WOMAN ZONE STORIES

Of All Things We Need Hope (Modjaji Books) is indeed a story about hope, but also about forgiveness and restorative justice. And appropriately, in this Mandela Month, about kindness - as well as, unexpectedly, about knitting! Author and writing coach Sally Cranswick explains her thinking behind this story in which a woman visits her son's killer - in prison.

It being June, Youth Month in South Africa, we decided it would be interesting to hear from the upcoming generation of writers. So we approached English Alive , the annual anthology that features work by high school learners, and invited four of them to come and share. But a bonus was discovering that lead editor of the publication, Kirsten Deane , is a poet and disability activist who joined us t...

While libraries are closing down all across the UK, in some boroughs of the capital, London, they're not only still very much open for business, but flourishing. In Wandsworth for instance they have no fewer than 11 libraries - including one it Putney that, opened in 1899, has a unique history, as well as a rather newer manager, Katy Homden who has quite a story of her own.

Amongst the line-up of international literati who came to the Franschhoek Literary Festival this year was Indian born, American writer Alka Joshi . Such is her success, her Jaipur Trilogy and latest novel, Six Days in Bombay have been translated into over 30 languages. She is also one of the Forbes list of '50 over 50' of women making a global impact. Listen here to her writing journey, an...

Showcasing, as always, writers from across the country and elsewhere in the world, this year the Franschhoek Literary Festival also held the promise of Africa with a delegate from Ethiopia. Listen here to curator Edom Belete, as she talks about the inaugural Addis Literary Festival .

South African civil-engineer turned author, Shameez Patel makes Rom-Com writing seem effortless. Published inthe USA (by Forever, an imprint of Hachette) her pigeon pair, Playing Flirty and Next Level Love are fun, fresh, witty and irresistible. But IRL (In Real Life... just so you know) getting it done is way more difficult story. She spoke to Nancy Richards at the Woman Zone Book Club and shared...

On the back of The Light Remains ( Modjaji ) by Samantha Keller, it says ‘against the backdrop of complicated, beautiful South Africa in the 1960s, an epic family saga unfolds’. And it does. But here the author talks to Nancy Richards about the even more complicated, but long and fascinating, process of writing a story based on one’s own family. That and so much more.

Being differently abled has not stopped Sheryl James pursuing her dreams, but not without their challenges. Becoming a Paralympic was her goal and along the way 'Momager' Sandy started journaling. With Sheryl’smemories and notes, ‘Unbridling’ was born, their story of family, strength, determination and faith. On their way to an athletics meet in Stellenbosch they came to see us at Woman Zo...

Following the release of her second novel, Fabrics of Love ( Kwela ), live wire author Lebo Mazibuko came to the Women's Library to talk us through some of the themes she works with - womanhood, township life, love, the generational clashes, modern vs tradition - and her own approach to writing. Interviewer Hazel Makuzeni picks up the threads...

Melinda Ferguson is prolific, in her life and in her work. She's a publisher, a motoring journalist, coach, consultant and, amongst other things, has authored four memoirs. But the 5th, Swift: a memoir (Ride or Die Press) is perhaps the most poignant of all, dealing with love and grief - the sudden passing of her soul mate and the first flight of a small bird. We spoke to her from her cabin in...

For such a slim little book, Nadia Davids haunting new novel, Cape Fever ( Scribner ) carries a lot of weight. The weight of two worlds, the weight of the Cape, the weight carried by women - the weight of war, and of words - written and spoken. On a visit to The Women's Library she shared some of its history, and its secrets.

We recently had a visitor at The Women's Library, all the way from Scotland. She's well-established children's book author, Nadine Aisha Jassat who we first met years ago through the Glasgow Women's Library . But we were thrilled to welcome her again, to see the latest in her trilogy of children's books, The House at the Edge of the World , to receive the gifts she brought - an...

In the old days women would sometimes quilt, sitting round a table to work on a piece together. As part of our EVERYWOMAN Project, we plan to do just that, to create a very special Commemorative Quilt, and we'll be inviting YOU to join us. But first, we'd like you to Meet the Quilter who inspired it, FELICITY KHAN...

This play, written by Zakes Mda back in 1988 and on at The Baxter Theatre in Cape Town till March 7, tells the poignant story of two women as they wait, and wait, in a queue. Their conversation and unfolding relationship reveals more than a few home truths about their lives as individuals, but also about the bigger picture confronting so many women. Listen here to actors Awethu Hleli and Tamzin Da...

Pumla Makeleni is not a librarian, but she is passionate about books, early literacy and language. Which is why, in its second year, she focused her Ibuyambo Book Festival in Langa, on mother-tongue reading and writing. I went along to the Langa Civic Centre to find out more.

What better day to hear about a book of love poetry than on Valentine's Day! Dr Hlami Ngwenya, amongst many other things, is the author of two anthologies - the latest, a birthday gift for a new love, is called 53 Years Later: The State Is Captured subtitled An official report on the irregular takeover of the Hearts’s governance system (Shofar) As Guest Author of the Month, she came to share t...

Writer and founder of Sweet Life , an online diabetes community, Bridget McNulty is a busy lady. But not too busy to notice Daily Glimmers - the title of her new book all about the 'art of finding tiny joys every day of the year'. Listen here to the back story as she talks to Woman Zone's Beryl Eichenberger

Having started this series with Women's Libraries in the UK, we decided to seek out some 'Women on the Shelf' closer to home. And so, in what may qualify as one of the smallest libraries in the world, just outside Cape Town, we met Vovo in Gugulethu.

As part of the Cape Flats Book Festival's 5th birthday this year, a small team from Woman Zone was very honoured to be invited, not only to facilitate some panel discussions, but to give a writing workshop called FLOW. But in between sessions, there was the opportunity to do some serious eavesdropping - so take a listen here, and be sure to watch out for details of next years Festival!

Burning Down the House ( Karavan Press ), a collection of anarchic essays by a new generation of activists and scholars began its journey on a Feminism course given by lecturers Charisse Louw and Stella Viljoen at Stellenbosch University. In writing their pieces, 16 contributors have breathed new, provocative perspectives into the word, and at our Book Club, they shared just some of their thinking...

In the third and final episode in this series (for now), we very proudly bring you The Glasgow Women's Library as she was the primary inspiration for own much smaller edition in Cape Town. Do take a listen, and if you know any other women's libraries, anywhere in the world, do let us know as we'd love to be in touch. Meanwhile, happy listening!

For the second in our series on Women's Libraries, we visited The Feminist Library . Housed in a significantly historic old building with a story of its own to tell, we found it tucked away in Peckham, South London - and filled with fascinating material.

As a very small Women's Library based in Cape Town at Artscape , we wondered how other Women's Libraries worked. So we set off to the UK where we found three! First up we took a visit to the one at The London School of Economics . Take a listen, and watch this space for two more.

Photographer Ajay Lalu is donating proceeds from A Mountain Divides, his book about Cape Town's famous ' Klopse' minstrel parade, to shoot4purpose , an initiative empowering women through photography.

To mark the end of 2025, The Women's Library was 'fully booked' with a big fat Book Swap and the back stories of a brace of book babes in the publishing biz. Happy listening - and happy holiday reading!