Gordimer

The Nobel laureate and South African author Nadine Gordimer passed away on July 14, 2014 at the age of 90. One of South Africa's greatest doyens of art and literature, she was an outspoken critic of South Africa's policy of apartheid segregation.

"South Africa has lost a great patriot, a renowned writer and an outstanding voice for equality and freedom. We wish to express, on behalf of the government and the entire population, our sincerest words of condolence to her family, friends and the whole spectrum of the literary community. May her soul rest in peace," said South African President Jacob Zuma.

Gordimer attracted controversy during her literary career for examining apartheid in her works of fiction and non-fiction. In 1991, she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for someone "who through her magnificent epic writing – in the words of Alfred Nobel – has been of very great benefit to humanity."

Her career as a novelist began in 1953, when she released The Lying Days, a partly autobiographical work. Over the next 60 years she produced 14 more works of fiction.

Three of Gordimer's books were banned in South Africa during the apartheid era (1948-94) starting with her second novel, A World of Strangers, published in 1958.

Gordimer's awards were many, including the Booker Prize for The Conservationist in 1974, and honorary degrees from universities outside of her native country, including Cambridge, Yale, Harvard and the University of Lueven in Belgium. In 2007, she was awarded with the French Legion of Honor.

Gordimer published her last book, No Time Like the Present, in 2012.

(Reporting from Johannesburg, South Africa)