Former CEO of Eskom, André de Ruyter, has made waves in South Africa with his tell-all memoir, Truth to Power. With cool-headedness and dry humour, de Ruyter tells his story of his three years working for the infamous electricity company. From neglected equipment, ageing power stations and crippling corruption on a massive scale, de Ruyter has […]

As the globe gears up for the annual Nelson Mandela International Day on 18 July 2023, the City of Cape Town’s librarians will celebrate the day by taking part in storytelling sessions, to spread joy to their communities. South Africans and the global community honour South Africa’s late former President and international icon, Nelson Mandela, […]

Sindiwe Magona – who turns 80 this year – is a celebrated South African writer, storyteller, speaker and activist. In 2022 Magona, once a domestic worker, received her PhD in creative writing. Best known for her novels, autobiographies, short stories, poems and children’s books, she’s also a writer of essays. Now a new collection, I […]

Renowned author, Tony Park, has joined forces with Swiss conservation volunteer, Maya von Dach, to use the power of the written word for good by raising funds for endangered species through Wildlife ACT. The pair initially made contact after von Dach realising the need for Park’s action-packed novels set in the great game reserves of […]

Anti-corruption activist Paul Holden has done South Africa a great favour by summarising the work of the judicial commission that probed massive corruption under former president Jacob Zuma. No one except academics will read the commission’s 4,750 page report, but many will read Holden’s book, Zondo at your Fingertips. Holden is a former director of […]

Author failed to disclose Herman Mashaba’s initial funding investment of R12,5million to publishing house, Jonathan Ball Publishers. Political commentator and author Prince Mashele has apologised for his utterances during his interview with JJ Tabane, eluding to the fact that Herman Mashaba had no role to play in the funding of the book The Outsider. The book […]

Just 45 minutes a day in a “Whistle Stop School” is helping primary school learners in Makhanda beat South Africa’s alarming literacy statistics. A partnership between an education organisation and a primary school in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, is showing dramatic results in teaching children to read. The “Whistle Stop School” run by community organisation GADRA […]

Shauwn Mkhize, has proudly joined her name to the list of famous people who have published books. She is officially an author. Shauwn Mkhize has authored a book titled ‘My World, My Rules’. Image via Instagram @kwa_mammkhize It is only natural that Shauwn Mkhize now has her own book given her expanding portfolio of lucrative […]

Ever since Prince Harry released Spare, his 407-page tell-all exposé of life in the palace and the latest Windsor wars, we’ve been snuffling through the juiciest titbits like piglets at the royal trough. If the word “todger” now brings to mind frostbite, fancy face cream and The People’s Princess, we’ll be joining you at the […]

What do Lee Child, Jeff Kinney and Michelle Obama have in common? They’re all authors of the most borrowed books at various Cape Town public libraries this past year. As the year winds down, libraries across the city will still remain a hive of activity to keep children of all ages entertained during the holidays […]

Sjoe South Africa. The paler ones, in particular. Those Dischem trolley acts of rebellion are doff, writes Kim Stephens, author of the fantastic Hold The Line. Here’s why… You’re angry about that leaked Dischem employment policy (see bottom of page), so you’re filling your trolley with stuff and then walking out of the store, all smirk in […]

Hundreds of people, young and old, came out to the Cape Flats Book Festival at the West End Primary School in Mitchells Plain at the weekend. The two-day event hosted over 30 sessions with scores of authors, poets and publishers. During the sessions, writers and artists talked to smaller audiences, discussing their craft and answering […]

CAPE TOWN, ZA – North American independent book publisher Catalyst Press will publish two graphic novels from Cape Town’s world-renowned animation studio next year. Pearl of the Sea, a middle grade comic by Anthony Silverston, Raffaella Delle Donne, and Willem Samuel, is slated for release 31 January 2023. The 166-page adventure comic follows Pearl, a […]

SAPeople sits down its co-founder Amanda Stergianos, a “mumpreneur” (digital entrepreneur and mum to three daughters), who has just launched her first children’s book – a true story about her family in early childhood, navigating life-threatening food allergies. The purpose of the book is to help other young children in a similar situation. Here, Amanda answers […]

A South African mom, who now lives in England, has decided to turn personal trauma from the past into a positive that can help others. Having tragically lost her father and brother only nine days apart, Ilze Lee and her children, Bradley and Leah, were still coming to terms with the loss when the children’s […]

Bravo to ‘Des and Dawn’ – with the booklaunch of their memoir in Johannesburg on Sunday morning… writes Georg Knoke. I say Des and Dawn – because they were inseparable, as we all know! Despite Dawn Avril Lindberg passing away, literally a year ago to this date (Dawn passed away on 7 December), they wrote this […]

Worldwide bestselling author Wilbur Smith has died at the age of 88, at his home in Cape Town, South Africa. He had spent the morning reading and writing, with his wife by his side. A message on his Facebook page says: “We are sorry to announce that the beloved, global bestselling author Wilbur Smith passed […]

A raft of confessions have been published in the past three decades chronicling the stories of white men in uniform who plied their trade as apartheid heavies and enforcers. The brutality they dispensed – killings, assassinations, torture, beatings – also came to light in two commissions: the Goldstone Commission, which exposed the a dirty tricks […]

This article may contain spoilers. Damon Galgut, a white South African playwright and novelist, has won the 2021 Booker Prize for his novel The Promise, a satirical portrait of a white family living in Pretoria in post-apartheid South Africa. The story is a very personal one for Galgut, who grew up in Pretoria and witnessed […]

In Secrets from the Cockpit, Robert Schapiro offers a rare insider’s view on life as an international pilot. Schapiro, who was a pilot for the South African Airlines in the 1980s before flying internationally, describes near misses and emergency landings… but also explains how pilots kept rowdy travellers in check. Enjoy this excerpt from the […]

Robert Schapiro always wanted to fly, so much so that he had to rise above the challenge of anti-Semitic bullying, mockery and fierce rivalry to realise his dream… but rise he did. In a new book – ‘Secrets from the Cockpit’ – Schapiro reveals everything about international pilots behaving badly, and other flying stories. Schapiro […]

South African student voices have largely remained unheard in formal discussions around COVID-19. A pandemic that should not be put to waste, COVID-19, on some podiums, is seen as laying the groundwork for germination of seeds of change… write Peet van Aardt, University of the Free State and Brian Sibanda, University of the Free State. […]

Whatever one thinks of Helen Zille – and I think highly of her – no-one could suggest that she is behind the curve… writes MARTIN PLAUT. While politicians in Britain and the USA are only gradually coming to terms with the problem of “woke” politics, she has been highlighting the issue for years. Now these […]

Brilliant South African author Deon Meyer has received France’s top cultural award – the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres (Knight in the Order of Arts and Letters) – at a ceremony in Stellenbosch. Meyer, whose Afrikaans books are translated into French and numerous other languages, received the award on Tuesday, 20 April 2021. It […]

South Africa’s Basic Education Minister, Angie Motshekga, has invited the public to join the National Reading Coalition’s first virtual book club reading session, which will be launched on 14 December 2020.   At the launch of the virtual book club, readers will discuss the book, Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. “The objectives of this reading session are […]