Francoise Malby Anthony an Intrepid Woman

Launching – An Elephant In My Kitchen

Thursday 30th August at 12 noon for 12h30 at Catharina’s Restaurant, Steenberg Farm

Guest Speaker – Francoise Malby Anthony

A chic Parisienne, Françoise never expected to find herself living on a South African game reserve. But when she fell in love with renowned conservationist Lawrence Anthony her life took an unexpected turn.

Lawrence died in 2012 and Françoise was left to face the tough reality of running Thula Thula without him, even though she knew very little about conservation. She was short on money, poachers were threatening their rhinos, and one of their elephants was charging Land Rovers on game drives and terrifying guests. There was no time to mourn when Thula Thula’s human and animal family were depending on her.

How Françoise survived and Thula Thula thrived is beautifully described in this charming, funny and poignant book. Their elephant herd, rescued by Lawrence, shared Françoise's grief at his passing but over time forged a new relationship with her.

Meanwhile, Françoise fulfilled her dream of building a rescue centre for orphaned rhinos and other wildlife.

In Françoise’s words: “As I celebrate thirty years in South Africa, I have learned never to give up, to hold on to my dreams, always to search for a silver lining, and that by looking forward, the difficulties of the past eventually fade out of sight.”

This book is funny and insightful, full of wonderful characters, both human and animal. It is co-authored by Katja Willemsen who has written several fiction titles previously. This is her first work of non-fiction.

We return to Catharina’s Restaurant for this our 9^th Birthday. The Club was launched at Catharina’s on Thursday 20^th August 2009.  Chef has created a superb menu for us which will be accompanied by elegant wines from Steenberg.

The price per person is R420 which includes Wine and Service

For more information or to book please telephone 021 685 8016 or email sandybailey@telkomsa.net as always it is first come first served.

Pan Macmillan is proud to be publishing the powerful sequel to the bestselling memoir The Elephant Whisperer by Lawrence Anthony

The Low Down on Steinhoff and Markus Jooste - Book Launch

Launching

 

Monday 6th August at 12 noon for 12h30

in the Ball Room, Kelvin Grove

  

Guest speaker author James Styan is a journalist and has done extensive research in writing this book. He spoke to us at a luncheon last December when we launched his book Heartbreaker: Christiaan Barnard and the first heart transplant a brilliant book and the 60 people at the lunch thought James was easily the best speaker heard for a long time.

Hot of the press is STEINHOFF: Inside SA’s Biggest Corporate Crash when I heard he had written this I was quick to approach him and make a date for us with him. Don’t miss it.  I know it is a different day but with the holiday coming up and clashes with other events Monday suited both James and us best. I hope it is good for you.

The Author

James-Brent Styan qualified as an accountant in 2003 and did his articles at an auditing firm before becoming a financial journalist. He has written for Finweek, Forbes Africa, Sake24, Fin24, Beeld and Die Burger and currently works as a communications practitioner. Steinhoff is his third book. His other books are Heartbreaker: Christiaan Barnard and the first heart transplant and Blackout - The Eskom Crisis. He is a gifted speaker.

The Book

On 5 December 2017, the Steinhoff group was still worth R193 billion. Twenty-four hours later more than R117 billion of this fortune was wiped out. The Steinhoff Empire, which took 50 years to build into an international business giant, had crumbled overnight.

Markus Jooste, Steinhoff’s flashy CEO, resigned via SMS and has since been fleeing an avalanche of scandals and accusations: luxury homes for a blonde mistress, allegations of fraud, racing horses and unparalleled extravagance, a lavish, black Jaguar for his university residence…

What exactly happened here? Who knew what? What is Steinhoff, who is Markus Jooste and what does it all have to do with the so-called Stellenbosch mafia? Where does business tycoon Christo Wiese, Shoprite and Pepkor fit in and where is the pensioners’ money?

James unpacks these and other questions in this astounding tale of power and greed, of secrets and deceit, and ultimately the biggest financial breakdown in the history of South Africa. Through interviews with trustworthy sources, revelations from confidential documents and in-depth research about Steinhoff’s history, he uncovers what the group doesn’t want you to know.

Steinhoff: Inside SA’s biggest corporate crash is a gripping financial thriller that will be told as a cautionary tale or salacious scandal in both boardrooms and living rooms for decades. 

The Ball Room in the historic Kelvin Grove Club is fabulous.   A two-course lunch with a glass of wine will cost you R300.

For more information or to book please telephone Sandy on 021 685 8071 or by email. sandybailey@telkkomsa.net 

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Ministry of Crime - Mandy Wiener

                                                                              

Guest Speaker – Mandy Wiener

The Jonkershuis, Groot Constantia

Wednesday 18^th July 2018 – 12 noon for 12h30

MANDY WIENER is an award-winning investigative journalist and author of the true-crime bestsellers Killing Kebble: An Underworld Exposed and Behind the Door: The Oscar Pistorius and Reeva Steenkamp Story as well as the acclaimed memoir My Second Initiation (co-written with Vusi Pikoli). Wiener has been reporting on crime, the courts and politics in South Africa for more than a decade.

Both Killing Kebble and My Second Initiation were short-listed for the prestigious Alan Paton Sunday Times Literary Award and chosen as Jenny Crwys-Williams' Books of the Year in 2011 and 2013 respectively.

As a follow up to the bestselling Killing Kebble: An Underworld Exposed (2010), the new book from Mandy Wiener, Ministry of Crime: An Underworld Explored, examines how organised crime, gangsters and powerful political figures have been able to capture the law enforcement authorities and agencies. These various organisations have been eviscerated, hollowed out and left ineffective. They have been infiltrated and compromised and, as a result, prominent underworld figures have been able to flourish in South Africa, setting up elaborate networks of crime with the assistance of many cops. The criminal justice system has been left exposed and it is crucial that the South African public knows about the capture that has occurred on different levels.

Lunch is at Jonkershuis on the Groot Constantia Wine Estate the Restaurant is very conscious of the provenance, sustainability and the ethical content of all the food prepared as well as reflecting the rich Cape Malay heritage.  Our luncheon will be accompanied by wines from Groot Constantia.

The price per person is R300 including wine and service.  Please telephone Sandy on 021 685 8015 or email sandybailey@telkomsa.net to book or for more information.  Seating is limited so please book early.

THIS EVENT IS FULLY BOOKED

                                                                                                                     

 Launching

An authentic South African crime novel with typical local characters

 Buitenverwachting Restaurant on Thursday 21^st June

12 noon for 12h30

Meet Guest speaker Karin Brynard at the launch of the English version of her best-seller Tuisland.  Her work has been published in Afrikaans, English, German, French and Dutch to great acclaim, having won the University of Johannesburg Debut Prize, two M-Net awards, and an ATKV prize for prose. Tuisland shot to the top of the bestseller list in the country when it was published in 2016. She worked as a journalist and political correspondent for Rapport for many years and now writes full time. She lives in Stellenbosch.

Author Karin Brynard

The Book

Captain Albertus Beeslaar has had enough of the Kalahari. He is about to hand in his resignation, but before doing so he is sent into the heart of an ancient San community: an elder has died after being released from police custody and the San blame the police.

The small town of Witdraai borders on the world-famous Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, where the last of the Kalahari San eke out a living. A violent attack on a German tourist has unsettled the whole town – a case that is rubbing up Beeslaar’s new colleague, Colonel Koekoes Mentoor, the wrong way. She wants to turn her back on Witdraai and the bad memories the place holds for her.

As the heat rises, all hell breaks loose: a policeman is murdered; deep-seated corruption is threatening a major land-restitution plan for the San, and a mysterious killer is prowling the red dunes.

Amid all the controversy, Kytie Rooi, a cleaner at a luxury guesthouse in Upington and self-appointed protector of a strange street child, is fleeing into the deadly heat of the desert with her charge. In this world, places of safety are dangerously elusive.

A delicious lunch awaits accompanied by Buitenverwachting’s elegant wines. Menu available on request.

The price per ticket is R440 which includes wine and service.

Please book early as seating is limited. For more information or to book please telephone Sandy on 021 685 8016 or send an email sandybailey@telkomsa.net.

Woman & Home Book Editor has it as one of her 6 OF THE BEST - EDGE-OF-YOUR-SEAT THRILLERS in the June issue.

Homeland (Penguin by Karin Brynard

Chaos unfolds in the small town of Witdraai, and Captain Beeslaar is sent there to investigate a violent attack. This is an enthralling page-turner. w&h

My Father Died for This - Lukhanyo and Abigail Calata

Brilliant Historical Memoir

Thursday 24 May at 12 noon for 12h30

Guest Speakers: Lukhanyo and Abigail Calata

Buitenverwachting Restaurant

Lukhanyo and Abigail Calata will be introducing their recently published book My Father Died for This.

I read an extract from their book in the Sunday Times a few weeks ago and then heard an interview with Pippa Hudson on Cape Talk I was incredibly impressed. Contacted their publishers and we are privileged to have them as our guest speakers next week.

The Authors

Lukhanyo Calata is a television journalist, who worked for eNCA before joining the SABC's parliamentary office. He is the son of Fort Calata, one of four anti-apartheid activists from Cradock, assassinated by the government in 1985. He lives in Cape Town.

Abigail Calata is a former journalist who has worked for Beeld as a political reporter and parliamentary correspondent, Die Burger and the University of Cape Town's Law Faculty. She currently works for the Shoprite Group as publicity manager: CSI and Africa. She lives in Cape Town.

The Book

When the Cradock Four's Fort Calata was murdered by agents of the apartheid state in 1985, his son Lukhanyo was only three years old. Thirty-one years later Lukhanyo, now a journalist, becomes one of the SABC Eight when he defies Hlaudi Motsoeneng's reign of censorship at the public broadcaster by writing an open letter that declares: my father didn't die for this.

With his wife Abigail, Lukhanyo brings to life the father he never knew and investigates the mystery that surrounds his father’s death, despite two high-profile inquests. Join them in a poignant and inspiring journey into the history of a remarkable family that traces the struggle against apartheid beginning with Fort's grandfather, treason trialist and ANC Secretary-General Rev James Calata.

‘An unflinching personal account of an apartheid tragedy, written with wisdom, warmth and clarity.’

– Ray Hartley

‘Fort Calata’s struggles are transposed into the contemporary challenges of managing freedom and democracy through the microcosm of the heroism demanded of today’s generation… A brilliant and emotion-filled read.’

 – Mathatha Tsedu

Chef/Patron Edgar Osojnik promises a delicious menu. The luncheon costs R440 which includes elegant Buitenverwachting wines.  Well worth it as those who attended the last luncheon will attest to.

For more information or to book please email sandybailey@telkomsa.net or telephone 

021 685 8016.

  

Tracy Going introducing Brutal Legacy

Brutal Legacy: A Memoir

Wednesday 11^th April at Buitenverwachting

Guest Speaker: Tracy Going

Tracy Going will be introducing her Memoir Brutal Legacy at a luncheon at Buitenverwachting Restaurant.

When South Africa’s golden girl of broadcasting, Tracy Going’s battered face was splashed across the media back in the late 1990s, the nation was shocked. South Africans had become accustomed to seeing Going, glamorous and groomed on television or hearing her resonant voice on Radio Metro and Kaya FM. Sensational

Brilliantly penned, this highly skilled debut memoir is ultimately uplifting in the realisation that healing is a lengthy and often arduous process and that self-forgiveness and acceptance is essential in order to fully embrace life.

What had started off as a fairy-tale romance with a man who appeared to be everything that Going was looking for – charming, handsome and successful – had quickly descended into a violent, abusive relationship.

Tracy Going is an award-winning former TV and radio news anchor. She is best remembered for the

years spent waking South Africans on SABC 2’s Morning Live and as a prime-time news anchor for Radio Metro and Kaya FM. She has presented a variety of TV shows across the genres of news, business, women, lifestyle and technology. She has also written two successful children’s story-cookbooks, African Animals: Rhymes & Recipes and Awesome Animals: Rhymes & Recipes, which received the prestigious Best in South Africa Gourmand Cookbook Award, as well as the second position at the world Gourmand Cookbook Awards at The Paris Cookbook Fair in 2013. 

Edgar Osojnik's superb menu which includes Buitenverwachting's elegant wines.

Amuse Bouche

Feta –Vegetable Tian,

layered creamy feta, tomato, baby marrows, aubergine, roasted peppers,

garlic cream, rocket, pesto, balsamico – olive vinaigrette,

& pine kernel-parmesan shortbread

Main

Medley of Seafood

set in creamy Bisque, linguine, baby marrow, marinated fennel,

cucumber relish, dried tomatoes

or

Vegetarian

Indian Delights,

vegetable curry, aloo saag, biryani samosa, bhatura, felicity salad,

roti, aubergine pickle, lassi

Dessert

Raspberry Soufflé,

raspberries in jelly, sorbet, espuma, sauce, crispy sponge

Truffles and Filter Coffee or Tea

The price per ticket is R440 fully inclusive.   For more information or to book please telephone Sandy 021 685 8016 or email.sandybailey@telkomsa.net

Sisonke Msimang, author of Always Another Country had the following to say:

“Searing, heartbreaking, triumphant: Brutal Legacy is for anyone who’s been punched in the face by someone they loved and then stood up again. It’s for every mother who has run; every sister who has picked up the pieces and every friend who hasn’t fled. It’s for every brother who’s cried and for the children who have watched. Every South African should read it.”

New Book from Claire Robertson

Introducing

Guest Speaker, Author Claire Robertson 

at

The Palmyra Room, Kelvin Grove

on

Thursday 15 March

Claire Robertson will be talking to us about her latest book Under Glass. She has spent the past 30 years as a journalist, reporting from South Africa, the US and USSR. She has worked in newspapers, magazines, radio and television and now works as a senior copy editor on the Sunday Times.

Claire Robertson

Michelle Magwood had this to say…

“Claire Robertson’s first novel, The Spiral House, was published in 2013 and quickly picked up both the Sunday Times Fiction Prize and a South African Literary Award, a rare double for a debut author. But Robertson was no novice writer: she’d spent 30 years in journalism and knew how to make every word count.

In just her second outing, Claire Robertson takes her place with the established South African greats. She has the crispness and economy of Coetzee, the subtle, oblique depth of Vladislavić, the storytelling spell of Galgut and Mda. She is technically faultless and intensely imaginative. But she has something more, an affecting, profound humanity that is entirely her own.”

Under Glass is a deeply researched historical novel and an intriguing mystery. It is a high-stakes narrative of deception and disguise that will appeal to a range of readers of literary fiction by one of the country’s finest novelists.

The two-course luncheon including wine, coffee and service will cost R330.

Please either telephone Sandy on 021 685 8016 or email sandybailey@telkomsa.net for more information or to book.