Tag: book review

On 16 June 1976, thousands of Black South African school children took to the streets of Soweto. They protested the introduction of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction under apartheid education. Police met the protests with brutal force. Many children never returned home. This day is now remembered as the start of the Soweto Uprising. It also echoed through 6001, the Orlando East home of Lebo Diseko’s family.

Predatory Welfare: How Finance Capital Profiteers from Social Grants offers a powerful account of social welfare in South Africa. It examines cash transfers and their role in shaping inequality. Erin Torkelson presents this work in a narrative style. She follows individual lived experiences to ground the analysis.

How do structural advantages persist and evolve, even in the wake of liberation? How does a country shaped by anticolonial struggle become fertile ground for wealth concentration alongside enduring inequality? South Africa holds one of the strongest constitutions globally. At the same time, it remains one of the most unequal societies in the world.

Esther is Now Following You delivers a sharp and unsettling exploration of celebrity obsession, identity and emotional vulnerability. The novel balances humour with psychological tension. As a result, readers remain both entertained and uncomfortable throughout the story. The novel follows the strange and increasingly intense connection between its characters. At first, the relationship appears harmless and even amusing. However, the situation slowly becomes more invasive and emotionally complex.

Leading with Wisdom is a vital guide for leaders, creators and seekers asking one defining question: what does it mean to be human? We live in an era drowning in information yet starved of wisdom. Therefore, this book argues that the most powerful technology we possess is not artificial, but human.

Frontiers of National and International Development offers an incisive interrogation of statecraft and governance in the Global South. Drawing on theory, policy experience and case studies from South Africa and China, Busani Ngcaweni explores how capable and ethical leadership drives national and global development transformation.

Unleashed: A Vet's Memoir of Heartache, Hairballs and Hope delivers a vivid, candid look at veterinary life. Caitlin Venniker writes with sharp humour and emotional clarity. The memoir traces her journey from Onderstepoort into private practice. It also follows her experiences in the United Kingdom and the Middle East. Unleashed is the hilarious, intensely honest memoir of Caitlin Venniker’s journey.

Walter Nash began a journey down a dark path with seemingly no return. Now, he finds himself questioning everything that led him there in Hope Rises, the thrilling sequel to Nash Falls from #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci. After turning informant for the FBI against a global criminal empire, Walter Nash lost everything he cherished to its ruthless leader, Victoria Steers.

A revelatory exposé, Blood Will Flow, examines a devastating terror attack in one of the world’s most remote places. In addition, it exposes the global greed that allowed it to happen. On March 24, 2021, ISIS fighters attacked the small coastal town of Palma in northern Mozambique. Men, equipment and fuel that could have supported a rescue sat just minutes away in one of the world’s largest natural-gas fields.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Exiles and The Dry comes a captivating new novel, Last One Out, set in a modern ghost town. Carralon Ridge, once a vibrant village in rural New South Wales, has become a shell of its former self. Its houses and buildings were bought up and left to rot by the mining company operating at its borders. As a result, the setting of Last One Out reflects a place in steady decline.