Verdict: carrot from the usually krimi-oriented Joanne Hichens, incorporating a thought or two from Robin Malan.
Brothers Justin and Kendall are brought closer as Kendall is forced to flee ‘the suburbs’, and Justin goes with him. The brothers bond more deeply in the second half of the novel as they survive living rough on the streets of Cape Town, and further afield in Pretoria.
In the face of various threats, Justin is fiercely protective towards his younger brother, and Kendall in turn looks up to Justin – at times with adoration.
Of her interest in writing youth literature, Partridge says, “Most of the teen lit out there is set in England or the US. I think it’s time to give young South Africans something to be excited about, something they can relate to.”
Book Details
Verdict: carrots
Books Editor of the Witness, Margaret von Klemperer, gives two carrots to two youth books – Long Walk to Freedom (the abridged and illustrated version) and Fiona Ingram’s more exotic The Secret of the Sacred Scarab.
THIS IS an attractively presented hardcover version of Nelson’s Mandela’s autobiography, simplified and abridged by Chris van Wyk (Shirley, Goodness and Mercy). The illustrations by Paddy Bouma are lively and add an appealing dimension to the text.
Book Details
Verdict: carrot
“The story could be said to be a meditation on race, race consciousness and the all-pervasive and persistent effects of apartheid on this nation’s psyche,” says the reviewer:
I groaned when I started to read this book and wanted to return it to the books editor, pleading constitutional inability to review it. I just couldn’t face yet another tale of horror and misery. However, I persevered and I’m glad I did.
The book is based on the author’s experiences as a childcare worker in a children’s home in Bloemfontein. She knows of what she writes, and as a survivor of state boarding schools, I can attest to the truth she tells.
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