For Rian Malan, the blessing of living in South Africa is that every day presents him with material whose richness astounds those who live in saner places. Twenty years after the publication of his bestseller My Traitor's Heart, he is still strongly committed to the struggle against suffocating political rectitude. Malan eviscerates politicians, provokes rabid fury in Aids activists, pursues justice in the music industry, and exults in the company of an extraordinary cast of chara...

I ve believed in God my whole life. But as everything fell apart in 2021, I leaned on Him in a whole new way. When Covid took my job and my stability, I turned to the Bible for comfort and help. Devouring the 727,969 words of scripture in 3 months was like eating through the entire menu of the finest restaurant in the world. I tasted and saw that the Lord is good, and I couldn t keep that goodness to myself. So, I asked God what He wanted me to do with what He d taught me. That s when Bles...

An essay collection that offers "a fascinating glimpse of post-apartheid South Africa" from the bestselling author of My Traitor's Heart ( The Sunday Times).The Lion Sleeps Tonight is Rian Malan's remarkable chronicle of South Africa's halting steps and missteps, taken as blacks and whites try to build a new country. In the title story, Malan investigates the provenance of the world-famous song, recorded by Pete Seeger and REM among many ...

An Afrikaner crime reporter returns home to face the evil and complex legacy of South African apartheid in " a witness-bearing act of the rarest courage" (Michael Kerr).Rian Malan's classic work of reportage, My Traitor's Heart is at once beautiful, horrifying, and profound in ways that earned him comparisons to Michael Herr and Ryszard Kapuściński, and inspired the London Times to call him "South Africa's Hunter S. Thompson." An ...

From the underworld of zama-zama goldminers to the tragicomic closure of a Cape Town Zoo, from stick fighting to punk rock, game lodges to fruit farms, cricket pitches to mermaids, The Interpreters: South Africa's New Nonfiction assembles a range of true stories that are often more far-fetched, and more compelling, than any fiction.Featuring J. M. Coetzee • Kimon de Greef • William Dicey • Alexandra Dodd • Madeleine Fullar...

In Babylon, Paul Kriwaczek tells the story of ancient Mesopotamia from the earliest settlements around 5400 BC, to the eclipse of Babylon by the Persians in the sixth century BC. He chronicles the rise and fall of dynastic power during this period; he examines its numerous material, social and cultural innovations and inventions: The wheel, civil, engineering, building bricks, the centralized state, the division of labour, organised religion, sculpture, education, mathematics, law...

This book is a short collection of memories about being white and living in South Africa during Apartheid. I wrote this book for the reader to easily understand what it was like to live in this environment.It is not a history lesson, but some personal experiences that I went through living in South Africa at the time. Living through apartheid I never even realized that it even existed, because we were brought up to believe that it was normal. Life was paradise for me and hell for o...

The birth of the railways and their rapid spread across the world triggered economic growth and social change on an unprecedented scale.From Panama to the Punjab, Tasmania to Turin, Blood, Iron and Gold describes the vision and determination of the pioneers who developed railways that would link cities that had hitherto been isolated, and would one day span continents. Christian Wolmar reveals how the rise of the train stimulated daring feats of engineering, architectural ...

‘I was mesmerised’ LAURA SHEPPERSON, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Heroines‘This gripping, vividly evoked novel takes the reader to the dark heart of the 16th century … unforgettable' Tracy Borman, author of The King’s WitchNothing scares men like witchcraft…Scottish housemaid Geillis and Danish courtier Margareta lead opposite lives, but they both know one thing: when a man cri...

'A great storyteller and a fabulous actor. Well done, sir!' DAVID HAREWOOD'Phenomenal! Highly recommended.' MALORIE BLACKMAN'An absolutely thrilling, throat-catching wonder of a historical novel. Hugely recommended.' STEPHEN FRYFor fans of The Miniaturist and The Confessions of Frannie Langton comes this award-winning novel of illuminating historical fiction.Meet Charles Ignatius Sa...

‘Sexy, honest, and powerful. I laughed, I cried, I NEED more’ Reader review, ★★★★★‘Homebodies is so many different things. Political and social commentary, romance, drama, journey to self-discovery— it’s the story of a young queer Black woman caught up in the whirlwind of everything life can throw at you’ Reader review, ★★★★★'A powerful and necessary read’ Reader review, ★★★★★* * * *She’s stayed quie...

*Shortlisted for the Diverse Book Awards*'An astonishing debut, rich in both heartbreak and humour' Jendella Benson, author of Hope & GloryStunningly honest and bursting with wit, Someday Maybe is the story of grief and resilience that you won't be able to stop talking aboutHere are three things you should know about my husband:1. He was the gr...