This is Southern Africa

Robben Island – best known as the place where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for eighteen years – has been a place of harshness and brutality; its history steeped in the suffering of those banished there. Yet it has also become a universal symbol of hope, forgiveness, and triumph.

With a storyteller’s sensibility, combined with rigorous research, Charlene Smith charts the evolution of the Island’s political and social history, from mail station, place of exile, and military defence post to maximum security prison and World Heritage Site.

Fully revised, this new edition of Robben Island provides absorbing accounts of daring escapes, maritime disasters, lepers ostracized from mainland society, the fates of the great Xhosa chiefs of the nineteenth century, and the unique bonds of friendship and compassion forged among the political prisoners confined on the Island during the apartheid era.

Today Robben Island is recognised for both its environmental riches and its cultural significance. More than just a geographical location or a tourist attraction, it is an enduring tribute to the resilience` of the human spirit. Sobering and uplifting, Robben Island is an essential read for anyone interested in South Africa’s turbulent journey to democracy and the people who made it possible.

New Edition

Namibia is a country of surprising contrasts – big skies and far horizons, arid landscapes and verdant waterways, jagged mountains and geological wonders, barren soils and bountiful seas. Its reputation as one of the most inhospitable regions in the world belies its capacity to sustain an array of fascinating life forms – from the unique desert-adapted elephant and beetles to the delicate lichens that have evolved to survive in the planet’s oldest desert, the Namib. Its people, too, have learnt to thrive in the harsh environment of this scorched wilderness.

Dies ist Namibia brings to life the history, natural splendours, magnificent wildlife and diverse cultures of this beautiful and enigmatic land. Through its stunning photographs, detailed introduction and informative captions, this book provides a compelling insight into one of the world’s last true wilderness regions.

Also available in English as This is Namibia 

When a burning sun dips low enough on the horizon to touch the brown-black earth, that is when South Africa is at its very best – a blazing expanse of broad landscapes of sea and veld, dusty savanna and equally dusty pavements. It is a vast country, extending from pristine coastal plain to rugged mountain passes across wide stretches of semidesert and forest, hills and valleys. Even travelling South Africans are unprepared for the sheer scale and enormous diversity of this grand landscape.

Every day, everywhere, there are new sights to behold and new experiences to share – a graceful old Cape Dutch homestead set against lush vineyards, blue-purple mountains, a bird on a wire. It is the sun, the sand, the textures, the colours and the sounds that conjure up the spirit of South Africa. This volume is a fine tribute to the country, its people and its land- and cityscapes. This is the face of the nation – the essence of South Africa.