I Have Life: Alison's Journey, as told to Marianne Thamm

Like an apparition, conjured out of the darkness, a young man with light blond hair pushed his face into the car. I immediately spotted the knife. It was a long, thin weapon, almost like a letter opener, with a tapering blade. It felt cold and spiny as he pressed it to my neck.

And so began Alison's nightmare journey with the two callous killers who were to rape her, stab her so many times doctors could not count the wounds, slit her throat and Jeave her for dead in a filchy clearing miles from the citiof Port Elizabeth which was her home.

But Alison defied death. And more than shat, she denied her attackers the satisfaction of destroying her life. Pave Life is the triumphant story of a woman who refused to become a victim. The courage which allowed her to move beyond severe physical and emotional trauma and to turn a devastating experience into something life-affirming and strong, is an inspiration to people everywhere.