The Smallest Ones  (Penguin Random House) is a personal account of survival in the war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo of the early 2000s. Captured by rebel soldiers, Popina Khumanda, and many others were captured tortured and raped. Amazingly, Popina and her older sister managed to escape, and find their way to South Africa. But their nightmare was not over. Popina writes about this journey with unflinching honesty in a testament to the power of hope and resilience.

Through a campaign called #Doekwithadifference, the Cancer Alliance https://canceralliance.org.za/ wants every woman to know that whilst it can be a killer, Cervical Cancer is also 100% preventable. In the first in a series of Story Cafe's and in partnership with Woman Zone and Artscape, they share the info.

Author and founder of the hugely popular victim-focused podcast series True Crime South Africa, NICOLE ENGLEBRECHT speaks to Beryl Eichenberger about the making of the series and about her fourth book, BARE BONES: Cold Cases from True Crime South Africa (Jonathan Ball).

In this heritage month, with our thoughts on legacy, what better legacy we felt, than to pass on a love of reading. So our two Guest Authors this month have both turned their hands to writing for children. Listen here to poet Diana Ferrusand actor Bianca Flanders.

Law, Life and Langenhoven was the title of Dominique Malherbe's event at 'Nave Narratives', the first ever book festival in Stanford in the Western Cape. But author of two memoirs and a book called 'Searching for Sarah', Dominique offered much more - primarily about her life 'in writing'.

Among the many literary legends attending the Open Book Festival this year, was literary activist Goretti Kyomuhendo from Uganda. Her latest novel Promises (Catalyst Press) straddles Kampala and London and took her fifteen years to complete. But co-founder of FEMRITE in 1995, she has many stories to tell, including here, a little of her own.

Ode to Sara is a short documentary produced by filmmaker Nomandla Vilakazi as part of her Master's thesis at the University of Cape Town. It features the story of 19th Khoisan woman Sarah Baartman, with whom Nomandla's own journey is inextricably linked. It also features the poem written by Diana Ferrus on the repatriation of Sara's remains and will be followed by a second doccie called simply Bones. Nomandla spoke to Theresa Smith of Woman Zone as part of the Artscape Women's Humanity Festival.

Arts

The title Deep Blue: Why we love the sea (Jonathan Ball) says it all. But for journalist, writer, communications specialist and diver Veruska De Vita, there is so much more, and the book is not just her own story. 'Water is primordial. It represents hope and renewal.' Veruska will be a speaker at the Open Book Festival in Cape Town from Sept 5th to the 7th, but you can get a taste of Deep, right here...

As part of this years Artscape Women’s Humanity Festival, we held a special WZ Book Club – a sort of double bill about women and apartheid. We spoke to literary activist Xolisa Guzula, one of the co-authors of a book called Together Apart: The Story of Living in Apartheid (Jacana) and to artistactivist Sue Williamson, a Festival icon whose retrospective exhibition at the Iziko SA National Gallery is called There’s Something I Must Tell You. Take a listen here to what they had to say.

Chickens and curry, khannas, community police, children, church clocks and chardonnay are all part of the mix that journalist and author Vanessa Govender serves up in The Village Indian (Jacana), her memoir about life for a mixed-race family in a small rural town in the Western Cape.