Dalene Matthee Her life and work

Early Life Dalene Matthee was born in Riversdale in the Southern Cape, South Africa on 13 October 1938 to Danie Scott (a direct descendant of Sir Walter Scott) and his wife Hester. Her father was a builder and her mother a housewife. Dalene was the middle child in a family of five children. She attended Langenhoven High School in Riversdale where she was often praised for her outstanding essays.

She married at 18 in Riversdale Enrolled in Van Zyl’s Music school Started to write children’s stories for the SABC's children's radio programme Siembamba to supplement the family's income.

She started writing short stories for popular Afrikaans magazines, always saying that she "would never write a novel as she did not know where to find enough information for a whole book". She would find enough information from her conservationist projects. She first began working with Dr. Anton Rupert’s restoration team of Graaf-Reinet

Conservation of the Forest

Conservation was close to Dalene's heart. It started off with historic buildings which later turned into the conservation of the Knysna Forest, which started in 1978 when she first visited the forest. She felt strongly about its conservation. Dalene respected the Forest and always said one should never enter the forest with a negative attitude. She always asked the Forest's permission before doing research or taking visitors to the forest.

In 1986, Dalene became the first recipient of the Southern African Institute of Forestry's Award outside the Department of Forestry. She was also the first woman to receive this accolade. She received this award for her work on the Knysna Forest, the early woodcutters' communities and the development of the timber industry in Knysna. In 2004, the Department of Forestry bestowed this honor on her for a second time to acknowledge her exceptional services to forestry in Southern Africa.

Her Works

Turning Point in her career when she moved to Hartenbos and went backpacking in the Kynsna Forest along Outeniqua hiking trails. Gathered enough information in the forest for her four Forest Books: Circles in a Forest, Fiela’s Child, Mulberry Forest and Dream Forest.

Circles in a forest, 1984 was about the extermination of the elephants and the exploitation of the woodcutters of the Knysna forest.

Did up to four year’s research before starting each book, travelling to Italy to learn the silk industry, England to explore the shipping industry, Netherlands, Robben Island, Mauritius. She always translated the first draft of her books herself to ensure the correct transfer of culture- specific information. Or, as she put it, "to prevent the English from translating koekepanne (ore trams) with cake pans".

Her inspiration often came from the splendour of history, which she described as "often the only window through which one can climb to search for a silent truth. To search thoroughly and honestly."