THE TOURISTIN: 65 books that transport you to South Africa

Updated version, August 2022.

South Africa is simply magnificent. So far, I drove 60,000 kilometres through Southern Africa. At times, I drove all the way to Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe (only to Victoria Falls). I start all my road trips in Cape Town. I have seen where Rooibos tea grows. I learned about the importance of biodiversity. I visited many of South Africa’s National Parks, and the last true wilderness of the country, the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. I fell in love with penguins. I got sandblasted by the infamous South Easter and got to know the tablecloth. I jumped into the icy cold Atlantic, if only briefly. 60,000 kilometres of adventure and joy. Do you wonder how I know how many kilometres I did so far? My secret is that I write it all down. There is still so much I would love to see. It feels as if I will never have the time to experience and see everything I dream about. If I can’t go there, I read. I go on a Verbatim Journey.

Verbatim Journey. 65 books that transport you to South Africa

Books – Reading - Education

Nelson Mandela said that “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” I can only agree. The more we know the better. The more we read the better.

Nothing in this world is ever black and white. The more we educate ourselves the better life gets. You can have an opinion on something only when you gather enough information first. How else can you understand what is going on around you? When I visit a place, I like to read about it. Not only the papers and facts but also fiction, prose, and even cookbooks. I read and browse about everything and everyone to get the bigger picture. If I mix this information with the ones getting from talking to people in South Africa, I feel well prepared. I can build an opinion and can participate in a discussion. I can’t stand empty words thrown into thin air just to say something.

What are you about to discover on location in South Africa?

One day, I was at Daunton in London. You know this Edwardian bookstore on Marylebone High Street? It is one of the prettiest bookshops. I realized I have an awful lot of books about South Africa. There wasn’t a single book about South Africa in their travel section that I hadn’t on my bookshelf. I love reading. I love South Africa. After I got over my happy nerdy moment, I put together my reading list for South Africa. These books saved me from being ignorant on my travels to South Africa. Right. Not everyone who plans a two-week trip to South Africa will read all recommended books before heading out there. The list of books gives you a choice and you might get inspired. The books and stories definitely give you a good first taste of what you are about to discover on location in South Africa. In times when we cannot travel, we can always go on a Verbatim Journey to South Africa.

All books are tried and tested by me. Word of warning: If you read all of these and travel to South Africa you will lose your heart to this place forever.

Go on a Verbatim Journey - 65 books that transport you to South Africa

	Title	Author
1	491 Days	Winnie Madikizela-Mandela
2	A City Imagined	Stephen Watson
3	A Dry White Season	André Brink
4	A Thousand Tales of Johannesburg A City Novel	Harry Kalmer
5	Africa the legends live on	Jan Roderigues
6	Beethoven was one-sixteenth black	Nadine Gordimer
7	Before Mandela was Mandela	Eric Miyeni
8	Begging to be black	Antjie Kroog
9	Blood Safari	Deon Meyer
10	Born a Crime	Trevor Noah
11	Cape Town Stories	Madeleine Barnard
12	Childhood	Adrian Hadland
13	Cobra	Deon Meyer
14	Come Sunday	Isla Morley
15	Cry the beloved country	Alan Paton
16	Dark Star Safari	Paul Theroux
17	Dead before Dying	Deon Meyer
18	Disgrace	J.M. Coetzee
19	Down 2nd Avenue	Es'kia Mphahlele
20	Dreamforest	Dalene Matthee
21	Fiela's Child	Dalene Matthee
22	From Aardvark to Zebra. Secrets of African Wildlife	Peter Joyce
23	From Joburg to Jozi. Stories about Africa’s infamous city	Edited by Heidi Holland and Adam Roberts
24	Gang Town	Don Pinnock
25	Gem Squash Tokoloshe	Rachel Zadok
26	In the Heart of the Country	J.M. Coetzee
27	In the words of Nelson Mandela	A little pocketbook
28	Into Africa	Martin Dugard
29	July's People	Nadine Gordimer
30	Karoo Boy	Troy Blacklaws
31	Karoo Keepsakes	Julienne du Toit and Chris Marais
32	Karoo Kitchen	Sydda Essop
33	Khayelitsha	Steven Otter
34	Long Walk to Freedom	Nelson Mandela
35	Long Way Down	Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman
36	Martha	Winnie Rust
37	Modern South African Stories	Stephen Gray (edited by)
38	My Son's Story	Nadine Gordimer
39	On the Other Side of Shame	Joanne Jowell
40	Panorama	Pieter Dyrk Uys
41	Philida	André Brink
42	Postcards from Soveto	Mokone Molete
43	Praying Mantis	André Brink
44	Recipes for Love and Murder – A Tannie Maria Mystery	Sally Andrew
45	Red Dust	Gillian Slovo
46	Return to Paradise	Breyten Breytenbach
47	Sala Kahle, District Six	Nomvuyo Ngcelwane
48	Sea Mountain, Fire City	Mike Nicol
49	Somewhere Over the Rainbow	Gavin Bell
50	Sorry, not Sorry	Haji Mohamed Dawjee
51	South Africa. A traveler’s literary companion	Edited by Isabel Balseiro
52	South African Fact Book	Denise Slabbert, Pat Hopkins, Jabulile Bongiwe Ngwenya
53	The Covenant	James A Michener
54	The Day I Died	Thembelani Ngenelwa
55	The Healing Land	Rupert Isaacson
56	The Lost World of the Kalahari	Van der Post
57	The Madonna of Excelsior	Zakes Mda
58	The Only Black at a Dinner Party	Eric Miyeni
59	The Satanic Mechanic – A Tannie Maria Mystery	Sally Andrew
60	The State of Africa	Martin Meredith
61	The Wilderness Family	Kobie Kruger
62	Troublemakers	Margaret Renn, Anton Harber
63	The Promise	Damon Galgut
64	Death on the Limpopo	Sally Andrew
65	Milk Tart Murders	Sally Andrew

Make sure you are not responsible for the death of your local bookshop

Please buy all books from your local bookshop. No one wants to live in a town centre without independent shops. It is in our hands. Each one of us can vote with our purse. There is no need to support online giants when every one of us can support their own community. You won't find any links in this article to online shops. These book recommendations are purely made out of love for reading and travelling and understanding different cultures. Make sure you are not responsible for the death of your local bookshop. It sounds drastic, but let's face it, it is true. Support local.