It is often interesting to know why an author chose to write a particular story. First, in order for me to explain this reason, I need to tell you a little about my background. I have worked as a teacher, then as a child psychologist in schools, and finally as a lecturer and professor in two South African universities. It is only since my retirement some twelve years ago that I had the time to start writing stories for both young children and older adolescents. Because of my professional background - and particular interest in reading development all my published short stories and novels have an underlying purpose. And that purpose is to bring to young people reading material that is not only interesting and that they can relate to their personal lives, but also carries with it something that could be useful in their own psychological development. All of my three novels in this Xlibris series (see the relevant titles of the other two novels below) have an underlying developmental theme and purpose. And this is to provide stories that I hope may help them deal with the painful feelings and, often, their practical difficulties which have to be faced when someone has lost a loved one. Perhaps even more important, each of the stories also tells, in its own way, how the main character overcomes and rises above her or his grief and difficulties. Differing in each case, this recovery comes not only from the help and support of one or more friends, relatives, neighbours and teachers but also, significantly, from the determination and courage of each of the main characters. In order to help you to relate these important elements to your own life, and perhaps to the lives of other young people whom you may know, I have added two short sections at the end of each book. The first provides you with a number of Questions to think about and the second with a few carefully chosen Activities for you to undertake if you choose to do so. However, even though it may take a little effort, please follow through on both of the above elements as they will most definitely help you get the most out of each story. Second, I believe that an author of any fictional story needs to be personally familiar with the place and the language* and culture of the people who live there. Without this element, the story will simply not feel authentic or real to any reader wherever they happen to live in the world. My hope, again, is that this will be true for you. *In each of my three novels, I have a list at the end of the novel of the English translations, and a guide to the pronunciation of, those important names, words and phrases in the African languages that I have chosen to use in the respective novels. I hope that this information may contribute to the authenticity of the stories as you read them. The titles of my other two Xlibris Corporation novels in this series are: Gogos song Woza Thabo! The story that I have written below grew out of an actual experience. It all started when an organisation in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa asked a colleague and me to do some research with the orphans in the organisations project. The organisation wanted to find out if it was really being effective in helping the orphans as opposed to other children in the community who lived in homes where an adult or adults (called adult headed households) were looking after them. (In the case of the orphans, where no adults were looking after them, the term, child headed households, was used.) We wanted to find out what problems the orphans in child headed households had to face, and whether these were different to the problems faced by other children who lived in the same poor community in the adult headed households. We also wanted to find ou

It is often interesting to know why an author chose to write a particular story. First, in order for me to explain this reason, I need to tell you a little about my background. I have worked as a teacher, then as a child psychologist in schools, and finally as a lecturer and professor of Educational Psychology in universities. It is only since my retirement some twelve years ago that I had the time to start writing stories for both young children and older adolescents. Because of my professional background - and particular interest in reading development - all my published short stories and novels have an underlying purpose. And that purpose is to bring to young people reading material that is not only interesting and that they can relate to their personal lives, but also carries with it something that could be useful in their psychological development. All of my three novels in this Xlibris Corporation series (see the relevant titles of the other two novels below) have an underlying developmental theme and purpose. And this is to provide stories that I hope may help young people deal with the painful feelings and practical difficulties that always have to be faced when someone has lost a loved one. Perhaps even more important, each of the stories also tells, in its own way, how the main character overcomes and rises above his or her grief and difficulties. In each case, this recovery comes not only from the help and support of one or more friends, relatives, neighbours and teachers but also, significantly, from the determination and courage of each of the main characters. In order to help you relate these important elements to your own life and perhaps to the lives of other young people whom you may know, I have added two short sections at the end of each book. The first provides you with a number of Questions to think about and the second with a few carefully chosen Activities for you to undertake. Even though it may take a little effort, please follow through on both of the above elements as they will most definitely help you get the most out of each story. Second, I believe that an author of any fictional story needs to be personally familiar with the place as well as the language* and culture of the people who live there. Without this element, the story will simply not feel authentic or real to any reader wherever they happen to live in the world. My hope, again, is that this will be true for you. *In each of my three novels, I have a list at the end of the novel of the English translations, and a guide to the pronunciation of those important names, words and phrases in the indigenous languages that I have chosen to use in the respective novels. I think this may contribute to the authenticity of the stories as you read them. I hope so! The titles of my other two novels in this Xlibris Corporation series are: I am Thabeka and Woza Thabo!

Our Story Magic is a collection of enchanting and compelling tales written by Gcina Mhlophe, South Africa’s most popular performance storyteller. The illustrations are by artists from Mhlophe’s home province of Kwa-Zulu Natal. Read and share these eleven stories with the love that went into creating them.

Castles in the Air is an attempt to open discussions on some often overlooked issues which affect education, particularly in rural and township government schools. In order to make it a truly South African drama, I have drawn from oral tradition by including songs and poems which play an integral part in traditional storytelling. There are many folksongs which were included in earlier versions, but I decided to remove them in the final version because I did not intend to write a musical. There are also some praise poems that I composed for the main character and his father. I studied oral tradition, and I am confident that the praise poems I composed have all the qualities of the real praise poems, and because I could not compose them in English, I, therefore, wrote them in isiZulu with translations in the glossary at the end.

Experience other countries. Learn of another culture. Find the unbelievable becomes believable. Feel sorrow, joy and hope for the people involved. Come to grips with hard questions we all must ask. And much more through the stories, Click, Soul of Time, iThemba, and Puzzle.

Murder has always fascinated us, and when women are the masterminds, the intrigue grows exponentially. Not only are female murderers much rarer than male killers, but their crimes usually also involve a more sophisticated type of plotting. In Blood on her hands, award-winning journalist Tanya Farber investigates the lives, minds and motivations of some of South Africa's most notorious female murderers, from the poisonous nurse Daisy de Melker, to the privileged but deeply disturbed Najwa Petersen, to the mysterious Joey Harhoff who died before revealing where the bodies of her victims (including her own niece) were. Farber sets each case against the backdrop of the different eras and regions of 20th and early 21st century South Africa the women operated in. Her writing style is lighter than the subject matter might suggest and Blood on Her Hands will keep you reading until late at night – probably with your light on. The women featured also include: Dina Rodrigues, Phoenix Racing Cloud Theron, Marlene Lehnberg, Chane van Heerden and Celiwe Mbokazi.

Khaya Dlanga has established himself as one of the most influential individuals in South African media, particularly social media, a platform he uses to promote discussions on topics that range from the frivolous to the profound. In To Quote Myself, Khaya recounts entertaining and moving stories about his roots and upbringing in rural Transkei, how he made his mark at school as well as his time spent studying advertising and as a stand-up comedian. This adaptation is designed for a younger audience, written in simpler language, looking at some of the more life changing chapters from To Quote Myself. The aim is to share Khaya’s Story with as many people as possible.

As pastors’ wives, the authors of this devotional personally have experienced or witnessed the issues with which women struggle: identity, marriage, children, work. Reading this devotional is like having a conversation with a trusted friend who knows what you are going through. Over 52 weeks, these authors share from their hearts using engaging Scriptures, real-life inspiration, and practical wisdom they have learned along the way. Each week focuses on one theme, and daily devotions include Scripture and a prayer.

Ubuntu, Migration and Ministry invites the reader to rethink ubuntu (Nguni: humanness/humanity) as a moral notion in the context of local communities. The socio-moral patterns that emerge at the crossroads between ethnography and social ethics offer a fresh perspective to what it means to be human in contemporary Johannesburg. The Central Methodist Mission is known for sheltering thousands of migrants and homeless people in the inner city. Based on ethnographic fieldwork, primarily conducted in 2009, Elina Hankela unpacks the church leader’s liberationist vision of humanity and analyses the tension between the congregation and the migrants, linked to the refugee ministry. While relational virtues mark the community’s moral code, various regulating rules and structures shape the actual relationships at the church. Here ubuntu challenges and is challenged. Winner of the 2014 Donner Institute Prize for Outstanding Research into Religion.