Lionel Abrahams — novelist, poet, editor, critic, essayist and publisher — died on Monday in Johannesburg at the age of 75.
Abrahams was born in 1928 in Johannesburg, where he spent most his life. He was well-known as an editor and publisher of literary magazines and books by South African authors, according to The Write Stuff website.
In 1986, the universities of the Witwatersrand and Natal acknowledged his contribution to South African literature by awarding him honorary doctorates of literature. In 1992, the English Academy of Southern Africa awarded him their Gold Medal for services to English.
Abrahams founded and edited the literary magazines Purple Renoster, Quarry (with Walter Saunders) and Sesame. He was the publisher of Renoster Books (launched in 1971 with Eva and Robert Royston), which brought to the world’s attention the writings of Oswald Mtshali and Wally Serote. With Patrick Cullinan, he ran Bateleur Press, launched in 1974.
Another significant achievement is that in 1956, he began editing the then unpublished work of the short-story teller Herman Charles Bosman, producing six volumes of his work over a period of 20 years. As a young man, Bosman had been Abrahams’s mentor and the world has Abrahams to thank for bringing Bosman’s work to prominence, according to the website.