Dear [fname],
A belated newsletter this month, as we are waiting
for some delayed shipments, which will finally arrive
this week.
The publishers are still not over their start-of-year
lull, so new books are quire scarce. Please don't forget
to have a look at the birding books.
Best regards, Craig Thom
The latest
Birding and
Fly Fishing books
NEW
Remembering
Robben Island -Jacques Claassen
R93.00
Nestled in the embrace of Table Bay, not far from the sweeping sands of
Bloubergstrand, Robben Island is a haven for sea birds and seals. For
centuries, it was also a harsh place of banishment and isolation. This rocky
outcrop so close to Cape Town, surrounded by the icy, pounding Atlantic surf
that made escape virtually impossible, became a convenient prison for anyone
the authorities deemed unsavoury - from lowly convicts and rebellious
Khoekhoen to lepers, from members of the Indonesian nobility and imams
thought to be inciting mutiny in the East Indies to regal Xhosa chieftains,
and later scores of anti-apartheid activists and prominent black leaders
such as Nelson Mandela and Robert Sobukwe. Today, the actual prison building
stands deserted and the lime quarry bakes in the midday sun - mute
testaments to the indomitable spirit of humanity and the will to endure,
silent reminders of injustices that must never happen again. Remembering
Robben Island is a heritage title in the Picturesque series of small, full-colour
souvenir books. Other titles in the series include Cape Town, Garden Route,
Durban & Surrounds, South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique. Hardcover, 64pgs,
210x148mm 2010
Buy
Online
Shoreline:
Discovering South Africa's Coast -Jeannie Hayward
R299.00
South Africa's coast stretches for some 2800 kilometres, from the Orange
River and the arid Diamond Coast to the subtropical region bordering
Mozambique. Washed by the Atlantic and Indian oceans, and influenced by the
powerful Benguela and Agulhas currents, the line where land meets sea is a
rich and fertile zone that provides habitat for many animals and plants,
from whales and sharks to tiny lichens and immense indigenous trees. A
journey along the coastline also reveals the intriguing traces of some of
the earliest settlements in Africa and the contested sites of South Africa's
troubled past. Shoreline - Discovering South Africa's Coast is a
groundbreaking blend of natural history, archaeology and human stories.
Based on the highly acclaimed SABC2 television series, the book presents the
wonder and diversity of South Africa's coast in an odyssey that takes
readers through some of the most beautiful and scenic spots on the planet -
from the great gannet colony on Malgas Island to the calving grounds of the
Southern right whale in Walker Bay and the nesting sites of sea turtles on
the Zululand coast. Hardcover, 192pgs, 290x265mm 2010
Buy
Online
Resident
Alien -Rian Malan
R199.00
Twenty years ago Rian Malan wrote the best-selling book My Traitor's Heart.
Readers were both entranced and repelled by a remarkable book that cut to
the heart of South Africa with its honesty and power. It still sells today.
Malan's new book Resident Alien is a provocative and engaging collection of
the best of his writings that have appeared in the likes of The New Yorker,
Rolling Stone and Esquire, since My Traitor's Heart. Crisscrossing South
Africa - and further afield - in a quest to understand the land and
continent of his birth - Malan does time with an extraordinary cast of
characters: from vigilantes and outlaws to beauty queens and truckers; from
Sol Kerzner to Jackie Selebi; from JM Coetzee to the last Afrikaner in
Tanzania. Never one to avoid getting his hands dirty, nor shy of
controversy, Malan's writing has landed him in hot water from just about
everyone. Whether taking on the music industry, the government, or spending
time with the AIDS denialists, he has earned the enmity of all. But Malan's
honesty, his unwavering support for the underdog, and the unique power of
his prose, make him one of South Africa's most important writers. Softcover,
380pgs, 110x178mm 2009
Buy
Online
The
Stream -Brian Clarke
R299.00
In concise, vivid chapters that alternate between the perspectives of
animals and humans, first-time novelist Clarke dramatizes the life and death
of a stream flowing through the English countryside over a five-year period
during which environmentalists fail to stop the building of an industrial
park and a drought exacerbates the deleterious changes development brings.
He offers a fish's-eye view by focusing on a trout's attempt to live the
life "the law that governed all things" decreed that he should live even as
the once clean and cool stream turns warm and sluggish, thickened by silt
and choke-weed and poisoned with chemical runoff. An astute, knowledgeable
naturalist, Clarke also imagines the experiences of a swan, an otter, a
heron, and even a mayfly. Equally sensitive to human nature, he portrays a
father and son at odds over industrial agricultural methods,
environmentalists and businessmen, a politician, and a journalist. The
winner of Britain's BP Natural World Book Prize, Clarke's powerfully
evocative tale traces the intricate choreography of life and reveals how
easily it can be disrupted. ~Donna Seaman, American Library Association.
Hardcover, 175pgs, 206x135mm 2004
Buy
Online
Invaded:
The Biological Invasion of South Africa -Leonie Joubert
IR295.00
"Invaded" is a story about pollution...but not the more commonly reported
oil spills, litter or filthy smoke-stacks. "Invaded" is about biological
pollution - the plants and animals that have spread around the globe on the
back of human movement, those that have traversed the boundaries of natural
habitats and have begun to erode their new adopted environment. In telling
the story of biological pollution, Leonie Joubert documents the grave
consequences of humankind's intended and unintended introduction of alien
species into South Africa. While some rivers have lost their natural fish
populations, the west coast is choked over with mussels from a far-off
country; the Cape Floral Kingdom's rare plants have come under increasing
threat; sensitive renosterveld has been reduced to a few isolated islands of
resistance; dams and lakes have been taken over by an umbrella of aquatic
plants; and water is being consumed voraciously by thirsty alien trees.
Working in close collaboration with the Centre for Invasion Biology at
Stellenbosch University, Leonie Joubert brings the general reader a
scientifically sound yet accessible and important book. "Invaded" is,
however, not a story of despair. Instead, it encourages scientists, citizens
and policy-makers to continue with their efforts to contain and eradicate
invasive alien species. It is a book for the guardians of the South African
environment. Softcover, 368pgs, 242x212mm 2009
Buy
Online
The
Kalahari Environment -David Thomas
R499.00
This book provides an integrated, thorough and up-to-date review of the
nature and development of the Kalahari environment, an environment of great
ecological and geomorphological diversity. Its complex climatic and
geological history and its long association with human societies attempting
to utilise its natural resources are aspects of increasing scientific
interest. The book has evolved from the authors' own research in the
Kalahari, and attempts to provide explanations and answers to some of the
many questions raised about this region, ranging from the commonly asked 'is
it really a desert?', to more specific and detailed concerns. The
interdisciplinary approach will make the book of interest to researchers,
lecturers and advanced students in earth sciences, environmental studies,
tropical geomorphology and Quaternary science. The extensive bibliography
will also make the book a very important source of reference. Softcover,
300pgs, 296x208mm 2010
Buy
Online
On Request
Only
Field
Guide to the Plants of Northern Botswana: Including the Okavango Delta
-Alison Heath; Roger Heath
R1,125.00
Northern Botswana and surrounding regions boast a rich and scientifically
important diversity of plants and animals, which attract large numbers of
tourists and other visitors. This field guide includes over 500 flowering
herbs, trees, shrubs, ferns, grasses, sedges and sedge-like plants,
illustrated with over 2,000 colour photographs. For ease of use, plants are
arranged by flower colour. Two detailed sections on grasses and sedges are
ordered by inflorescence structure, then by family, genus and species. Key
identifying features are listed, along with habitat, flowering period and
uses and beliefs. A glossary is also provided. An essential guide for all
those wanting to study and enjoy the flora of the area, this book is an
invaluable tool for researchers, wildlife managers, amateur botanists,
students, rangers, guides and tourists alike. Hardcover, 588pgs, 234x156mm
2009
Buy
Online (six week delay)