K. Sello Duiker – författare

Every city has an unspoken side. Cape Town, between the picture postcard mountain and sea, has its own shadow: a place of dislocation and uncertainty, dependence and desperation, destruction and survival, gangsters, pimps, pedophiles, hunger, hope, and moments of happiness. Living in this shadow is Azure, a thirteen-year-old who makes his living on the streets, a black teenager sought out by white men, beholden to gang leaders but determined to create some measure of independence in this dangerous world. Thirteen Cents is an extraordinary and unsparing account of a coming of age in Cape Town.Reminiscent of some of the greatest child narrators in literature, Azure's voice will stay with the reader long after this short novel is finished. Based on personal experiences, Thirteen Cents is Duiker's debut novel, originally published in 2000.This first edition to be published outside South Africa includes an introduction by Shaun Viljoen and a special glossary of South African words and phrases from the text translated into English.

Eleven-year-old Nolitye's granny used to say: if you mess with a woman, you mess with a stone. When Nolitye finds a magical stone on the dusty streets of Phola, her granny's words take on a new meaning. Along with her two friend - the somewhat pampered Bheki, and Four Eyes, a reformed member of the Spoilers gang led by Rotten Nellie - Nolitye puts the powers of the stone to good use: for the first time the threesome can stand up to the Spoilers; Nolitye can save the life of Rex, the leader of a pack of talking township mutts; and dare to look scary MaMtonga with her living brown-and-green snake necklace in the eye. But soon Nolitye finds out that the purplish-blue magic stone is but five stones needed to put right things that started to go wrong the day her father died in a mining accident when she was five years old. Or so she was told by her mother... By merging a cast of characters straight out of African myth folklore with everyday township life, K. Sello Duiker created a magical world and a truly wondrous quest, a timeless tale that will appeal to an ageless audience.

Eleven-year-old Nolitye's granny used to say: if you mess with a woman, you mess with a stone. When Nolitye finds a magical stone on the dusty streets of Phola, her granny's words take on a new meaning. Along with her two friend - the somewhat pampered Bheki, and Four Eyes, a reformed member of the Spoilers gang led by Rotten Nellie - Nolitye puts the powers of the stone to good use: for the first time the threesome can stand up to the Spoilers; Nolitye can save the life of Rex, the leader of a pack of talking township mutts; and dare to look scary MaMtonga with her living brown-and-green snake necklace in the eye. But soon Nolitye finds out that the purplish-blue magic stone is but five stones needed to put right things that started to go wrong the day her father died in a mining accident when she was five years old. Or so she was told by her mother... By merging a cast of characters straight out of African myth folklore with everyday township life, K. Sello Duiker created a magical world and a truly wondrous quest, a timeless tale that will appeal to an ageless audience.

Eleven-year-old Nolitye's granny used to say: if you mess with a woman, you mess with a stone. When Nolitye finds a magical stone on the dusty streets of Phola, her granny's words take on a new meaning. Along with her two friend - the somewhat pampered Bheki, and Four Eyes, a reformed member of the Spoilers gang led by Rotten Nellie - Nolitye puts the powers of the stone to good use: for the first time the threesome can stand up to the Spoilers; Nolitye can save the life of Rex, the leader of a pack of talking township mutts; and dare to look scary MaMtonga with her living brown-and-green snake necklace in the eye. But soon Nolitye finds out that the purplish-blue magic stone is but five stones needed to put right things that started to go wrong the day her father died in a mining accident when she was five years old. Or so she was told by her mother... By merging a cast of characters straight out of African myth folklore with everyday township life, K. Sello Duiker created a magical world and a truly wondrous quest, a timeless tale that will appeal to an ageless audience.

Nolitye lives in a shack with her mother Thembi in Phola, a dusty township on the edge of Johannesburg. She is good at maths and likes collecting stones, which she places in a bucket under her bed. She also has unusual powers: she can communicate with dogs. Nolitye has two close friends, Bheki, who is overweight, and the bespectacled Four Eyes, who join with her to resist the bullying from Rotten Nellie and her gang of Spoilers.One day, Nolitye finds a special stone that has the power to make people feel happy and laugh. Her mission from now on is to gather together the other pieces of the stone and reunite them, to stop darkness from taking control of her world.

Cada ciudad tiene una cara de la que no se habla. Ciudad del Cabo, entre una montaña de postal y el mar, tiene su propio lado oscuro agazapado en su regazo: un lugar de desolación e incertidumbre, de dependencia y desesperación, de destrucción y supervivencia. Azure, un niño negro de la calle con ojos azules, experimenta todo tipo de dificultades debido a su apariencia inusual. Este libro es un relato extraordinario y despiadado sobre la infancia."13 céntimos es al mismo tiempo horrible, violenta, profundamente inquietante, fantástica y hermosa... Contada desde la perspectiva de Azure, Duiker teje una narrativa que pone al descubierto que la violencia, la explotación sexual y la política racial se encuentran justo debajo de la superficie de la sociedad sudafricana." Africa is a Country"Duiker es a la literatura lo que Steve Biko a la política, tanto por haber muerto a la temprana edad de 30 años como por las huellas indelebles dejadas en nuestra memoria colectiva." Siphiwo Mahala Mail & Guardian"13 céntimos va al meollo de lo que ha sido un tema por el que los escritores han pasado de largo: el alto índice de niños que en la actualidad son víctimas (violentas) de una sociedad que hace la vista gorda ante la difícil situación de sus miembros más débiles." Feminist Africa

La tranquila violencia de los sueños se asienta en los barrios cosmopolitas de Ciudad del Cabo, como Observatory, Mowbray y Sea Point, donde prosperan las subculturas y se toleran los estilos de vida alternativos.La trama gira en torno a Tshepo, un estudiante de Rodas al que encierran en una institución mental de Ciudad del Cabo tras un episodio de "psicosis inducida por cannabis". Se escapa, pero al poco lo vuelven a ingresar en el hospital para completar su rehabilitación, conseguir su libertad y poner fin a sus estudios. Ahora, trabaja de camarero y comparte piso con un expresidiario recién liberado. La relación con su compañero de piso se deteriora y Tshepo pierde su trabajo en Waterfront. Desesperado por no tener trabajo, encuentra uno en un salón de masajes masculino bajo el seudónimo de Ángel.La novela explora la toma de conciencia de Tshepo-Ángel sobre su sexualidad, orientación sexual y lugar en el mundo.