Books to beat the January blues

Patricia McCracken reviews some exciting titles to start off the new year: a magnificent coffee-table book on the wild dog, a must-have star guide, the autobiography of a remarkable inventor, and a great children’s book.

Remembering Wild Dogs by Wildlife Photographers United (HPH, R895)

The sixth and latest book in the wonderful Remembering Wildlife series showcases marvellous photographs by internationally acclaimed photographers, including Daryl and Sharna Balfour and Isak Pretorius.

(In total, more than

150 photographers donated pictures to the series under the banner of ‘Wildlife Photographers United’.)

Rather than being merely factual, fieldguide-style photographs, the pictures in Remembering African Wild Dogs offer rare glimpses into the life of the endangered wild dog, alone, in family groups or hunting in packs.

They have been creatively shot to evoke the thrill and sense of wonder at seeing these wonderful animals in the wild, and are presented without captions.

The series aims “to make the most beautiful book ever seen on a species”, and the first five books have so far raised more than R17 million, attracting celebrity supporters such as Pierce Brosnan, Michelle Pfeiffer and Russell Crowe. The funds have helped to finance 54 projects in 24 countries.

2022 sky Guide Africa South by the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa (Struik Nature, R150)

This small annual guide, packed with charts logging the year’s planetary movements, eclipses, meteor showers and more, is a boon for business or pleasure.

This year’s guide marks the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa’s centenary, but, as the historical appendix shows, it has been more than two centuries since the first permanent astronomical observatory in the Southern Hemisphere was established in the Cape.

Other appendices include lists of South Africa’s present-day professional and private observatories and Internet astronomy links.

A page on indigenous astronomy introduces the uninitiated, such as myself, to ‘Molatladi’ for the Milky Way, a Sotho and Tswana word meaning ‘where the lightning bird rests’, and ‘Khumbela tshilalo’, a wry Venda name for Venus meaning ‘asking for supper’.

Invention: a life by James Dyson (Simon & Schuster, R380)

The resourcefulness and determination exemplified in the saying ’n boer maak ’n plan is similar to the approach shown by British inventor Dyson (who also happens to be the UK’s biggest farmer).

Fond of taking products at a tangent to improve their performance, he developed the ballbarrow (using a ball instead of a front wheel), and his hugely successful bagless vacuum cleaner, amongst many other inventions.

He insists that failure is the crucial factor, rather than success, and refers to the stamina he developed on cross-country runs during his schooldays. His legendary vacuum cleaner went through 5 126 prototypes before he had a breakthrough with the 5 127th version. He even claims that he wanted to title the book, James Dyson: Failure.

As author Samuel Beckett had it: “Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”

An entertaining and thought-provoking start to your business year.

Wanda the brave by Sihle-isipho Nontshokweni (Jacana, R135)

An engaging children’s story championing girl power. Today, Wanda is visiting the hair salon, where she will use all the hair secrets that Makhulu taught her. But Auntie Ada wants her to straighten her hair with a chemical.

Her friends Sizwe and Nkiruka are also being smartened up for the new school year, but Wanda discovers that she must suffer for this, while boys like Sizwe do not have to. Wanda and her friend, Sandra, come up with a plan and both girls stand strong in the face of this challenge.

Nontshokweni is a PhD candidate at KU Leuven in Belgium. Her research is focused on the successes and failures of school desegregation in post-apartheid South Africa.

Her story Fly, Everyone, Fly was the 2021 World Read Aloud Day story and reached more than three million children in South Africa.

Wanda was a 2021 winner of the Skipping Stones Honor Awards. This lively picture book tells a good story while delivering a subtle message. Patricia McCracken is a features and investigative journalist.