South Africa Books

When change finally came to South Africa, it came fast. Whites are the focus of this fascinating study, because whether they fought for or against that change, whites find the carpet pulled out from under their old identities. Just like their black compatriots, they are redefining themselves. Melissa Steyn conveys much about the dynamics of personal and social change and describes some of the currents flowing in the new South Africa. The book is searching and objective, in keeping with its academic status, but it is accessible, with touches of humour.

No one can really convery what Apartheid South Africa was truly like but this book is about as close as you can come to telling the story through images. I urge you to see for yourself.

This book consists of many short stories for the first half, and the other half is dedicated for Leo (the lion that they've raised at their park ranger's house).

Lots of fun and amazing stories of the wild visitors and temporarily adapted wild orphans while the author and her family lived in the park rangers houses in 10 years in south Africa.

The later half is about Leo - the cute and sweet lion. Some parts are heart aching but he'll eventually settle down fine in the comfortable environment.

The authors love of nature, love for her children, and great love and respect to the wild animals are beautifully written with lots of nice photograph inside.

One of my favorite books! I've read this book on the way to my safari trip in Africa.

I found this book to have wonderful recipes. I have tried out almost half of them.

I was moved to tears and deeply challenged by this tale of the struggle against apartheid in South Africa--illustrated by the concise sermons of Peter Storey. In 1990, apartheid began being dismantled. In 1994, the first democratic elections were held. Storey was involved before, during and after these events. Storey was the pastor of Central Methodist Mission Methodist in Johannesburg from 1976 to 1989; Methodist Bishop of the Johannesburg/Soweto area from 1984 to 1997; and Professor of the Practice of Christian ministry at Duke Divinity School from 1999 to 2006. Storey himself is a white South African but served alongside black leaders like Desmond Tutu who wrote the foreword.

It took me about 4 hours to read the 175 pages. There are 23 sermons here which may sound like a lot but they are only 2-5 pages each. Each sermon is prefaced by a description of the dramatic events that occasioned the sermon. The sermons launch from a relevant Scriptural text and are illustrated with poignant stories and powerful quotations.

Retired United Methodist Bishop Ken Carder required this book for first year MDiv students in his Introduction to Christian Ministry course at Duke Divinity School and they thoroughly enjoyed it.

"Choice," a leading book review digest, listed "Women and Revolution in Africa, Asia, and the New World" as an Outstanding Academic Book in Political Science for the years 1992-1997. It contains much needed information about women's participation in sixteen revolutionary upheavals -- three in Africa, four in Asia, three in the Middle East, four in Latin America, as well as Afganistan and Yugoslavia. Each chapter covers the status of women before the revolution, their contributions during the revolution, and their postrevolutionary status. "Revolutions" vary from outright war to liberation movements, they rise from different beliefs, and participants set different goals, but one outcome remains the same: in each case, the interests of women are subordinated, a strong commitment to a women's agenda does not emerge. The double message -- that women participate in major ways in reform movements, even violent ones, and that women do not profit correspondingly -- needs to be clear to all those who believe that equal rights have long since been won. Sixteen examples from around the world present a strong message.

I gave this book 5 stars because I really dig this chick's name!

Through painstaking research and numerous interviews, author Hannah Britton brings to light the important influences that have shaped the feminist movement in South Africa - a movement that in turn, plays an important role in this evolving democracy.

The women in South Africa have worked both individually and collectively to attain national office in large numbers, and have used the legislative process to improve the quality of life for themselves and their children. I was surprised to learn just how successful this movement has been. (By 1999, South African women held slightly less than one-third of all nationally elected positions).

Britton is quick to note that electoral success is not always sustainable and does not necessarily translate into long-term gender equality. Indeed, while their accomplishments have been significant, so are the challenges that face the next generation of parliamentarians.

As an expert in her field, Britton's writing style is clear and concise - which makes for an interesting book for the academic and non-academic alike. Britton not only brings to the forefront an often-overlooked frontier in the history of South African democratization but gives this history a human voice by including incredible personal anecdotes from these remarkable feminist pioneers.

Collaboratively compiled and edited by M. J. Daymond, Dorothy Driver, Sheila Meintjes, Leloba Molema, Chiedza Musengezi, Margie Orford, and Nobantu Rasbotsa, Women Writing Africa: The Sou-thern Region is an extensive, 554-page work detailing (from a distinctly women's perspective) the history, culture, social issues, and modern-day living conditions in the southern region of Africa. Countless personal testimonies form the core of this aptly presented and profoundly insightful collection. Women Writing Africa is enthusiastically recommended for African Studies and Women's Studies reference collections and reading lists.

Peter Goldblatt's The Woody Iridaceae is the first thorough botanical investigation of this specialized group of genera. Though comprising just 13 species, one of which is newly described here, the group displays a surprising diversity of vegetative and floral form, the latter an adaptation to pollination by a variety of organisms, including insects and birds. To assess the evolutionary history and relationships of the species to each other and to other Iridaceae, the author has applied the rigorous methodology of cladistic analysis to a large array of data gathered from field, laboratory, and herbarium investigations.

In addition to detailed descriptions of the morphological, chemical, and cytological features of plants, this monograph provides information on the history of knowledge, including cultivation, of these southern African plants; distribution maps; the etymology of the names; complete synonymy; and notes on relationships and features that warrant further investigation.

Each species is illustrated with a full-page watercolor, drawn from a living plant, by noted botanical artist Fay Anderson.
Original line drawings by Margo Branch show other details of the plants. A glossary of special terminology and an index complete the work.

It is beautifully illustrated with watercolors of each of the species, as well as line drawings detailing morphological attributes....valuable, readable and beautiful book, and worthy of acquisition by those interested in unique plant forms.