Mary Benson (campaigner) Mary Benson (campaigner) Mary Benson (8 December 1919 – 19 June 2000) was a South African civil rights campaigner and author. Born in 1919 in Pretoria, Benson served in the South African Women's Army during World War II. After the war, she was secretary to film director David Lean. Benson became acquainted with the author Alan Paton, and read his novel "Cry, the beloved country" (1948), whose main theme was racial discrimination in South Africa. This affected her greatly, and she became a campaigner for the rights of black people there. She worked with Michael Scott (who, in 1946, was
Beloved (novel) Later, Amy delivers Sethe's daughter on a small boat, and Sethe names the child Denver after her. In 1998, the novel was made into a film directed by Jonathan Demme and produced by and starring Oprah Winfrey. In January 2016, "Beloved" was broadcast in 10 episodes by BBC Radio 4 as part of its "15 Minute Drama" programme. The radio series was adapted by Patricia Cumper. "Beloved" received the Frederic G. Melcher Book Award, which is named for an editor of "Publishers Weekly". In accepting the award on October 12, 1988, Morrison said, "that 'there is no suitable memorial or