Books

“Imagine the only person you’ve known your whole life hating you for something you have no control over,” (from Growing Caterpillars, which explores the intricate relationship between sexuality, race and traditional values) – that’s just one of the profound phrases contained in Keletso Mopai’s collection of short stories titled If You Keep Digging. In it, Keletso tackles real-life issues and tragedies through interlinked tales by exploring themes such as mental illness, racism, abuse, poverty, sexuality and identity, to name a few.  In her opening, she struck me as someone inspired by Tsitsi Dangarembga. In ‘Madness’ the character’s feeling of relief towards her brother’s death reminds me of Tambudzai’s apathy towards her brother’s death in Nervous Conditions. “I was not sorry when my brother died,” said by Tambudzai in Nervous Conditions and “I’m not ashamed to say I’m relieved my brother is dead,” said by Dikeledi here in If You Keep…

A lyrical and moving story of unfulfilled love fraught with the weight of history, race and geography. This is how Sarah Ladip Manyika’s In Dependence presents itself. It is intertwined with questions of belonging, ageing, faith, and family secrets. This love story spans 40 years, three continents and two cultures. Layered in 36 chapters, it follows the lives of Tayo Ajayi and Vanessa Richardson who struggle to find themselves and each other. Ajayi sails to England from Nigeria to take up a scholarship at Oxford University. There he discovers a whole generation high on visions of a new and better world. He meets Richardson, the beautiful daughter of a former colonial officer.  Their story, which spans four decades, is a bittersweet tale of a brave but doomed affair and the universal desire to fall truly, madly and deeply in love. Readers will enjoy the references to musicians and authors, history…

“I started thinking about my work when I started thinking more seriously about the 25th anniversary of our democracy in 2019,” said Lawrence Mduduzi Ndlovu speaking about his new book, Mayibuye, 25 Years of Democracy In South Africa. The book styles itself as a collection of poetry that is a useful addition to the body of literature that is helping our nation critically reflect on its past, whilst pondering the future. According to him, some of the poetry in the book was written around 2012 when the Marikana massacre took place. Compiled of 44 poems, Mayibuye explores different reflections of what South Africans were feeling in 1994. The first section of the book highlights the hope that many were feeling. He writes in one of his opening poems, “We try call them back. Each time we affirm that they wouldn’t have been tolerated this lawlessness…” Speaking about his body of…