Johannesburg book

It’s official! I’m working on a Johannesburg book to be released in October 2018. The book is loosely based on some of the work on this blog and a whole lot more. It’ll feature some unique and rare photos uncovered from various archives with accompanying research. The design, layout and new photograpy will be done by my super-talented wife, Fiona O’Connor.

Thanks to Pippa Parker at Penguin Random House SA for the opportunity and special thanks to all the readers and supporters of this little blog.

Work on the book will take up most of my spare time until April 2018, but I will be working on the Fordsburg post for later in the year as well as adding and updating the older posts with new information and archive photos.

On a sad note, I recently learned of Val Hammerton’s passing. Val was a veteran reasearcher and tour guide with the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation. I’ve been on several of her tours over the years and will miss her vintage dress-ups at the annual heritage day events. R.I.P. Val.

Val Hammerton

Photo of Val (a retired theatre nurse) unveiling a plaque in Klein Street is from the JHI site

10 Aug This entry was published on August 10, 2017 at 11:51 am. It’s filed under Johannesburg and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.

28 thoughts on “Johannesburg book”

  1. Jim Brown on said:

    Good man! I’ll take a copy for sure.

    Reply ↓
  2. Ivan Shapiro on said:

    It’s people like you who contribute so much to our civilization.

    Reply ↓
  3. Desiree Bloxam on said:

    Congratulations! I love your blog and I will definitely be in line for a copy!

    Reply ↓
  4. timkipper on said:

    Thanks very much for the update. I hope you may be able to use one or two of my photos eventually.

    Sorry to hear about your pal Val.

    Regards, Malcolm Buckler

    Reply ↓
  5. Peter Milner on said:

    I have a possibly unique photograph of the Clarendon Circle roundabout decorated with thousands of electric likes to look like a giant crown for the 1947 royal tour. I will look it out and get it to you in time for your book, but cannot do this just now

    Reply ↓
  6. Peter Milner on said:

    I have a possibly unique photograph of the Clarendon Circle roundabout decorated with thousands of electric lights to look like a giant crown for the 1947 royal tour. I will look it out and get it to you in time for your book, but cannot do this just now

    Reply ↓
    • Marc Latilla on said:

      Thanks Peter! I may have some pics for you from that tour. The railway archive were putting something together that followed the procession from town through Clarendon and beyond.

      Reply ↓
  7. Lois Harley on said:

    Congratulations on the book deal! I look forward to its appearance.

    Reply ↓
  8. Jane O'Connor on said:

    Is it possible to pre-order?

    Reply ↓
    • Marc Latilla on said:

      Hi Jane, not yet but please follow the blog for info. I’ll always post any updates here first. I imagine any pre-ordering will only be available once the book goes to print and the relevant ISBN numbers have been allocated.

      Reply ↓
  9. Jack Wade on said:

    Bravo, Marc.

    I’ll be buying a copy. Or two.

    Look forward to it.

    Reply ↓
  10. bewilderbeast on said:

    Yay!

    Reply ↓
  11. joburg on said:

    I’m already looking forward to the book
    in Germany it certainly will not be sold
    perhaps at amazon

    Greetings from Olaf – Leipzig/Germany

    Reply ↓
    • Marc Latilla on said:

      Thanks Olaf! I’ll send out a notice closer to the time as to which countries the publisher can send books to (I understand it’s all over the world). Perhaps a pre-order or something like that.

      Reply ↓
  12. Margot Gore on said:

    I love your website and look forward to news about the publication date of your book.

    Reply ↓
  13. Jane Finlayson on said:

    Would love to hear when this book is available. Val Hammerton was a wonderful colleague and friend. Returning to England I had rather lost touch with Val in recent years, but did meet up with her when I visited South Africa in 2012. Val never cracked email, even though she had an email address, so we were rather dependant on snail mail, and a rather unpredictable postal service! I hope her passing was peaceful. Jane x

    Reply ↓
  14. Rex Hilligan on said:

    Have just spent the most enjoyable day going thru your blog. Absolutely fantastic.! Cannot wait for your book. Well done and keep going/
    Rex H

    Reply ↓
  15. bewilderbeast on said:

    Hi Marc – Can we pre-order yet?

    Reply ↓
    • Marc Latilla on said:

      Hi! Not just yet. The book is busy being printed. I’ll send out notification once I know more, but it will be ready for pre-order around 20 September and the actual launch will be early in November where the book will be on sale. It will also be available at all book stores like Exclusive, CNA etc

      Reply ↓

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