Xoliswa Nduneni-Ngema loved the theatre and dreamed of being an actress. She soon discovered that acting wasn't for her – managing productions was. She meets rising-star, Mbongeni Ngema and they marry.  As his success grows, they start a company that births the hit Sarafina! But beneath the stardom, Xoliswa experiences constant abuse.  With Fred Khumalo, she tells her powerful story. 

It started with a question about the blues: what makes the music of the downtrodden black man so alluring to white middle-class ears? And that’s where it gets interesting. Because blues is more than a musical genre: it’s a cultural phenomenon that spans several centuries on both sides of the Atlantic, from slavery to Black Lives Matter, from Jan van Riebeeck to Fees Must Fall, from Robert Johnson to Abdullah Ibrahim.

In Blues for the White Man, Fred de Vries looks for answers in America’s Deep South, drawing historical parallels with South Africa’s experience of colonialism, slavery, racism, civil war, segregation and protest. Travelling to Atlanta, Memphis, Nashville, New Orleans and the Mississippi Delta, De Vries speaks to musicians, Black Lives Matter activists and Trump supporters. He continues the conversation in South Africa, interviewing student protesters, white farmers and political thought-leaders to develop an understanding of white supremacy and black anger, white fear and black pain.

A fascinating, insightful journey through time and space, Blues for the White Man is a celebration of multiculturalism and a plea for white people to do some ‘second line dancing’ for a change.

It is September 1987. The Angolan Army – with the support of Cuban troops and Soviet advisors – has built up a massive force on the Lomba River near Cuito Cuanavale in southern Angola. Their goal? To capture Jamba, the headquarters of the rebel group Unita, supported by the South African Defence Force (SADF) in the so-called Border War.

In the battles that followed, and shortly thereafter centred around the small town of Cuito Cuanavale, 3 000 SADF soldiers and 8 000 Unita fighters were up against a much bigger Angolan and Cuban force of over 50 000 men.

Thousands of soldiers died in the vicious fighting that is described in vivid detail in this book. Bridgland pieced together this account through scores of interviews with SADF men who were on the front line. This dramatic retelling takes the reader to the heart of the action.

In A Coat of Many Colours, award-winning author Fred Khumalo presents a patchwork of various vibrant stories befitting the collection’s title.

A boy plays detective, investigating the case of a goat and a coat; a woman takes revenge; an inhlabi bites off more than he can chew; teenage enmity rears its head in a prestigious school for girls; a man is cursed with an ever-growing sexual appetite; and more thoughtful stories with an entertaining zing!

Paris, 1958. A skirmish in a world-famous restaurant leaves two men dead and the restaurant staff baffled. Why did the head waiter, a man who’s been living in France for many years, lunge at his patrons with a knife?

As the man awaits trial, a journalist hounds his long-time friend, hoping to expose the true story behind this unprecedented act of violence.

Gradually, the extraordinary story of Pitso Motaung, a young South African who volunteered to serve with the Allies in the First World War, emerges. Through a tragic twist of fate, Pitso found himself on board the ss Mendi, a ship that sank off the Isle of Wight in February 1917. More than six hundred of his countrymen, mostly black soldiers, lost their lives in a catastrophe that official history largely forgot. One particularly cruel moment from that day will remain etched in Pitso’s mind, resurfacing decades later to devastating effect.

Dancing The Death Drill recounts the life of Pitso Motaung. It is a personal and political tale that spans continents and generations, moving from the battlefields of the Boer War to the front lines in France and beyond. With a captivating blend of pathos and humour, Fred Khumalo brings to life a historical event, honouring both those who perished in the disaster and those who survived.

It’s 1899 and Philippa’s fiancé Nduku has just broken off their engagement. She is heartbroken – after all, she has followed him from Kimberley, where they first met, to the goldfields of Johannesburg. In this bustling new city, tensions are mounting between the South African Republic and the gold-hungry British Empire. When war is declared, the mines are shut down and migrant workers ordered to leave town.

But how do you get home and out of harm’s way when there are no running trains and home is hundreds of kilometres away? You walk. Over perilous terrain Nduku and Philippa and seven thousand others walk to Natal. Disguised as a mineworker’s wife, for Philippa is white, she and Nduku talk about their true histories, about their fears and hopes, and with every footfall the possibility of lasting happiness seems within reach – if only they can survive, and if only they can weather the storm of an unexpected third player in their troubled romance.

Set during an incredible event in South African history, The Longest March is a tale of heady determination, and a tribute to the perseverance and courage of ordinary men and women when faced with extraordinary circumstances.

As a young Reuters correspondent, Fred Bridgland revealed the secret invasion in 1975 of post-independence Angola by apartheid South Africa’s armed forces in support of UNITA rebel leader, Jonas Savimbi. At the time, Bidgland befriended Tito Chingunji, a guerrilla officer, before he became UNITA foreign secretary, who persuaded Bridgland to walk hundreds of kilometres across Angola to watch UNITA’s fighters go into combat.

Later Chingunji and Bridgland worked together on a sympathetic biography of the charismatic Savimbi – then the great hope of the ‘free West’. However, after the book’s publication, Chingunji told Bridgland how he and his family were under constant threat of death from Savimbi.

Bridgland started to uncover atrocities that revealed Savimbi not as the champion of his people, but as a murderous tyrant. Chingunji had risked his life to help Bridgland tell the true story of what was going on behind the scenes. When his friend went missing, Bridgland journeyed into the Angolan jungle to plead his friend’s case and he, himself, was put before a kangaroo court by an enraged Savimbi.

This is a personal account of the bond that developed between a guerrilla fighter and a journalist, and the terrifying challenges they faced as they revealed Savimbi’s true colours.

With a foreword by Sir David Attenborough, breathtakingly beautiful still photography, specially commissioned maps and graphics, and compelling text expanding on the remarkable TV stories and giving the reader a depth of information that is impossible on screen, this companion to the groundbreaking NETFLIX series presents a whole new view of the place we call home.

Featuring some of the world's rarest creatures and previously unseen parts of the Earth—from deep oceans to remote forests to ice caps—Our Planet takes nature-lovers deep into the science of our natural world. Revealing the most amazing sights on Earth in unprecedented ways, alongside stories of the ways humans are affecting the world’s ecosystems—from the wildebeest migrations in Africa to the penguin colonies of Antarctica—this book captures in one concise narrative a fundamental message:

What we do in the next twenty years will determine the future of not just the natural world but humanity itself. If we don't act now to protect and preserve our planet, the beauty we're lucky enough to witness on these pages will have disappeared...

In this title, Seven Steps To Heaven, this streetwise philosopher of the shebeens and entrepreneur par excellence takes the back seat as her son Kokoroshe, street urchin turned lawyer, takes centre stage.

This is a multilayered family saga, a riveting tale of love, betrayal, and a search for identity - sexual and otherwise.

Dark and understated, but sometimes boisterous and with the in-your-face humour that made Bitches' Brew a hit with readers and critics alike, is the engine that drives Seven Steps To Heaven to a painful yet satisfying climax.

Sestig jaar na Herman Charles Bosman se dood het die eerste Afrikaanse bundel Oom Schalk Lourens-stories verskyn (In die withaak se skadu, Suiderkruis Boeke, 2011). Dit is besonder goed ontvang, en het gunstige kommentaar ontlok van skrywers soos Andre P. Brink, P.G. du Plessis, Pieter Fourie en Paul C. Venter. Die jaar daarna het ’n Bekkersdalmarathon en ander Voorkamerstories (Suiderkruis Boeke, 2012) die lig gesien, wat sowat die helfte van Bosman se bekende stories oor Jurie Steyn se plaasposkantoor bevat. Dit was die eerste Bosman-bundel wat deur Fred Mouton geillustreer is. Die oorweldigend positiewe terugvoer oor die Bosman/Moutonkombinasie het dit voor die hand liggend gemaak dat Fred ook oom Schalk se stories onder hande moet neem. Mafeking-pad kombineer dus vir die eerste keer Bosman se gewildste verhale – wat van 1947 af nog nooit uit druk uit was nie – met Fred Mouton se kenmerkende styl. Die resultaat is eg Afrikaanse lekkerte!

Arguably the most enduring collection of South African short-fiction, Mafeking Road has never been out of print since its first publication in 1947. Although Roy Campbell wrote to Herman Charles Bosman, “I think your stories in Mafeking Road are the best that ever came out of South Africa,” Bosman himself was not quite happy with the text. “I was in such a hurry … that I didn’t do what I had always intended: i.e. to restore them as far as possible to the way they were originally, when I wrote them,” he replied. Now, for the first time, Bosman’s stories have been restored to the original 1930s (magazine) versions, which adds some 1 300 words of never-before-seen Bosman-isms to the text. Added to this is Fred Mouton’s signature style illustrations, which make this, quite simply, the best version of Mafeking Road ever published. Bosman would approve.

Talk of the Town by award-winning writer Fred Khumalo comprises short stories he wrote over many years. In this vibrant collection Khumalo explores identity and belonging through tales about African foreign nationals in South Africa, xenophobia, South Africans abroad, exiled comrades during apartheid, and past and current township life. At times hilarious and at times gut-wrenching, this is a collection that will move you.

Sequel to the big-budget reboot of the comic book series following the anthropomorphic ninjutsu-trained turtles Leonardo (Pete Ploszek), Michelangelo (Noel Fisher), Donatello (Jeremy Howard) and Raphael (Alan Ritchson). The turtle's arch nemesis Shredder (Brian Tee) has returned and employed Techno Cosmic Research Institute scientist Dr. Stockman (Tyler Perry) to create some mutants of his own in the form of ferocious duo Bebop (Gary Anthony Williams) and Rocksteady (Stephen Farrelly). Meanwhile, the evil Kraang (voice of Fred Armisen) has arrived from Dimension X to lead an invasion of New York City. With the help of journalist April O'Neil (Megan Fox) and vigilante Casey Jones (Stephen Amell), the turtles face a fight on two fronts to save the city from certain destruction.

Double bill of children's features that mix CGI animation and live action to follow the adventures of the Smurfs. In 'The Smurfs' (2011) after being chased by dark wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria), the Smurfs find themselves transported from their village in the Middle Ages to modern-day New York. There they seek shelter in the home of Patrick Winslow (Neil Patrick Harris) and his wife, Grace (Jayma Mays), but with Gargamel on the loose, the Smurfs are running out of time to get back to their village. In 'The Smurfs 2' (2013) when Gargamel kidnaps Smurfette (voice of Katy Perry) and steals her away to Paris, the rest of the Smurf gang team up with their human friends Patrick and Grace to try and retrieve her from his clutches. However, with Smurfette the key to Gargamel's plans to transform his latest minions, the Naughties (voiced by Christina Ricci and J.B. Smoove), into Smurfs, this will be no simple task - not least because Smurfette seems rather taken by the Naughties...

Roger Avery's adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis' dark and controversial novel about a group of amoral, and wealthy, East Coast college students. Sean (James Van der Beek) lusts after the unapproachable Lauren (Shannyn Sossaman); Lauren is seeing Victor (Kip Pardue), a handsome and egotistical ladies' man; Victor is also secretly seeing Lauren's room-mate Lara (Jessica Biel); Lauren's ex, Paul (Ian Somerhalder), has become smitten by Sean; and affable Rupert (Clifton Collins Jr) has become the campus drug dealer, readily supplying his classmates with cocaine. Soon their lives move into a more serious gear as Sean finds himself dealing drugs in order to pay debts and encouraging Paul to become one of his customers.

Providing nuanced insight into key areas of innovation studies, this erudite second edition acknowledges the significance of innovation within the informal economy. It contributes to the broader scholarly discourse on innovation indicators and measurement, exploring the nature and rate of recent developments within the field. The Handbook of Innovation Indicators and Measurement showcases recent advancements within the field of innovation and provides an expansive commentary on contemporary issues such as the effect of the general definition of innovation on zero price products. Updated chapters emphasise rapid changes brought about by digital developments and provide a further examination of the influence of people on social and frugal innovation. This essential second edition will be valuable for university lecturers and academics of economics, public policy and innovation aspiring to update their course content. It will additionally be beneficial for those working in government departments pursuing more effective policy intervention.

Double bill featuring two spoof comedies. 'Epic Movie' (2007) tells the tale of four fully grown orphans: one the victim of snakes that attacked her plane, another raised by a kindly Louvre curator, the third a Mexican 'libre' wrestling refuge, and the last an average mutant from an 'X'-community. When the curious quartet visits a sprawling chocolate factory, they stumble across a magical wardrobe which transports them to the enchanted land of Gnarnia. It seems that the wondrous fantasy land has recently fallen under the spell of the evil White Bitch (Jennifer Coolidge), and in order to bring peace back to Gnarnia these four bumbling mortals will have to join forces with a charismatic pirate, a painfully sincere group of aspiring wizards, and one particularly libidinous lion. 'Date Movie' (2006) stars Alyson Hannigan as a hopeless romantic who has finally met the man of her dreams Grant Funkyerdoder. But before they can have their 'Big Fat Greek Wedding', they'll have to 'Meet the Parents', hook up with 'The Wedding Planner' and contend with Grant's girlfriend, Andy, a spectacularly beautiful woman who wants to put a stop to her 'Best Friend's Wedding'.

Computer animated action movie featuring Marvel Comics superheroes Iron Man (voice of Adrian Pasdar) and Hulk (Fred Tatasciore). When Earth comes under attack from powerful monster Zzzax (Dee Bradley Baker), Iron Man and Hulk combine their unique strengths in the hope of defeating the enemy and saving the world. But can they learn to work as a team despite their differences?

A joyful and inclusive lullaby about love, acceptance and following your heart . . . Strong and bold, or quiet and kind, every child is unique and their future filled with possibilities. Based on Fred Small's iconic folk song that became an anthem for generations, and marking its 40th anniversary, Everything Possible celebrates love and friendship, gently encouraging children to dream their own dream and choose their own path, wherever it may take them. An inspiring and uplifting picture book for children everywhere. With a brand-new free 'Stories Aloud' audio recording and revised lyrics - scan the QR code at the end of the story to hear the song.

The first seven episodes from the first season of the animated series following a team of superheroes as they battle against some of the deadliest villains. Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, the Hulk, Ant-Man, the Wasp, Hawkeye and the Black Panther unite to defeat various enemies, including Loki and The Masters of Evil. Episodes are: 'Iron Man Is Born!', 'Thor the Mighty', 'Hulk Versus the World', 'Meet Captain America', 'The Man in the Ant Hill', 'Breakout: Part 1' and 'Breakout: Part 2'.

In the second sequel to 'Alien', Officer Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) crash-lands on a mining colony planet worked by convicts. While coping with the difficulties of being the only woman on a planet populated by hardened criminals, Ripley comes across evidence that her nemesis, the resilient alien, may have accompanied her there.