year period.

She moves to Johannesburg at the age of 18 in an attempt to start a new life, but instead she is trafficked on arrival in Yeoville, tied in a room for two weeks and forced to work as a sex slave. What follows is a life of living hand-to-mouth, from one street corner to another, being pimped, being taught how to strip, and acquiring and using a variety of drugs – from buttons, ecstasy and cannabis to cocaine – to sustain herself. She speaks of how her prostitution gains momentum in city strip clubs and the sometimes tragic pregnancies that would follow.

Grizelda’s harrowing tale ends with reconciliation with her family, while raising her six-year-old son. In writing this story she hopes to open a window on the hidden and often misunderstood world of prostitution, thereby raising better awareness and understanding about its harms and the horrors of trafficking and prostitution of women and children, and drug abuse. She hopes to heal and to set an example for others to follow.

As a young girl, Ismé Bennie didn’t realize how privileged she was. A white South African growing up during the apartheid era, her life was one of pleasure. She was a child at play under the warm African sun.

As she grew, however, and became more aware of the suffering of the black community in her country, she began to understand the evils of apartheid in a way that only those who lived through it can.

White Schooldays is a reflection on the relative normalcy of Bennie’s life in the 1940s and 1950s—a life filled with her pets, family, sports, and friends. As a Jew, Bennie was a minority within a minority, but she still enjoyed the benefits of life as a white South African. Her everyday pleasurable experiences stand in stark contrast to the violence, discrimination, and political upheaval that went on around her. As Bennie changed from a girl to a woman, the bliss of ignorance faded away.

White Schooldays is Bennie’s homage to a way of life that was special and beautiful for those who were privileged enough to lead it…and a look at the political reality of the times to keep it all in perspective.

When Errol Tobias was selected for the Springbok rugby team there was an immediate uproar. He became our first black Springbok in 1980 – in the middle of South Africa’s isolation from international sport and growing protest action against the government. In Errol Tobias: Pure Gold he talks openly about his sporting career: from childhood to the great moments in the green and gold. Here are the joys, the losses, and the controversy.

The truth behind legendary rugby matches is revealed, such as the South American tour where Tobias broke a world record, and the disastrous New Zealand tour that was overshadowed by protests against the Springboks. He writes about his close friendship with fellow Springbok legend Rob Louw, and the unwavering support of Danie ‘Doc’ Craven. Tobias also gives his opinion on the quota system of today.

Many others have talked about Errol Tobias and his effect on South African rugby. Here is his side of the story.

Koos Kombuis se outobiografie het al meer as tien drukke beleef. Hierdie heruitgawe verskyn op openbare aandrang.

Sy ganse lewensverhaal, Koos se manier om homself te versoen met sy verlede. Hy vertel van sy heel eerste openbare optrede (op die ouderdom van ongeveer vyf sekondes), van sy jeugjare as hedonis, van die paradokse & die pyn, van hoe lekker die lewe nou vir hom is, van die goue jare wat nog voorlê . . .

O ja, natuurlik ook van die seks & drugs & boeremusiek wat al sy pad gekruis het.

Sewsunker "Papwa" Sewgolum (1930–1978) was a South African golfer who carved a niche for himself in golfing folklore when he became the first golfer of colour to win a provincial open in South Africa (in 1963). Sewgolum, a former caddie, with his wrong-way-round grip (left hand beneath his right), beat 103 white golfers in the Natal Open at the Durban Country Club. He became a symbol of the sports boycott movement when pictures of him receiving his trophy outdoors in the rain, because, due to apartheid, he was not allowed to enter the clubhouse, were published across the world.

In 1965 he beat Gary Player to win the Natal Open for the second time. He also won the Dutch Open in 1959, 1960 and 1964. However, the dream was to be cut short. At the peak of his career, Papwa was banned by the apartheid government from participating in or attending any PGA tournaments. Crushing him further, they also withdrew his passport, denying him the right to play internationally. This slowly broke his spirit, leaving him with nothing but a dream.

This is the story of one man who triumphed again unbelievable odds, only to have his dream snatched from him. Written as fiction, this is a uniquely South African story told by a master storyteller.

What makes a working mother and average athlete decide to take on a massive physical and mental challenge to run, cycle and kayak the perimeter of South Africa, covering 6 772 km in less than five months? Kim van Kets was inspired by her desire to demonstrate to her daughter the fact that mothers are heroes too. She was able to justify the 'time-out' after having built up a credit balance of 150 days owed to her by her adventurer husband. Her story is a positive and enthusiastic 'off the beaten track' South African adventure and is amusing, anecdotal and inspiring.

It tells of the physical and mental challenges of the journey but focuses on stories surrounding the people and places she encountered along the way, including those of the ancient Kalahari farmer who pronounced her to be a 'Ramkat' and the Nama goatherd who seemed doubtful about her gender and anxious to be rid of her. The book is also a wonderful South African travelogue and is studded with nuggets of history and fascinating trivia about the plants, animals, characters and places as well as brief summaries of important life lessons the journey highlighted for the author.

It will leave the reader feeling upbeat, inspired and eager to explore the splendour of the beloved country and its people.

Renowned historian Bill Nasson explores how the complex dynamics of the crisis of war shaped the character of South African politics and the life of its fragmented and frequently turbulent society.

His gripping account provides a vivid illustration of the richly varied manner in how the Union's people understood the war, experienced its pressures, responded to its opportunities, and dealt with its burdens. The consequences of the country's entry into war were often fraught and far-reaching, including the shock of a domestic Afrikaner rebellion, the swallowing of German South West Africa, decisive economic change, and wartime habits of violence which lingered on after 1918.

Thoughtful, lively and witty, this is an evocative portrait of South African society in its own world of war.

As Africa's oldest orchestra, and certainly its most versatile, the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra is a proud part of the fabric of the Mother City. Founded in 1914 as a municipally funded ensemble, the orchestra was privatised in 1986 and later merged with the former Capab orchestra, achieving independence in 2000.

A Century Of Symphony tells the story of Cape Town’s orchestras over the past 100 years. Bringing together reminiscences, anecdotes and heartfelt stories by players, conductors and audience members, images of the orchestra both past and present, and information gathered from city, newspaper and university archives, A Century Of Symphony offers a timeless perspective on the place of orchestral music in the life of the city.

The challenges of running an orchestra in the 21st century are formidable, but the orchestra’s mission to deliver first-class music played by first-class musicians in a sustainable way has never been more apparent. Outreach and education efforts in disadvantaged communities point the way to the future. This is a story not only worth telling, but also worth preserving, for Cape Town’s orchestras have been the cultural jewel of the city for 100 years.

(Includes a shrinkwrapped CD of music played by the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra)

Min ander gebeurtenisse in die Suider-Afrikaanse geskiedenis het so ’n onuitwisbare indruk gelaat as die Dorslandtrek. Die populêre reisverhaalskrywer Lawrence Green het dit byvoorbeeld beskryf as “the most painful chapter in the whole history of the Afrikaner race”.

Kort ná hulle aankoms op Humpata het die graaf van Mayo die Dorslandtrekkers soos volg beskryf: “Taking them all round, a finer set of men I have never seen; without doubt, during that terrible seven years’ journey it was a case of the survival of the fittest.”

Die Dorslandtrek: 1874–1881 vertel die aangrypende verhaal van die ongeveer 700 persone (benewens ’n onbekende getal swart arbeiders) wat Transvaal gedurende die jare 1874 tot 1877 verlaat het en hulle in 1881 ná ’n swerftog van sewe jaar op Humpata op die hooglande van Angola gevestig het. Gedurende hulle epiese tog het ongeveer 230 blanke trekkers gesterf en ongeveer dieselfde getal na Transvaal teruggekeer. Hoewel ongeveer 130 babas gedurende die trek gebore is, het slegs ongeveer 370 persone hulle beloofde land uiteindelik bereik.

Die Dorslandtrek: 1874–1881 is die eerste boek wat in amper veertig jaar oor dié onderwerp verskyn. Bestaande feite word grondig ontleed en nuwe feite word op ’n omvangryke wyse byeengebring. Die resultaat is die mees omvattende boek oor dié aangrypende gebeurtenis.

Ogilvy South Africa's origins lie with a little hot shop in Cape Town founded by Bob Rightford, Brian Searle-Tripp and Roger Makin in 1976. They arrived on the South African advertising scene with an energy and passion that made them the industry's hottest property.

At the time, South Africa was tearing itself apart, and many people were eager to embrace a new value system they could believe in – no excuses, no lies, no apartheid, no company politics – RS-TM offered this, in their ads and also to their staff.

From the day Rightford Searle-Tripp & Makin opened they produced work that made people feel things, including:

• IBM’s ‘he ain’t heavy, he’s my brother’ ads featuring elephants in the desert;
• Lion matches’ box of friends;
• the Dunlop staffie;
• the iconic Volkswagen ads, like the ‘changes’ one featuring the song ‘Memories’ by André de Villiers and the ones starring David Kramer; and
• the Jungle Oats champion children.

This book conveys the energy and joy of the early years at the ‘Little Yellow Agency’, as it grew to become the jewel in the Ogilvy & Mather worldwide crown.

It is the world's oldest and most famous ultramarathon. South Africa's Comrades Marathon has teased, tormented and tortured runners from all over the world since 1921. Those who have endured it say it changes lives, speaks to the soul and turns the ordinary into extraordinary. According to many, it is liberating.

Bob de la Motte should know. Winner of five Comrades medals, including three golds, his grit and determination during several epic duels with nine-time winner Bruce Fordyce enthralled the world throughout what was arguably the marathon's defining passage in the politically charged 1980s.

In this extraordinary, compassionate, candid, humorous and captivating personal memoir, Bob explains his fascination and passion for the most famous ultramarathon in the world and recounts the truth behind the hyped-up rivalry. He explores allegations of cheating and blood doping, highlights the hypocrisy in South African and international sport and elaborates on his decision to join the Chicken Run to Australia. He also provides fascinating perspectives on international politics and business on four continents and gives a crystal ball insight into the future of the Comrades Marathon.

For runners, sportspeople, sports lovers and those who simply enjoy a damned good read, Runaway Comrade will inevitably be your best buy of the year!

This book of interviews with inspiring South Africans from a variety of walks of life (from the arts to sport, politics and business).

The interviewees share their motivations, leadership styles and influences, personal inspirations, defining moments and other aspects of their lives.

Participants include:

• Carrol Boyes
• Robbie Brozin
• Edwin Cameron
• Bobby Godsell
• Ferial Haffajee
• Michael Jordaan
• Gary Kirsten
• Wendy Luhabe
• Kabelo Mabalane
• Thuli Madonsela
• Herman Mashaba
• Brian Molefe
• Yogavelli Nambiar
• Nkhensani Nkosi
• Terence Nombembe
• Sizwe Nxasana
• Francois Pienaar
• Maria Ramos

Die tragedie wat op Valentynsdag 2013 Reeva Steenkamp se lewe kortgeknip en Oscar Pistorius se status as internasionale sportheld aan skerwe laat spat het, en die ongekende mediadekking van die sensasionele moordverhoor daarna, het verreikende gevolge op vele terreine gehad.

Soos nog nooit tevore nie het die kollig geval op fasette wat ons lewens op talle terreine raak: die manier waarop regspleging in Suid-Afrika geskied; hoe sosiale en nuusmedia opinies genereer, beïnvloed en rapporteer; die publiek se obsessie met heldestatus; en die intriges wat van minnaars moordenaars maak.

Vir hierdie boek het Ilse Salzwedel deur ’n vloedgolf menings gesif om sin te maak van die Oscar-saak. ’n Fassinerende prentjie ontvou waarin sleutelaspekte ontleed word, soos die belang van forensiese besonderhede, die kundigheid van polisie- en regsbeamptes, die rol van die staat en die verdediging in die hof, die effek van mediadekking op die publiek se persepsies, en nog meer.

In die toeganklike, nugtere en nie-sensasionele styl waarvoor dié gerespekteerde joernalis bekend is, vra die skrywer: watter lesse hou ’n tragedie soos hierdie in vir vandag se samelewing?

Dit het die land geruk, die wêreld geboei en sal in die geskiedenis bekendstaan as die opspraakwekkendste hofsaak tot nog toe in Suid-Afrika. Oscar Pistorius se moordverhoor is die storie van die dekade. Dis ’n liefdesverhaal wat ’n misdaadriller geword het, ’n sprokie wat in bloed geëindig het.

En dís hoe Marida Fitzpatrick die verhaal vertel. Sy weef die skrikwekkende gebeure van daardie noodlottige nag en die mees dramatiese hoofstukke van die verhoor op só ’n manier ineen dat dit soos ’n spanningsverhaal lees. Tussendeur dié boeiende vertelling is uittreksels uit onderhoude wat Fitzpatrick met van die betrokkenes se naastes gevoer het.

Saam met al die menslike vertellings verskyn daar ook ’n interessante ontrafeling van die tegniese aspekte van die verhoor: Wat het die ballistiek, die getuienis oor die gille en Oscar se twee verwere uiteindelik vir hom beteken?

Dit word alles geïllustreer met treffende foto’s wat op die toneel geneem is en grafiese voorstellings.

Die Staat vs. Oscar is ’n fassinerende storie wat nie net al die legkaartstukke van die Oscar-raaisel in plek laat val nie, maar deurentyd aangryp en meesleur.

In this book you will see over 50 photos of memorable moments of the sporting Madiba, as well as sport stars paying tribute to Madiba after his death.

Featured sports stars include: Tiger Woods, David Beckham, John Smit, Gary Player, Graeme Smith, Lucas Radebe, Bryan Habana, Francois Pienaar, Ernie Els, Sir Alex Ferguson, Cristiano Ronaldo, Baby Jake Matala, Lennox Lewis, Muhammad Ali and many more.

More than just a story about the personal journey of one of South Africa's most beloved music icons, this extraordinary memoir of PJ Powers - or Thandeka, as she was affectionately renamed by Soweto crowds - is set against the turbulent backdrop of South Africa's recent political history. It features a gallery of political leaders and international celebrities, including the likes of Nelson Mandela, Graga Machel, Chris Hani, Joaquim Chissano, Queen Elizabeth II, Brenda Fassie, Sharon Stone and Robert De Niro.

On Republic Day 1982, a white rock and roll band called Hotline, wearing stonewashed jeans and sporting big hair, took an accidental sho't left into Soweto - a detour that forever changed the life of their lead singer, PJ Powers. Hotline was the first all-white rock and roll band to "cross over" into highly segregated apartheid South Africa, making international headlines in the process. The prolific Powers went on to accomplish extraordinary heights as a solo artist with countless gold and platinum discs.

Here I Am, written with Marianne Thamm, is an intimate and hilarious account of the life and times of one of this country's most recognisable and enduring performers. From the dizzying heights of international stardom to the dark depths of her struggle with alcohol, this is a must-read to explore the heady mix of politics and music of the time.

Goeiemôre, mnr Mandela vertel die uitsonderlike verhaal van hoe Zelda la Grange se lewe, oortuigings en vooroordele omvergewerp word deur die grootste staatsman van ons tyd.

Dit volg die ongelooflike lewenspad van ’n verskrikte tikster in haar vroeë twintigs wat gekies word as Nelson Mandela se lojaalste steunpilaar en haar loopbaan daaraan wy om reisgenoot en versorger te word van die man wat sy ‘Khulu’ noem.

Hierdie boek wentel om liefde en tweede kanse. Dit sal jou lewe raak en jou laat glo elkeen van ons, ongeag wie ons is en wat ons gedoen het, het die mag om te verander.

Good Morning, Mr Mandela tells the extraordinary story of how Zelda la Grange’s life, beliefs and prejudices were transformed by the greatest statesman of our time.

It is the incredible journey of an awkward, terrified young typist in her twenties who was chosen to become Nelson Mandela’s most loyal servant, spending the greater part of her adult working life travelling with and caring for the man she would come to call ‘Khulu’.

This is a book about love and second chances. It will touch your life and make you believe that every one of us, no matter who we are or what we have done, has the power to change.

'The heavy smell of blood filled the air, and every moment you had this intense fear that the next bullet was meant for you.' So remembered William Thorne, a South African volunteer soldier who fought in the muddy trenches along the River Somme in France on Europe’s Western Front. A boy of nineteen at the time, he was one of thousands of South Africans who took part in the 1916 Somme Offensive between the Allied forces and the Germans. It was one of the bloodiest and costliest conflicts of the First World War, resulting in over a million deaths.

The men of the 1st South African Infantry Brigade were involved on a large scale and distinguished themselves in all major engagements during the campaign. But their bravery came at a price. In the first month alone, after six days of fighting to recapture the village of Longueval and clear Delville Wood of enemy soldiers, of the brigade’s 3 433 soldiers, only 750 were left standing. The rest were dead or wounded. By the armistice, the South Africans had suffered some 15 000 casualties in France, of which one third had died.

On the 100th anniversary of the start of the Great War, The Somme Chronicles tells the gripping stories of the men of the 1st South African Infantry Brigade via their letters and diaries, providing an invaluable, human account of one of history’s most devastating conflicts.

Larry Joe's upbringing reads like that of many others in South Africa, having been born into a poor family in the Northern Cape and growing up with an alcoholic father and an abused mother. He stole his first loaf of bread at age five, to feed his hungry sister, and his descent into a life of crime, drugs and gangsterism was all but guaranteed. The only light in an otherwise pitch-black world was music: when Larry was four years old, his father showed him a few chords on the guitar. He learnt the rest himself and loved to play for other people. But the grip of crime was iron-clad, and Larry eventually pushed the boundary too far.

Having pulled off a major heist in the town of Douglas, Larry fled to Cape Town, changed his name, and took to the streets. Here he lived for seven years, busking outside shops to earn honest money, and battling his addiction to drugs. Seven years on, still with a price on his head, Larry made a decision and returned to Douglas to face the music.

Enter Aron Turest-Swartz, founding member of South African music sensation 'Freshlyground'. On this fateful World Aids Day in 2008, he watched, intrigued, as Larry Joe wowed the crowds at a concert in Douglas while prison wardens waited in the wings. The two struck up a friendship, and eventually a collaboration, which saw them producing a music album in the grounds of the Douglas Correctional Facility. When Larry was released three years early, he walked out of jail and onto stage.

The Crazy Life of Larry Joe tells the moving story of one man's journey away from certain self-destruction in a world characterised by crime and drugs towards personal freedom and a very real chance of stardom as he realises his musical talents and potential through his own extraordinary efforts and the mentorship of others.

At 34, Heyneke Meyer was fired as head coach of a Super Rugby team for the second time. But when on 19 May 2007 his Bulls side became the first South African team to capture the Super title, the dark years at Loftus Versfeld were suddenly forgotten. And Meyer was regarded as the coach among coaches.

Because it is there – on the playing field – that coaches and players are judged. And yet the scoreboard never tells the full story of how people achieved success ‘overnight’. In Meyer’s case it was an arduous journey of more than seven years during which he defined and changed professional rugby. This is leadership. And leadership is what Coach is about – people who have fundamentally changed a sport, an industry, a way of thinking, and, ultimately, lives.

Marco Botha sat in conversation with some of South Africa’s foremost sports leaders and interprets their diverse success stories in his narrative writing style:

• From Meyer to Brendan Venter, who helped turn Saracens into a super club and the Sharks into the 2013 Currie Cup champions.
• As an international hockey player, Sherylle Calder noticed something ‘special’ about her own visual abilities and researched this together with Professor Tim Noakes. ‘The Eye Lady’ was instrumental in England (2003) and South Africa (2007) winning the Rugby World Cup and Ernie Els bagging his second British Open golf title in 2012.
• Former Springbok Sevens coach Paul Treu advanced rugby sevens as a world sport by regularly getting his team to tower above seemingly superior sides. One innovation at a time.
• Gary Kirsten and Paddy Upton guided the Indian national cricket team to glory with a leadership style that empowered players and developed them as human beings – the ‘new school’ of coaching. With the same approach they helped the Proteas become the number one team in the world in all three formats of the game.

These remarkable leaders have made champions out of ordinary people. And the reasons for this will certainly surprise you . . .

Tony Leon has written a book of unique insight into an unexplored aspect of the presidency and leadership of Nelson Mandela. Opposite Mandela relates the untold stories of how South Africa's first democratic president related to his political opponents.

Leon served as leader of the Democratic Party during Mandela's presidency. Although they clashed, sometimes fiercely, on great issues of the day, Leon enjoyed an unusually warm relationship with Mandela and had direct access to the president's office. In this first-hand account, he relates some of the more consequential moments of those momentous times in South Africa's history-in-the-making through the lens of the opposition. Although this is a personal account, it also explores some of the major themes, from reconciliation to corruption, which not only marked that period but also laid the basis for the current challenges which confront South Africa today, nearly two decades after Mandela assumed the country’s highest office, the very moment when Leon's political leadership began.

Insightful, and simultaneously serious and amusing, it lifts the veil on many unknown or unexplained benchmarks from that era: the personal animosity between Mandela and FW De Klerk, the decision of the Democratic Party to reject Mandela's offer of a seat in his cabinet and whether the extraordinary outreach of Mandela to the minorities was the shrewd calculation of a latter-day Machiavelli or the genuine impulses of a secular political saint. This highly readable and first-hand account considers in a balanced manner both the golden moments and the blind spots of one of the most consequential presidencies and leaders of the modern democratic age.

With the passing of this extraordinary man the only joy can be to celebrate what he has left behind, his extraordinary patience and compassion, his passion for justice and reconciliation. This book explores the story he shared with all his fellow South Africans.

It looks at themes which have dominated Nelson Mandela's life - his leadership, his attitude to the law and justice; democracy and human rights, and the value he placed on education. With extraordinary insight, author Mike Nicol, makes us acutely aware of Mandela the man - his courage, principles and generosity of spirit.

There are many books written about Mandela but his story is too great to be told by one voice or from one viewpoint. The sensitive and accessible text is accompanied by over 80 photographs and regalia and contains a timeline of South African events mapped against key world events.

A unique feature of the book is the 40 minute CD, of this icon's most famous speeches - Nelson Mandela in his own words.

When Mark Boucher played his first game of cricket for South Africa, a senior player took him aside and bluntly told him he was the worst wicketkeeper ever to play in the national side. Over a decade later, when Bouch finally retired with a plethora of records under his belt and to huge acclaim from the public, he took grim satisfaction in relating this piece of history.

Through My Eyes is the story of a man with remarkable sporting prowess. Born into a sports-mad family in East London, he excelled in squash, tennis and rugby before choosing cricket as his preferred sport. His extraordinary achievements on the field are well known - he was voted SA player of the year in 1998, 2000 and 2006. What is not so well known, and makes up much of this book, are the behind-the-scenes stories and anecdotes. Stories of staring down the barrel of defeat and of celebrating victory; of developing strong bonds with teammates Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and others that go way beyond mere friendship. What emerges is the image of a man who always fought for the underdog, whose never-say-die attitude inspires those around him.

Bouch's career was brought to a dramatic end on a cricket pitch in England when the bail of a stump punctured his left eye. But, in his own words, "I lost sight but gained vision".

True to his character of gritty determination, Bouch has rededicated his life to a new cause, that of the environment and particularly the critically endangered rhino.