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Exclusive Books Boeke Prize
The Exclusive Books Boeke Prize is a book prize which was awarded in South Africa from 1995 to 2012. Award The award was loosely modelled on the United Kingdom's Booker Prize, and sponsored by Exclusive Books. Although ''boeke'' is an Afrikaans word, the plural form of the word for "book", the Boeke Prize has only been awarded to novels written in English. Launched in 1995, the award was made mostly to first novels or works: 12 of the first 19 winners were debut works. The books were judged by a panel of book critics (40 in 2008).http://www.women24.com/Women24/BooksAstrology/News/Article/0,,1-12-68_20471,00.html Ten of the books to receive the award have had a film adaptation released. Winners Judges' Award Exclusive Books Fanatics choice See also *Amstel Playwright of the Year Award *M-Net Literary Awards *Exclusive Books Exclusive Books is one of South Africa's largest bookselling chains with stores throughout South Africa, and one store in Gaborone, Botswana and one ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini. It also completely enclaves the country Lesotho. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the second-most populous country located entirely south of the equator, after Tanzania. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with unique biomes, plant and animal life. With over 60 million people, the country is the world's 24th-most populous nation and covers an area of . South Africa has three capital cities, with the executive, judicial and legislative branches of government based in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, and Cape Town respectively. The largest city is Johannesburg. About 80% of the population are Black South Afri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Poisonwood Bible
''The Poisonwood Bible'' (1998), by Barbara Kingsolver, is a best-selling novel about a missionary family, the Prices, who in 1959 move from the U.S. state of Georgia to the village of Kilanga in the Belgian Congo, close to the Kwilu River. The novel's title refers to Bible errata. The father of the family creates his own "misprint" of the Bible. He concludes his sermons with the Kikongo expression "Tata Jesus is bängala" with the intent of saying "Jesus is most precious". In his hurried mispronunciation, he actually says "Jesus is poisonwood". Plot Orleanna Price, the mother of the family, narrates the introductory chapter in five of the novel's seven sections. The narrative then alternates among the four daughters, with a slight preference for the voice of the most outspoken one, Leah. The four girls increasingly mature and develop differently as each adapts to African village life and the political turmoil that overtakes the Belgian Congo in the 1960s. The Price family pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Q & A (novel)
''Q & A'' was published in 2005 and is the first novel of Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup. It tells the rags to riches story of Ram Mohammad Thomas, a young waiter who becomes the biggest quiz show winner in history, only to be arrested and jailed on accusations that he cheated. His lawyer is the only thing standing between him and the producers' and police' attempt to force a false confession that would deprive him of the prize. The only way to prove his innocence is by sharing the episodes of his life and travels in India which explain where and how he learned the answers to the quiz show questions. The book was loosely adapted into the multiple Oscar Award, Oscar-winning 2008 film ''Slumdog Millionaire'', which features a new main character named Jamal and his brother Salim. Inspirations The idea for the story came from a report in a local newspaper, about children living in the Indian slums using mobile phones and the internet. At around the same time, Charles Ingram, a Briti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Audrey Niffenegger
Audrey Niffenegger (born June 13, 1963) is an American writer, artist and academic. Her debut novel, ''The Time Traveler's Wife'', published in 2003, was a bestseller. Biography Audrey Niffenegger was born in 1963 in South Haven, Michigan. Then she moved to Evanston, Illinois and has since spent a majority of her life in Chicago. Niffenegger started writing books when she was six years old. Niffenegger completed her undergraduate degree at the Art Institute of Chicago where she worked on becoming a visual artist. After completing her undergraduate degree, she got her M.F.A at Northwestern University. Niffenegger is currently a professor in the Department of Creative Writing at Columbia College Chicago, where she co-founded the Columbia College Chicago Center for the Book and Paper Arts. Niffenegger is also the founding member of T3 or Text 3, an artist and writer's group which also performs and exhibits in Chicago. She is an alumna and board member of the Ragdale Foundation. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Time-Traveler's Wife
''The Time Traveler's Wife'' is the debut novel by American author Audrey Niffenegger, published in 2003. It is a love story about Henry, a man with a genetic disorder that causes him to time travel unpredictably, and about Clare, his wife, an artist who has to cope with his frequent absences. Niffenegger, who was frustrated with love when she began the novel, wrote the story as a metaphor for her failed relationships. The tale's central relationship came to Niffenegger suddenly and subsequently supplied the novel's title. The novel has been classified as both science fiction and romance. The book was published by MacAdam/Cage, a small publishing firm located in San Francisco, California. The book became a bestseller after an endorsement from author and family friend Scott Turow on NBC's ''Today.'' As of March 2009, the novel had sold nearly 2.5 million copies in the United States and the United Kingdom. Many reviewers were impressed with Niffenegger's unique perspective on time ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khaled Hosseini
Khaled Hosseini (;Pashto/Dari ; born March 4, 1965) is an Afghan Americans, Afghan-American novelist, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR goodwill ambassador, and former physician. His debut novel ''The Kite Runner'' (2003) was a critical and commercial success; the book and his subsequent novels have all been at least partially set in Afghanistan and have featured an Afghans, Afghan as the protagonist. Born in Kabul, Afghanistan, to a diplomat father, Hosseini spent some time living in Iran and France. When Hosseini was 15, his family applied for asylum in the United States, where he later became a naturalized citizen. Hosseini did not return to Afghanistan until 2003 when he was 38, an experience similar to that of the protagonist in ''The Kite Runner''. In later interviews, Hosseini admitted to feeling Survivor guilt, survivor's guilt for having been able to leave the country prior to the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan, Soviet invasion and War in Afghanistan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Kite Runner
''The Kite Runner'' is the first novel by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini. Published in 2003 by Riverhead Books, it tells the story of Amir, a young boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan, Kabul, Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from 1973 Afghan coup d'état, the fall of Kingdom of Afghanistan, Afghanistan's monarchy through the Soviet–Afghan War, Soviet invasion, the exodus of Afghan refugees, refugees to Pakistan and the United States, and the rise of the Taliban regime. Hosseini has commented that he considers ''The Kite Runner'' to be a father-son relationship story, emphasizing the familial aspects of the narrative, an element that he continued to use in his later works. Themes of guilt and redemption feature prominently in the novel, with a pivotal scene depicting an act of sexual assault inflicted upon Amir's friend Hassan, which Amir fails to prevent, and which ends their friendship. The latter half of the book ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mark Haddon
Mark Haddon (born 28 October 1962) is an English novelist, best known for ''The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time'' (2003). He won the Whitbread Award, the Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award, Guardian Prize, and a Commonwealth Writers Prize for his work. Life, work and studies In 2003, Haddon won the Whitbread Book of the Year Award—in the Novels rather than Children's Books category—for ''The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time''. He also won the Commonwealth Writers Prize in the Best First Book category, as ''The Curious Incident'' was considered his first book written for adults; he also won the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, a once-in-a-lifetime award judged by a panel of children's writers. The book was furthermore long listed for the 2003 Man Booker Prize. ''The Curious Incident'' is written from the perspective of an autistic 15-year-old boy, Christopher John Francis Boone. In an interview at Powells.com, Haddon claimed that this was t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time
''The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time'' is a 2003 mystery novel by British writer Mark Haddon. Its title refers to an observation by the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes (created by Arthur Conan Doyle) in the 1892 short story " The Adventure of Silver Blaze". Haddon and ''The Curious Incident'' won the Whitbread Book Awards for Best Novel and Book of the Year, the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best First Book, and the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize. Unusually, it was published simultaneously in separate editions for adults and children. The novel is narrated in the first-person perspective by Christopher John Francis Boone, a 15-year-old boy who is described as "a mathematician with some behavioural difficulties" living in Swindon, Wiltshire. Although Christopher's condition is not stated, the book's blurb refers to Asperger syndrome (which today would be described as an autism spectrum disorder), high-functioning autism, or savant syndrome. In July 2009 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yann Martel
Yann Martel, (born 25 June 1963) is a Canadian author who wrote the Man Booker Prize–winning novel ''Life of Pi'', an international bestseller published in more than 50 territories. It has sold more than 12 million copies worldwide and spent more than a year on the bestseller lists of the ''New York Times'' and ''The Globe and Mail'', among many other best-selling lists. ''Life of Pi'' was adapted for a movie directed by Ang Lee, garnering four Oscars including Best Director and winning the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score. Martel is also the author of the novels ''The High Mountains of Portugal'',Knopf Canada: The High Mountains of Portugal Penguin Random House site. Retrieved 24 March 2016.Charles, Ron (21 January 2016 [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Life Of Pi
''Life of Pi'' is a Canadian philosophical novel by Yann Martel published in 2001. The protagonist is Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, an Indian boy from Pondicherry, India who explores issues of spirituality and metaphysics from an early age. He survives 227 days after a shipwreck while stranded on a lifeboat in the Pacific Ocean with a Bengal tiger which raises questions about the nature of reality and how it is perceived and told. The novel has sold more than ten million copies worldwide. It was rejected by at least 5 London publishing houses before being accepted by Knopf Canada, which published it in September 2001. The UK edition won the Man Booker Prize the following year. It was also chosen for CBC Radio's ''Canada Reads'' 2003, where it was championed by author Nancy Lee. The French translation ''L'Histoire de Pi'' was chosen in the French CBC version of the contest ''Le Combat des livres'', where it was championed by Louise Forestier. The novel won the 2003 Boeke Prize ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ian McEwan
Ian Russell McEwan, (born 21 June 1948) is an English novelist and screenwriter. In 2008, ''The Times'' featured him on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945" and ''The Daily Telegraph'' ranked him number 19 in its list of the "100 most powerful people in British culture". McEwan began his career writing sparse, Gothic short stories. His first two novels, ''The Cement Garden'' (1978) and ''The Comfort of Strangers'' (1981), earned him the nickname "Ian Macabre". These were followed by three novels of some success in the 1980s and early 1990s. His novel ''Enduring Love'' was adapted into a film of the same name. He won the Booker Prize with ''Amsterdam'' (1998). His next novel, ''Atonement'', garnered acclaim and was adapted into an Oscar-winning film featuring Keira Knightley and James McAvoy. His later novels have included '' The Children Act'', ''Nutshell'', and ''Machines Like Me''. He was awarded the 1999 Shakespeare Prize, and the 2011 Jerusalem Prize. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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