BOOK SA – News

Both Anne Landsman and Peter Harris gave short, moving speeches upon winning the Sunday Times Fiction Prize and Alan Paton Award, respectively, in Johannesburg on Saturday evening.

Landsman reflected on the nature of the novel and its power to situate both a place, South Africa, and a person, the author herself, in a imaginative space shared with her readers, while Harris hailed the courage of the “ordinary people who served their ideals” at the heart of his work, and who serve as examples for us today.

Both authors were palpably emotional upon hearing their names announced as the winners of Africa’s largest literary awards, but each rose to the occasion and their remarks are worth viewing in full:

Video: Anne Landsman: “I’ve never left South Africa in my imagination”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsPW5NMCWvs[/youtube]

Video: Peter Harris: “We must continue to serve our ideals”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ey86-HVLeUU[/youtube]

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• Complete 2009 Sunday Times Literary Awards coverage

Book details

• The Rowing Lesson by Anne Landsman
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  EAN: 9780795702624
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• In a Different Time: The inside story of the Delmas Four by Peter Harris
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  EAN: 9781415200490
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