The Sculptors of Mapungubwe
Language: English
Amstel Playwright of the Year Award 1978 Amstel Playwright of the Year Award 1979 Black Diamond Chata Commonwealth Writers Prize 2001 Family Saga Fiction Literary Fiction M-Net Book Prize 1997 Mythical fiction Rendani She Plays with Darkness South African fiction Sunday Times Fiction Prize 2001 The Heart of Redness The Madonna of Excelsior The Whale Caller Ways of Dying Zanemvula Kizito Gatyeni Mda Zanemvula Mda
Publisher: Kwela
Published: Sep 24, 2013
Description:
"The Sculptors of Mapungubwe", Mda's first novel since 2009's bestselling Black Diamond, will be published in October 2013. The narrative centres on the timeless kingdom of Mapungubwe where the royal sculptor has two heirs, Chata and Rendani. As they grow, so grows their rivalry – and their extraordinary talents. But while Rendani becomes a master sculptor of the animals that run in the wild hills and lush valleys of the land, Chata learns to carve fantastic beings from his dreams, creatures never before seen on the Earth. From this natural rivalry between brothers, Zakes Mda crafts an irresistibly rich fable of love and family. What makes the better art, perfect mimicry or inspiration? Who makes the better wife, a princess or a mysterious dancer? Ageless and contemporary, deceptive in its simplicity and mythical in its scope, "The Sculptors of Mapungubwe" encompasses all we know of love, envy and the artist's primal power to forge art from nature and nature into art.