Two Random House Struik imprints have just launched e-book library apps for the iPad. The apps, Earth & Nature (Struik Nature) and South Africa in Print (Zebra Press), will house a wide selection of natural history and current events e-books at discounted prices.

Random House Struik and GetSmarter, South Africa’s leading online educator, are proud to present the second presentation of the Random House Struik Write a Non-Fiction Story course. The 10-week part-time course, which starts on 7 May 2012, is presented entirely online through GetSmarter’s innovative online learning platform.

Everyone has a personal story to tell. Whether it’s an autobiography, memoir, a biography of a fascinating family member, a travel adventure or a historical account, people want to write their stories and preserve their memories for posterity. However, few people feel that they have the time, money or opportunity to learn how to craft personal, engaging non-fiction stories.

The English Academy of Southern Africa is pleased to announce the winners of the Thomas Pringle Awards. The Thomas Pringle Awards recognise writers who have demonstrated extraordinary insights in their work. Two of the three categories run this year have been finalised.

Random House Struik is delighted to announce that its Umuzi imprint has acquired the next two novels by star novelist Lauren Beukes.

Umuzi’s bid won a closely contested auction for southern African rights conducted by Beukes’s agent Oliver Munson of Blake Friedmann Literary Agency in London last week.

The rising trajectory of Cape Town-based author Lauren Beukes started with her first futuristic novel Moxyland (2008) and continued with Zoo City (2010), for which she received the internationally prestigious Arthur C Clarke Award.