J.M. Coetzee: a life in writing is the first biography of Nobel laureate J.M. Coetzee. A global publishing event of the rarest kind, the book has been written with the full cooperation of Coetzee, who granted the author interviews and put him in touch with family, friends, and colleagues who could talk about events in Coetzee’s life.


For the first time, Coetzee allowed complete access to his private papers and documents, including the manuscripts of his 16 novels. J.C. Kannemeyer has also made a study of the enormous body of literature on Coetzee, and through archival research has unearthed further information not previously available.


The book deals in depth with Coetzee’s origins, early years, and first writings; his British interlude from 1962–1965; his time in America from 1965–1971; his 30 years back in South Africa, when he achieved international recognition and won the Booker prize; and his Australian years since 2002, during which time he won the Nobel Prize in Literature.


J.M. Coetzee: a life in writing is a major work that corrects many of the misconceptions about Coetzee, and that illuminates the genesis and implications of his novels.This magisterial biography will be an indispensable source for everybody concerned with Coetzee’s life and work.

Translated by: Michiel Heyns