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86 popular south african books
Travel the world without leaving your chair. The target of the Read Around The World Challenge is to read at least one book written by an author from each and every country in the world. All books that are listed here as part of the "Read Around Africa Challenge" were written by authors from South Africa. Find a great book for the next part of your reading journey around the world from this book list. The following popular books have been recommended so far.

41.

Little Suns by Zakes Mda EN

0 Ratings
Description:
‘There are many suns,’ he said. ‘Each day has its own. Some are small, some are big. I’m named after the small ones.’ It is 1903. A lame and frail Malangana – ‘Little Suns’ – searches for his beloved Mthwakazi after many lonely years spent in Lesotho. Mthwakazi was the young woman he had fallen in love with twenty years earlier, before the assassination of Hamilton Hope ripped the two of them apart. Intertwined with Malangana’s story, is the account of Hope – a colonial magistrate who, in the late nineteenth century, was undermining the local kingdoms of the eastern Cape in order to bring them... continue

42.

Living, Loving and Lying Awake at Night by Sindiwe Magona EN

0 Ratings
Description:
Magona's collection of superb short stories brings a full range of South African women's experience brilliantly to light. From the village mother leaving her children to work to the maid in service to the white madam, the stories are at once tragic, triumphant, humorous, and sharp, but above all forcefully empowering.
Genre

43.

Long Walk to Freedom : The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela by Nelson Mandela EN

Rating: 5 (8 votes)
Description:
The riveting memoirs of the outstanding moral and political leader of our time, A LONG WALK TO FREEDOM brilliantly re-creates the drama of the experiences that helped shape Nelson Mandela's destiny. Emotive, compelling and uplifting, A LONG WALK TO FREEDOM is the exhilarating story of an epic life; a story of hardship, resilience and ultimate triumph told with the clarity and eloquence of a born leader. 'Burns with the luminosity of faith in the invincible nature of human hope and dignity ... Unforgettable' Andre Brink 'Enthralling ... Mandela emulates the few great political leaders such as L... continue


45.

Master Harold...and the boys by Athol Fugard EN

Rating: 4.5 (2 votes)
Description:
Drama set in South Africa during apartheid.


47.

Mother to mother by Sindiwe Magona EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Description:
A searing novel, told in letter form, that explores the South African legacy of apartheid through the lens of a woman whose Black son has just murdered a white woman Mother to Mother is a novel with depth, at once an emotional plea for compassion and understanding, and a sharp look at the impacts of colonialism and apartheid on South African families. Inspired by the true story of Fulbright scholar Amy Biehl's murder, the book takes the form of a letter to the victim’s mother. The murderer’s mother, Mandisa, speaks of a life marked by oppression and injustice. Through her writing, Mandisa reve... continue

48.

Nascido do crime: histórias da minha infância na África do Sul by Trevor Noah PT

Rating: 5 (1 vote)
Description:
A jornada extraordinária de Trevor Noah ― da infância sob o apartheid, na África do Sul, à bancada de um dos mais importantes talk shows dos Estados Unidos ― começou com um ato criminoso: seu nascimento. Trevor nasceu de pai branco e mãe negra, numa época em que essa união era punível com cinco anos de prisão. Prova viva de um crime, ele era mantido em segredo, uma das medidas extremas que sua mãe era obrigada a tomar para escondê-lo do governo, que a qualquer momento poderia levá-lo. Finalmente livres com... continue

49.

No Time Like the Present by Nadine Gordimer EN

Rating: 4 (1 vote)
Description:
A sharply observed new novel about post-apartheid South Africa from the Nobel Prize winner Nadine Gordimer is one of our most telling contemporary writers. With each new work, she attacks—with a clear-eyed fierceness, a lack of sentimentality, and a deep understanding of the darkest depths of the human soul—her eternal themes: the inextricable link between personal and communal history; the inescapable moral ambiguities of daily life; the political and racial tensions that persist in her homeland, South Africa. And in each new work is fresh evidence of her literary genius: in the sharpness of ... continue

50.

Nuez de coco by Kopano Matlwa ES

0 Ratings
Description:
Ofilwe y Fikile tienen la misma edad y viven en el mismo país. Aparentemente, comparten también una misma cultura. Pero en la Sudáfrica de principios de los noventa las diferencias son todavía abismales incluso entre diferentes comunidades dentro de la población negra. Ofilwe ha llevado una vida sin complicaciones, diríase que privilegiada: su familia ha prosperado, ha recibido una buena educación y ha crecido rodeada de comodidades. En el argot sudafricano, ella es una coconut: negra por fuera y blanca por dentro, como la nuez de coco. Y eso implica una diferencia cultural insalvable con resp... continue


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