Renowned South African author Deon Meyer has been awarded the Film Prize in the 2012 M-Net Literary Awards for his acclaimed novel 7 Dae. It was judged as the entry that shows the most promise to be adapted into a blockbuster film.
“His outstanding novel was a clear winner, as its story and vivid backdrop provide wonderful imagery that can effortlessly be turned into a top notch South African film,’ explained Hettie Scholtz, convenor of the M-Net Literary Awards.
The winners of pay-TV broadcaster M-Net’s Literary Awards were announced at a function held in Johannesburg recently. These are the only fiction awards that honour novels in all eleven South African official languages.
Five authors received the accolade for best novel written in their mother tongue. Each winner received R50 000 in prize money.
The Award for Best Novel in English was won by Finuala Dowling for Homemaking for the down-at-heart, an “everyday’ story of love, parenting, ageing, housekeeping and the surprising complexities of life, as experienced by a housewife with a midnight radio show and her motley crew of friends and family.
The judges applauded Dowling for her graceful writing and the way she gave a slice-of-life novel a special flavour, achieved by an alchemy of wit, irony, acuity and desperation. “It’s a story of surprising complexity, with brilliant and excruciating scenes that makes a subtle statement about our state of mind in this time of history…’ they remarked during the commendation.
Among the indigenous languages, novels in Afrikaans, SeSotho, Sepedi and TshiVenda all received awards. This was the first time in many years that a prize was awarded to a TshiVenda author. Takalani Mbedzi scooped the prize for his first novel Murunzi wa Vhutshilo (The Shadow of Life), which reflects on contemporary challenges facing young South Africans struggling to succeed.
The award for the Best Novel in the Sepedi language novels went to Tshweu ya ditsebe (A Gentleman with White Ears) by Herbert Lentsoane. The judges praised the author for his artistic exploration of human nature: “The book exposes the effects of modernity against traditional ways of life and also explores topics of human rights and how the right to dignity continues to exist only in theory in some communities.’
The winner in the SeSotho language entries is a detective novel that takes a fresh look at the malice that shadows South African society in general and black townships in particular. Manong a lapile (The Vultures are Hungry) by Nhlanhla Maake contains high levels of intrigue and provides acute insight into township life.
Sirkusboere by Sonja Loots, which won the award for the Best Novel in the Afrikaans language, is a novel that poignantly captures elements of the Anglo Boer War. The story unfolds in a circus arena in St. Louis, where night after night the battle in the Anglo Boer War is restaged by the same Boer soldiers if the actual battle. Loots boldy addresses issues of degradation, guilt, atonement, downfall and revival.
Novels published between 1 January 2011 and 31 December 2011 qualified for the awards.
During the awards, M-Net Cares’ Naledi Children’s Literacy Project was also honoured for the incredible work that it is conducting in spreading the gift of reading. To date over 1,500 children have benefited from the Naledi programme, which includes the 12 week reading programme in various primary schools across the country, reading corners and a book collection drive.
The full list of winners:
ENGLISH: Homemaking for the Down-at-heart by Finuala Dowling (Kwela Books)
SOTHO: Winner for SeSotho: Manong a lapile by Nhlanhla Maake (Ekaam Publishers)
SEPEDI: Tšhweu ya ditsebe by Herbert Lentsoane (Maskew Miller Longman)
TSHIVENDA : Murunzi wa Vhutshilo by Takalani Mbedzi (Hibbard Publishers)
AFRIKAANS: Sirkusboere by Sonja Loots (Tafelberg)
FILM AWARD: 7 Dae by Deon Meyer (NB Publishers)
