Patricia Schonstein
Patricia Schonstein (born 1952), who also writes under the name Patricia Schonstein-Pinnock, is a South African-Italian novelist, poet, author of children’s books and curator of anthologies. Schonstein, whose novels variously employ the genres of magical-realism, meta-fiction and narrative fiction, is famous for novels such as Skyline and A Time of Angels.
Schonstein’s novels draw heavily on her personal experiences of growing up in Central Africa and to historical events related to the Inquisition, the Holocaust, the Rhodesian War and Apartheid. She pays homage to the child-victims of war in Africa and to refugees, weaving together harsh realities with elements of myth and magic.
Patricia Schonstein | |
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| Born | Patricia Schonstein March 12, 1952 (age 65) |
| Occupation | Author |
| Spouse | Don Pinnock |
| Awards | Prix du Marais 2005, Percy FitzPatrick Award 2002 |
| Website | www.patriciaschonstein.com |
Life
Born and raised in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), Schonstein lives in South Africa where she works as a full-time author.
Literary career
Schonstein holds a master's degree in creative writing from the University of Cape Town, supervised by 2003 Nobel Literature Laureate J. M. Coetzee, who has endorsed much of her work. Her poetry has been endorsed by 1984 Nobel Peace Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
Schonstein serves on the Poetry in McGregor committee and presents the annual Patricia Schonstein – Poetry in McGregor Award.[1] She also co-edits the quarterly Stanzas for new poems with Douglas Reid Skinner.
Awards
- Her debut novel, Skyline, won the French Prix du Marais in 2005; won the Percy Fitzpatrick Award in 2002; took second place in the South African Sunday Times Fiction Award in 2001;[2] was longlisted for the 2002 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award; was listed in the South African Twenty-Five Must-Reads in 2007; and was listed in the Swedish En Bok for alle.
- A Time of Angels took second place in the South African Sunday Times Fiction Award in 2004; and was short-listed for the 2004 Booksellers’ Choice Award.
- The Apothecary’s Daughter was listed in the Sunday Times Read Your Way Through Democracy in 2014.
- Banquet at Brabazan was short-listed for the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize Africa Best Book in 2011.
- She was the winner of the 1997 Young Africa Award (Short Stories Category).
Works
Novels
- Skyline, 2000
- A Time of Angels, 2003
- The Apothecary's Daughter, 2004
- A Quilt of Dreams, 2006
- The Master's Ruse, 2008
- Banquet at Brabazan, 2010
For Children
- Sing, Africa! Poems and Song for Young Children, 1990
- Thobileʼs dream, 1991
- Thobile and the Tortoises, 1992
- The King Who Loved Birds, 1992
- Maggie, Mango & Scottie – An Adventure in Africa, 2016
- Ouma's Autumn, 1993
- Saturday in Africa : Living History Through Poetry, 1996
Poetry
- The Unknown Child: Poems of War, Loss and Longing
- A Gathering of Madonnas, and Other Poems, 2001
Non-fiction
- Xhosa: a Cultural Grammar for Beginners, 1994
Curated anthologies
- Africa! My Africa! An Anthology of Poems
- Africa Ablaze! Poems & Prose Pieces of War & Civil Conflict
- Heart of Africa! Poems of Love, Loss and Longing
- McGregor Poetry Festival 2013 Anthology
- McGregor Poetry Festival 2014 Anthology
- McGregor Poetry Festival 2015 Anthology
- McGregor Poetry Festival 2016 Anthology
Further reading
- Heather Acott, 'Dark Humor: Satire, the Baroque, and the Carnivalesque in Patricia Schonstein’s Banquet at Brabazan and Ingrid Winterbach’s The Elusive Moth', Kritika Kultura 18 (2012): 134-48
- Michael Chapman and Margaret Lenta (Ed.) SA Lit and beyond 2000 Representing the African Diaspora J.U. Jacobs 315-332
References
- ^ "Sunday Times Books LIVE - Patricia Schonstein". patriciaschonstein.bookslive.co.za. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
- ^ Falconer, Helen (18 October 2003). "Review: A Time of Angels by Patricia Schonstein". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
| International | |
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| National | |
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- 1952 births
- Living people
- White Rhodesian people
- South African people of German descent
- South African children's writers
- South African women poets
- Rhodesian novelists
- Zimbabwean emigrants to South Africa
- University of Cape Town alumni
- South African women novelists
- Women children's writers
- 20th-century Zimbabwean writers
- 20th-century Zimbabwean women writers
- 21st-century Zimbabwean writers
- 21st-century Zimbabwean women writers
- 21st-century South African writers
- 21st-century South African women writers
- South African writer stubs
- White South African people
- Rhodesian emigrants to South Africa