My Traitor's Heart: A South African Exile Returns to Face His Country, His Tribe, and His ConscienceOpen Road + Grove/Atlantic, 2012 M03 11 - 368 pages An essay collection that offers “a fascinating glimpse of post-apartheid South Africa” from the bestselling author of My Traitor’s Heart (The Sunday Times). The Lion Sleeps Tonight is Rian Malan’s remarkable chronicle of South Africa’s halting steps and missteps, taken as blacks and whites try to build a new country. In the title story, Malan investigates the provenance of the world-famous song, recorded by Pete Seeger and REM among many others, which Malan traces back to a Zulu singer named Solomon Linda. He follows the trial of Winnie Mandela; he writes about the last Afrikaner, an old Boer woman who settled on the slopes of Mount Meru; he plunges into President Mbeki’s AIDS policies of the 1990s; and finally he tells the story of the Alcock brothers (sons of Neil and Creina whose heartbreaking story was told in My Traitor’s Heart), two white South Africans raised among the Zulu and fluent in their language and customs. The twenty-one essays collected here, combined with Malan’s sardonic interstitial commentary, offer a brilliantly observed portrait of contemporary South Africa; “a grimly realistic picture of a nation clinging desperately to hope” (The Guardian). |
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My Traitor's Heart: A South African Exile Returns to Face His Country, His ... Rian Malan Limited preview - 1990 |
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African Afrikaner apartheid asked Augie Azapo Beetge Bekkersdal Bhaleni Biko blood Boer Botha brother Byron called Cape Town cattle comrades cops Creina Daniel François Malan dark Dawid Malan dead death Dennis door Elandsfontein Empangeni eyes face Fana farm father fear fire goats guns Hammerman hand head heart Homan inside Johannesburg killed knew land liberal lived looked Magnus man’s Mandela Mboma Mdukatshani Mhlongo Mike Molala Mope Msinga murder Ndlela Neil Alcock Neil’s never night once passed Paulina political Randfontein river road Samuel Mope sangoma seemed shot side Simon someone South Africa Soweto started Steve Biko stones stood story streets struggle suburbs talk tell Themba things thought told took township Tugela Ferry turned walked wall wanted Wararas white South Africa woman Xhosa Zim-zims Zionists Zulu