61
Regulars
Features
read
Accommodation
guide
B
en Trovato has fooled us all
for years. The man behind
the dark glasses, under the
black Fedora and inside the trench
coat isn’t who we thought he was.
Or is he? One thing we do know –
his name isn’t really Ben Trovato.
For well over a decade, Mark
Verbaan has been writing as Trovato.
The curious story of why he chose to
use a nom de guerre is told for the first
time inside this book.
While Mark Verbaan might not be
a familiar name, Ben Tovato certainly
is. Regarded as one of South Africa’s
foremost satirists, he is the author
of ten books, including one on golf,
a sport he has never played. His
trilogy of audacious letters to the
rich and powerful remains unique
in the annals of South African
literature. And as a columnist, he has
disgraced the pages of several major
newspapers and magazines.
Incognito lays bare the meat, bones
and gristle of Ben Trovato’s life. Which
is also Mark Verbnaan’s life. See how
this works? It is a bittersweet memoir:
sweet when the beer is free and the
surf is up; bitter when the women in his
life turn on him and he has to get a job.
Mark fights for his country from an
office in Pretoria… He drags journalism
even further into the gutter… He drums
poorly for Durban’s punk bands… He
lives among the squatters of London’s
East End… He appears in a Kajagoogoo
music video… He gets arrested on drug
charges… He is almost assassinated in
Namibia… He is nearly killed by e.tv…
And much more!
Services
Guide
This Month’s Read
Accommodation
directory
Ultimate guide to Africa - for Luxury Travel
in the know
Feature Read