Friendship is everything, even if you’re a bit of a wild one like Walter the Warthog. Join him as he meets new buddies, overcomes challenges, surfs his heart out and has a lekker braai or two. Veld Friends is a series for kids of all ages set around the Waterhole and starring a loveable cast of uniquely South African animals, including Sindele the Stork, Mandla the Hippo and Beukus the Baboon. You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll want to hold your nose for a while when Walter farts. Is there anything more fun than reading a Veld Friends story with a kid? Probably not.
A magical coming-of-age tale in rural Zimbabwe Ah, you’ve arrived. Sit down, please, and make yourself comfortable. There may not be much dinner tonight – Father is still out of work; Mother can’t do anything with those stunted maize plants in the stony ground – but at least you are here, in Gushure Village, home to unsurpassed raconteurs and the Guramatunhu family, who know that telling stories staves off hunger. Surprise awaits at every turn: thoughts and conversations bloom into poems, political speeches and songs. You will find instructions for cooking a hare, for how to defend yourself when a dead snake is your enemy’s chosen weapon, how to speak in war tongues, how to compose a fist and aim it at a tree trunk, how to eliminate animal terrorism in a time of rabies, how to rehearse the body-viewing of a good-looking corpse, how to rock under flying okapis with The Double Shuffle, and how to practise your lovemaking technique on a woman drawn in the sand. At a time when cooked ants constitute a feast, the future nevertheless holds abundant prospects for the boy who devours words. But there is an unexpected fork in the road for this book louse, and plenty of wondrous twists and shocking turns. Hilarious, poetic and poignant, Robert Muponde’s vibrant coming-of-age story of Ronald Guramatunhu brings to life rural Zimbabwe from the Second Chimurenga to independence. There are malevolent mermaids, eccentric shamans, outrageous relatives, fearsome teachers, and men who transform into hippos in a tale that captures all the magic of childhood.
In 1947, eleven-year-old Alex and her impulsive, older brother Chuck befriend an army scientist who shares their interest in rockets and outer space travel.
This thriller challenges five children to survive after they are marooned on a desert island. They must face killer komodo dragons, sharks and modern-day pirates. The ex-SAS author includes ten top tips for survival in tropical conditions.
All Becket wants is for his family to be whole again. But standing in his way are two things: 1) his dad, his brother and him seem to have run away from home in the middle of the night and 2) Becket's mum died before he got the chance to say goodbye to her. Arming himself with an armchair of stories, a snail named Brian and one thousand paper cranes, Becket ploughs on, determined to make his wish come true.
Presents a collection of short stories featuring African animals that teach young readers values such as sharing, forgiveness, and accepting differences.
Paul Morgan, a much-divorced recluse, meets a wild and sensual young girl on a deserted beach and is plunged into a sexually dangerous liaison. The action moves from the raw Atlantic sea-coast to the African wilderness - and Paul is compelled to confront his demons and escape from his bondage to the woman he once loved.
'I REALLY love it. Buy it for your kids, your parents, your grandparents. Mostly buy it for yourself' Holly Smale, author of the Geek Girl series 'This book is what I needed as a kid! Empathetic, joyful and beautifully authentic. I loved it!' Elle McNicoll, author of A Kind of Spark *The beautiful true story of one girl's journey growing up autistic - and the challenges she faced in the 'normal' world* I'm not like the other children in my class . . . and that's an actual scientific FACT. Hi! My name is Abigail, and I'm autistic. But I didn't know I was autistic until I was an adult-sort-of-person*. This is my true story of growing up in the confusing 'normal' world, all the while missing some Very Important Information about myself. There'll be scary moments involving toilets and crowded trains, heart-warming tales of cats and pianos, and funny memories including my dad and a mysterious tub of ice cream. Along the way you'll also find some Very Crucial Information about autism. If you've ever felt different, out of place, like you don't fit in . . . this book is for you. *I've never really felt like an actual-adult-person, as you'll soon discover in this book... 'Funny, fascinating . . . a rewarding and highly entertaining read' Guardian Told through the author's remarkable words, and just as remarkable illustrations, this is the book for those who've never felt quite right in the 'normal' world.
In this book you will read all about inventors, bright minds and other brilliant science heroes of South Africa. You’ll read the stories of people who made medical breakthroughs. Stories about people who love animals and plants. Stories about people who try to understand the secrets of the sky. Stories about people who made interesting discoveries about fossils, the earth, water and the climate. This is a truly South African book that will inspire all readers to question, to explore and discover, and to create.
When Arnelia moves to a new town in the middle of the year, she decides to recreate herself. New town. New school. Operation new Arnelia. She can be the mysterious, worldly New Girl. But within days, everyone sees right through her fake new persona. And guess what, a couple of kids actually like the real Arnelia. Like Dewald Fourie, whose crooked smile does weird things to her heart. She becomes the brain behind the school’s exciting new food truck and for a while life is sweeter than a chocolate brownie. But nothing good lasts forever. Especially if you’re
