André Brink, a towering South African literary presence for decades whose work in English and Afrikaans fell afoul of apartheid-era censors, died Friday, South African news reports said. He was 79.
Mr. Brink died while traveling from Europe to Cape Town on a flight departing from Amsterdam late Friday. The cause of his death was not immediately made known.
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“His later novels were written in both English and Afrikaans and published in both languages, with the exception of some critical works and the semi-autobiographical ‘States of Emergency’ (1988), which came out in English only,” Mr. de Waal wrote on Saturday.
In his later years, Mr. de Waal said, Mr. Brink turned to autobiography, but he also translated many foreign writers into Afrikaans and wrote works of criticism.
