Wilbur Smith

For other people named Wilbur Smith, see Wilbur Smith (disambiguation).

Wilbur Smith
Born(1933-01-09)9 January 1933[1][2]
Ndola, Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia)
Died13 November 2021(2021-11-13) (aged 88)
Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
OccupationNovelist
GenreNature, adventure
Notable worksWhen the Lion Feeds
The Dark of the Sun
Shout at the Devil
The Sunbird
Eagle in the Sky
SpouseAnne Rennie (1957–1962)
Jewell Slabbart (1964 – unknown date)
Danielle Thomas (1971–1999)
Mokhiniso Rakhimova (2000–2021)
ChildrenShaun
Christian
Lawrence
Website
wilbursmithbooks.com

Wilbur Addison Smith (9 January 1933 – 13 November 2021) was a Northern Rhodesian-born British-South African novelist specializing in historical fiction about international involvement in Southern Africa across four centuries.

He gained a film contract with his first published novel, When the Lion Feeds,[3] which encouraged him to become a full-time writer. He went on to write three long chronicles of the South African experience, which became best-sellers. He acknowledged his publisher Charles Pick's advice to "write about what you know best";[4] his work focuses on southern African ways of life, with emphasis on hunting, mining, romance, and conflict.

By the time of his death in 2021, he had published 49 books. They have sold at least 140 million copies,[5] 24 million of them in Italy (by 2014).[6]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference age was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Smith, Wilbur (2018). On Leopard Rock: A Life of Adventures (Hardback). London: Zaffre. pp. 6, 7, 22–24, 26, 29, 31, 119–124, 127, 131, 140, 141, 148, 191, 213, 215, 217, 226–228, 262, 293, 316–318, 325, 300, 326. ISBN 978-1-78576-534-6.
  3. ^ "Wilbur Smith Books In Publication & Chronological Order". Book Series. 2 October 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
  4. ^ Dismore, Richard (15 June 2018). "Life inspired by a love of Africa". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
  5. ^ Agence France-Presse (14 November 2021). "The Guardian". Bestselling author Wilbur Smith dies aged 88.
  6. ^ "Wilbur Smith -". Archived from the original on 26 April 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2015.