Silence of the Shadows': SA author wins esteemed literary prize

Silence of the Shadows': SA author wins esteemed literary prizeCathy Donald won the prestigious Jury Prize at the Milan International Literary Awards with her latest novel, The Silence of the Shadows'.

by Carmen Coetsee

14-02-2023 11:51

in Books

South African author Cathy Donald won an esteemed literary prize for her latest novel, The Silence of the Shadows'. Image: Supplied

Composer and author Cathy Donald's latest novel, The Silence of the Shadows, won the highly sought-after Jury Prize at the Milan International Literary Awards.

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Donald's latest novel explores the dark inner workings of violence and female trauma in South Africa. Silence of the Shadows is very deserving of its award as it offers a truthful and tender look at some of the all-too-common experiences of women in South African. The novel also shows the power of female connection and the strength of modern women.

With compelling characters and beautiful writing, Silence of the Shadows is not one to be missed! Donald seamlessly blends fiction and reality in her work, making her one of South Africa's best authors on the scene at the moment.

CATHY DONALD WINS BIG AT INTERNATIONAL LITERARY AWARDS #booknews

The South African launch of Cathy Donald's third and fourth fiction titles "The Silence of the Shadows" and "Breathless"

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Roelia Reads (@roeliareads) January 24, 2023

In November of 2022, Donald won the esteemed Jury Prize at the Milan International Literary Awards. The Silence of the Shadows, Donald's third novel, nabbed the highly sought after prize and has cemented her as a now internationally recognized author.

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There are few authors who include so much insight where values and the personalities of role models play such an important part in the characters of a novel .

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THE SILENCE OF THE SHADOWS' SYNOPSIS The Silence of the Shadows tells the story of five very different women, Cape Town is home to each one of them. Surrounded by its mountains and seas, but also by the struggles and difficulties of a young post-transformation country, each one lives out her separate life. Then fate begins to intertwine their lives through a series of circumstances.

Cathy Donald wins esteemed literary prize with her novel The Silence of the Shadows'. Image: Supplied. Faith, who has taken on a job as part-time receptionist in Bethany's practice, is physically abused by her manipulative and controlling husband. Between Bethany and Rafiqah, the detective who investigates her case, they manage to persuade her to prosecute him and this involves the legal help of Lindiwe, the public prosecutor. But Lindiwe's nightmare past means that her involvement in cases of abuse can never be totally objective.

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Ayesha, who teaches Bethany's young daughter notices subtle changes in the little girl's behaviour and, together with Faith, makes a shocking discovery.

The Silence of the Shadows is a novel about the strength and frailty in each of us, the recognition that at different times we can be either the helper or the helped and that it is acceptable to be both.

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MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR The Silence of the Shadows' explores the dark underbelly of female trauma. Image: Supplied. According to her website, Cathy Donald was born in Port Elizabeth in 1959. She has written for as long as she can remember - stories, scripts for plays and musical productions. She followed a career in Medicine and practiced as a medical doctor in both rural and urban settings.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, she was involved on various fronts - within her general practice, in the hospitals and on a telephonic helpline. She has used her knowledge in Breathless but has also experienced first-hand both the anguish and the euphoria that healthcare workers went through during the pandemic.

Cathy has written three novels over the past five years: The Reluctant Cuckoo (2016), Miles to Go (2018) and The Silence of the Shadows, all of them celebrate family and friendship and the life-affirming values that mean so much to her.

The Silence of the Shadows is published by Kwarts Publishers and is available for purchase from Cathy Donald's website.

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LINK:	https://www.thesouthafrican.com/culture/books/sa-author-cathy-donald-s...
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