Peter Godwin
Award-Winning Author, Journalist, and Filmmaker
After his father's heart attack in 1996, Peter Godwin began a series of pilgrimages to Zimbabwe, the land of his birth. His elderly parents refused to leave despite the fact that their comfortable lifestyle had been shattered and millions are fleeing an increasingly enraged dictator. In When A Crocodile Eats the Sun, Godwin brilliantly recounts the challenges of aging parents, the raw beauty and complex social and political struggles that make Africa such a compelling continent, and his experiences uncovering his family's past.
Why were his parents so stubborn? Peter soon discovered the answer hidden in his father's secret history. Growing up, Peter knew few details about the life of his father. George Godwin was born in England, served in the British army, and studied engineering in London before traveling to Africa on a business trip and building a life there. As an adult Peter finds out that these basic facts about his father are lies -- even his name. Born Kazimierz Jerzy Goldfarb in Warsaw, Peter's father was a Polish Jew who took his Gentile fiancee's surname (and anglicized his first name) at marriage.
Sent from his homeland as a young man during the rise of Nazi power, as an adult George refused to be bullied from another home -- despite the dangers of staying.
Godwin's personal story about life in Africa couldn't be timelier. When A Crocodile Eats the Sun is a stirring memoir of the disintegration of a family set against the collapse of a country. With it, Peter Godwin has written a vivid portrait of the profound strength of the human spirit and the enduring power of love.
Peter Godwin is an award winning author, journalist, and filmmaker. Born and raised in Zimbabwe, he studied at Cambridge and Oxford and became a foreign correspondent for the Sunday Times (London) and BBC TV, reporting from more than sixty-five countries. Since moving to New York, he has written for many publications, including National Geographic and The New York Times Magazine. He also teaches at the New School in New York City. Godwin is also the author of Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa.
At the podium, Godwin candidly discusses what it is like to have family living in a country in peril and how learning his father's true history changed his life. He explores the future of Zimbabwe and asks, is it possible the country could return to prosperity and peace?
"Peter Godwin's story has the momentum and power of tragedy. . . The public and private narrative lines entwine in fascinating, devastating ways. And the wry, devoted, conflicted son writes beautifully throughout."
- William Finnegan, author of Crossing the Line: A Year in the Land of Apartheid
Interested in booking Peter Godwin to speak at your next event?
Why were his parents so stubborn? Peter soon discovered the answer hidden in his father's secret history. Growing up, Peter knew few details about the life of his father. George Godwin was born in England, served in the British army, and studied engineering in London before traveling to Africa on a business trip and building a life there. As an adult Peter finds out that these basic facts about his father are lies -- even his name. Born Kazimierz Jerzy Goldfarb in Warsaw, Peter's father was a Polish Jew who took his Gentile fiancee's surname (and anglicized his first name) at marriage.
Sent from his homeland as a young man during the rise of Nazi power, as an adult George refused to be bullied from another home -- despite the dangers of staying.
Godwin's personal story about life in Africa couldn't be timelier. When A Crocodile Eats the Sun is a stirring memoir of the disintegration of a family set against the collapse of a country. With it, Peter Godwin has written a vivid portrait of the profound strength of the human spirit and the enduring power of love.
Peter Godwin is an award winning author, journalist, and filmmaker. Born and raised in Zimbabwe, he studied at Cambridge and Oxford and became a foreign correspondent for the Sunday Times (London) and BBC TV, reporting from more than sixty-five countries. Since moving to New York, he has written for many publications, including National Geographic and The New York Times Magazine. He also teaches at the New School in New York City. Godwin is also the author of Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa.
At the podium, Godwin candidly discusses what it is like to have family living in a country in peril and how learning his father's true history changed his life. He explores the future of Zimbabwe and asks, is it possible the country could return to prosperity and peace?
"Peter Godwin's story has the momentum and power of tragedy. . . The public and private narrative lines entwine in fascinating, devastating ways. And the wry, devoted, conflicted son writes beautifully throughout."
- William Finnegan, author of Crossing the Line: A Year in the Land of Apartheid
Interested in booking Peter Godwin to speak at your next event?
Contact Hachette Speakers Bureau.
866.376.6591
info@hachettespeakersbureau.com
- Living in Peril: A Struggling Family, a Changing Nation
- The Future of Zimbabwe
- Family Secrets: What It Means to Know the Truth
