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Jonny Steinberg

ジョニー・スタインバーグ

Jonny Steinberg

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1970-03-22 （Johannesburg, South Africa）
Nationality
South Africa
Languages
English
Residence History
Johannesburg (born/raised) → Oxford (studies/teaching) → New Haven (affiliated with Yale University)

Career

Occupations
Writer, Scholar, Journalist
Active Years
2002-
Affiliations
University of Oxford, Professor of African Studies (former), Yale University, Council on African Studies (affiliated)

Education

University of the Witwatersrand (Wits)
Country: South Africa
Studied in Johannesburg
University of Oxford
Political theory (doctoral studies)
Degree: DPhil
Country: United Kingdom
Rhodes Scholar; earned a doctorate in political theory

Awards

South African Booksellers' Choice Award
2003
Work: Midlands
Result: Winner
Sunday Times Alan Paton Award
2003
Work: Midlands
Organization: Sunday Times CNA Literary Awards
Result: Winner
Sunday Times Alan Paton Award
2005
Work: The Number
Organization: Sunday Times CNA Literary Awards
Result: Winner
Windham–Campbell Literature Prize
2013
Organization: Yale University (Windham–Campbell Prizes)
Result: Winner (inaugural year recipient)
Recht Malan Prize (Media24 Books Literary Prize)
2020
Work: One Day in Bethlehem
Organization: Media24 Books
Result: Winner
National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography
2024
Work: Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage
Organization: National Book Critics Circle
Result: Winner
Sunday Times Non-fiction Award
2024
Work: Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage
Organization: Sunday Times CNA Literary Awards
Result: Winner
Wellcome Trust Book Prize (shortlist)
2009
Work: Three-Letter Plague (published as Sizwe's Test in US)
Organization: Wellcome Trust
Result: Shortlist
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography (shortlist)
2023
Work: Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage
Organization: Los Angeles Times
Result: Shortlist
Wolfson History Prize (shortlist)
2024
Work: Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage
Organization: Wolfson History Prize
Result: Shortlist

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Midlands

2002 Reportage / Non-fiction 259 pages

A reportage account of the murder of a white South African farmer, examining the social tensions and structures of violence in contemporary South Africa.

ViolenceLand issuesPost-apartheid society

The Number: One Man's Search for Identity in the Cape Underworld and Prison Gangs

2004 Non-fiction / Biographical reportage 427 pages

Focuses on the Cape underworld and prison gangs, following one man's search for identity to illuminate broader social fault lines.

Gang cultureIdentityPrison systems

Three-Letter Plague (published as Sizwe's Test in the US)

2008 Non-fiction / Reportage 368 pages

Follows a young man's journey through HIV testing and treatment, examining South Africa's AIDS pandemic and societal and medical responses.

Public healthHIV/AIDSSocial stigma
Translations
  • Published as Sizwe's Test in the United States

Thin Blue: The Unwritten Rules of Policing South Africa

2008 Non-fiction / Social investigation

Explores the unwritten rules and relationships between civilians and police, revealing the realities of policing and governance in South Africa.

Public orderPolice-civilian relationsInstitutional dynamics

Little Liberia: An African Odyssey in New York

2011 Non-fiction / Reportage

Reports on a Liberian exile community in New York, telling stories of exile, conflict and rebuilding after the Liberian civil war.

MigrationExileAftermath of war

A Man of Good Hope

2015 Non-fiction / Reportage

An epic account following an individual's harrowing journey that illuminates modern African issues such as migration, human trafficking, poverty and xenophobia.

MigrationHuman traffickingPovertyRacism
Adaptations
  • [Stage] A Man of Good Hope (stage adaptation) / Isango Ensemble (2016)

One Day in Bethlehem

2019 Non-fiction

A collection of observational pieces and reportage capturing a day in the life of parts of South Africa.

Everyday lifeLocal communitiesDocumentation

Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage

2023 Biography / Non-fiction

A dual biography of Winnie Madikizela and Nelson Mandela that illuminates modern South African history and the complexities of their relationship.

Political historyMarriage and public lifePersonal relationships

Bibliography

  • Midlands (2002)
  • The Number: One Man's Search for Identity in the Cape Underworld and Prison Gangs (2004)
  • Nongoloza's Children (2004)
  • Notes from a Fractured Country (2007)
  • Three-Letter Plague / Sizwe's Test (2008)
  • Thin Blue (2008)
  • Little Liberia: An African Odyssey in New York (2011)
  • A Man of Good Hope (2015)
  • One Day in Bethlehem (2019)
  • Winnie & Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage (2023)

Adaptations

  • Stage adaptation of A Man of Good Hope by Isango Ensemble (Young Vic premiere, 2016)

Translations of Works

  • Three-Letter Plague published in the US as Sizwe's Test

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Detailed reportageClose, empathetic portrayal of subjectsAnalytical style focused on social issues
Recurring Motifs
IdentityViolence and crimeMovement and exileLegacy of apartheid

Legacy

Highly regarded for nonfiction that probes South African social issues. Multiple major awards recognize him as a bridge between contemporary African studies and literary reportage.

In Popular Culture

  • Stage adaptation of A Man of Good Hope has been performed internationally

Quotes

  • A beautiful and immensely sad book. Steinberg gently but firmly removes the masks each of Winnie and Nelson carefully constructed, only to find other masks underneath.
    Source: Richard Stengel (review in The Guardian) (2023)

Trivia

  • First author to win the Sunday Times major non-fiction prize three times.
  • Rhodes Scholar who earned a doctorate at the University of Oxford.
  • Taught at Oxford and is currently affiliated with Yale University.