Sunday Times Literary Awards: notes from the judges

Kevin Ritchie, the chair of the non-fiction judging panel,shares his thoughts on this year’s non-fiction list

The judges’ decision this year was both unanimous and instantaneous. Jonny Steinberg’s Winnie and Nelson, Portrait of a Marriage, is the work of a generational talent. 

Winning the non-fiction category to become the first three-time winner in the history of the Sunday Times literary awards, 11 years after his initial win for The Number, proves both the longevity of Steinberg’s career as a writer and the exponential growth of his command of his craft.

The margin of his victory this year, should not detract from the quality of the shortlist. It is not trite to say that each one of the four other shortlisted books could have won in a different year, indeed the same could be said for several of the other books in the longlist that were unfortunate not to make the shortlist. 

This year’s shortlist though, in a wonderful moment of synchronicity, provides the perfect backdrop for Steinberg’s opus in the 30th anniversary of our democracy.

Justice Malala’s The Plot to Save South Africa was as timely as it was important. Beautifully written and researched, it should be compulsory reading with its riveting account of perhaps South Africa’s most important inflection point in the last three decades, as should Eve Fairbanks wonderful exposition, The Inheritors. 14 years in the making, it is a wonderful exemplar of both long form and enterprise journalism. 

Caster Semenya’s Race to be myself, is a clarion call against prejudice from a country that emerged from the depths of bigotry to give her the protection to be herself and the space to take on the world. It’s a story that is compelling in its vulnerability and inspiring in its relentless courage , while Justin Fox’s Place is a masterclass in literary travel writing, fusing two very disparate genres and setting down a marker for the writers who come afterwards.

But Winnie and Nelson, Portrait of a Marriage, stands head and shoulders above them all. Steinberg has taken a story that is extremely well known and still manages to keep us engaged, even though we think we know the ending. Like a Greek tragedy, we watch, enthralled and at times appalled, as Steinberg unearths their personal secrets presenting them back to us, never out of prurience or sensationalism but with incredible sensitivity to allow us to better understand the two greatest actors of the South African story whose lives and acts continue to loom large over us today.

His ability to take two very different and iconic characters and give them both equal time without the one overshadowing or overwhelming the other but instead complementing each so that the whole becomes far greater than the sum of their parts, is another example of his biographer’s skill. It is even more impressive given the fact that Madikizela-Mandela was a notoriously reluctant biographical subject.

Finally, Steinberg’s timing was impeccable. Any earlier than South Africa’s 30th anniversary would have been too soon, amid the ructions of #FeesMustFall, but now his book provides a perfect backdrop and an invitation to reflect on South Africa’s journey, not just over the last 30 years but of the fuller panoply of an entire nation’s long walk to freedom, which is still barely past the foothills.

Winnie and Nelson, Portrait of a Marriage fulfils the injunction in the description of the Sunday Times Literary Awards non-fiction category; the book is the illumination of truthfulness, it is new and delicate. It is unfashionable. It does fly in the face of power (and accepted dogma). It is filled with compassion. Steinberg’s intellectual and moral integrity shine through on every page.

*Ritchie spent 27 years at what is today Independent Media, including editing the company’s smallest daily newspaper; the Diamond Fields Advertiser in Kimberley, and its flagship; The Star, in Joburg. He received several journalism awards during his career and wrote the two volume Reporting the Courts – A Handbook for South African Journalists. He also co-authored The A-Z of South African Politics (Jacana 2019). After leaving journalism in 2018, Ritchie founded a media consultancy. He writes a syndicated weekly opinion column in the Saturday Star. 

The chair of the fiction judges, Siphiwo Mahala, reflects on this year’s fiction list

It has been an immense honour for us to serve as the judging panel for the 2024 Sunday Times Literary Awards. The awards espouse values we individually and collectively cherish – celebrating and showcasing the best in South Africa’s literary landscape. While our judging panel is comprised of individuals from diverse backgrounds, we are united by a shared passion for books, and South African literature in particular.

Our mandate was to select the winning novel, which possesses the qualities of “rare imagination and style, evocative, textured and a tale so compelling as to become an enduring landmark of contemporary fiction.” The multitudes of texts entered for this year’s awards are clear evidence that South African writing is growing at unprecedented heights. Although sifting through the 32 longlisted titles to select the shortlist of five was a daunting task, deciding on the ultimate winner proved far more difficult. Each of the five shortlisted titles was a potential winner, as in their unique ways they deftly explore a wide range of themes, narrative styles and settings, indicative of the richness and diversity of South African imagery. Each of these writers adds a distinct voice to South Africa’s literary heritage.

The shortlist features an impressive mix of seasoned campaigners and emergent voices, each brimming with exceptional talent. While Andrew Brown, the author of The Bitterness of Olives, won the Fiction Award in 2006, his literary oeuvre straddles both fiction and non-fiction, with his latest recognition as a finalist for the 2009 Alan Paton Award. Morabo Morojele burst into South Africa’s literary scene in 2006 with his debut novel, How We Buried Puso, and his much-anticipated return with Three Egg Dilemma, after 17 years, bears testament to the energy and creativity poured into this long-awaited masterpiece. The debutants made a significant showing in this year’s list, dominating the shortlist and all equally vying for the top spot. Buried Treasure by Sven Axelrad, The Institute for Creative Dying by Jarred Thompson and Mirage by David Ralph Viviers each herald their arrival as formidable voices in the South African literary landscape. They announce themselves as forces to be reckoned with not only in the present moment but also in years to come.

Out of this abundant talent, there had to be the ultimate winner and that is Brown’s The Bitterness of Olives. This novel is not only the embodiment of the prescribed criterion, but is also well-researched, contemporaneous and aesthetically rich, exuding a tapestry of poetic prose and captivating storyline. It is an intense exploration of human relations amidst tensions and violence in the war-torn Middle East. The plot is anchored through an acrimonious relationship between Khalid Mansour, a medical doctor who now lives and works in Gaza City, and Aviv Dahan, a retired police inspector who is recently widowed and lives in Tel Aviv. There is palpable animosity between the two ex-colleagues, but their passion brings them together to resolve a complex murder case. Despite Aviv acknowledging that “bitterness takes time to fade,” they are compelled to work collaboratively following the death of Adara Kadouri, a Jewish woman who lived in the Arab Muslim community of Gaza. The author cleverly crafts a character who straddles both communities, thus reminding us of the deep human connections and the joint heritage shared by the peoples of Israel and Palestine.

In this novel, Brown brings the global spectacle to life and imbues it with a name, personality, and emotions while not eschewing the massive injustices, escalating violence and death toll in the Gaza Strip. He explores the personal dilemmas confronting people in war-torn zones, capturing the complexities of human relationships amidst profound socio-political turmoil. Despite the territorial hostilities, religious fanaticism, and deeply entrenched historical feuds, Brown subtly reminds us that there are individuals who yearn for their complete humanity. He deftly distils the global crisis to the essence of the human condition without falling into the trap of sensationalism or presenting a sanctimonious manifesto disguised as a work of fiction. He takes the reader on an intensely emotional journey that calls for humanity to prevail. The Bitterness of Olives offers a dynamic, balanced and objective narrative infused with honesty, craftsmanship, and erudition.

Through vivid descriptions, impeccable attention to detail, and a gripping storyline, Brown’s novel evinces a work of rare imagination and talent. The Bitterness of Olives is indeed a worthy recipient of the Sunday Times Fiction Prize.

*Mahala is an award-winning author, playwright and academic, with a PhD in English Literature. He is the author of the novel, When a Man Cries (2007), two short story collections, African Delights and Red Apple Dreams and Other Stories, and two critically acclaimed plays, The House of Truth and Bloke and His American Bantu. His latest book Can Themba: The Making and Breaking of the Intellectual Tsotsi (2022), won the Creative Non-Fiction Award at the SA Literary Awards. He is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Johannesburg, Senior Fellow at the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study and editor of Imbiza Journal for African Writing.