Alan Paton (1903-1988) was a man of God and an internationally bestselling author whose now all-time classic debut novel, Cry, the Beloved Country (1948) is reported to have sold over 15 million copies. Twice adapted for film as well as a Broadway musical, it has been translated into numerous langua...

Alan Paton (1903-1988) was a man of God and an internationally bestselling author whose now all-time classic debut novel, Cry, the Beloved Country (1948) is reported to have sold over 15 million copies. Twice adapted for film as well as a Broadway musical, it has been translated into numerous languages around the world.

Paton began his career as a teacher and later director of a boys' reformatory, where he introduced what were then considered to be controversial reforms, with the intention of bringing dignity and freedom to the troubled urban African boys in his care.

He was among the founders of the Liberal Party of South Africa to counter apartheid. In 1960, he traveled to New York to receive Freedom House's annual Freedom Award. Upon his return to South Africa, authorities confiscated Paton's passport for a decade, making it impossible for him to leave the country.

In addition to his critically acclaimed novels, Paton also wrote numerous books of nonfiction, including two memoirs, poetry, plays, and short stories. He is noted for his psalmic and balanced prose style.

Instrument of Peace (formerly titled Instrument of Thy Peace) has a special place in Paton's oeuvre. Written while his wife Dorrie lay dying and yet refusing the despair he undoubtedly felt at the time, Paton encourages us to remember the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi:

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; not so much to be understood, as to understand; not so much to be loved, as to love.