Main content

Episode 2

Journalist Mark Gevisser shares his experience of returning from a peaceful life in France to a politically fraught South Africa.

Five letters from five South African writers exploring life there in the week of the ANC elections. These letters reflect on living in South Africa now, in all its troubled richness.

Journalist Mark Gevisser shares his experience of returning from a peaceful life in France to a politically fraught South Africa . Gevisser luxuriates in the beauty of his new seaside residence in a village outside Cape Town, but soon discovers signs of a desperate underclass living very close to home.

Mark Gevisser is one of South Africa's leading authors and journalists. His latest book, the memoir 'Lost and Found in Johannesburg' was shortlisted for the Jan Michalski Prize for Literature in 2014. His biography of second post-apartheid President of South Africa Thabo Mbeki - 'Thabo Mbeki and the Future of the South African Dream' - was the winner of the Sunday Times 2008 Alan Paton Prize.

Written and read by Mark Gevisser
Produced by Nicola Holloway.

Available now

14 minutes

Credits

Role Contributor
Reader Mark Gevisser
Writer Mark Gevisser
Producer Nicola Holloway

Broadcasts

  • Tue 12 Dec 2017 09:45
  • Wed 13 Dec 2017 00:30

Listen to more Audio Books

Listen to more Audio Books

Including My Sister The Serial Killer, Queenie, The Flatshare and more.

Opening Lines

Opening Lines

John Yorke unpacks the themes behind the stories in Radio 4's weekend afternoon dramas.

Sample our books and authors Clip Collection

Interviews, previews and reviews

Subscribe to the Short stories podcast

Featuring the best stories from the UK's finest writers

How many of these 100 Novels have you read?

How many of these 100 Novels have you read?

After a passionate debate, our panel has come up with this surprising literary selection.

Finding Your Story

Finding Your Story

Ten remarkable novels about identity: Which one will help you discover yourself?

大象传媒 Arts: Books

Celebrating reading and the 100 novels that have shaped our world.