My sister lent me this book by Angolan author Simão Kikamba and I finished reading it a few weeks ago, so it's not too fresh in my mind. But I did enjoy reading it. It's a pretty gripping story about a young Angolan man who grows up in the Congo, then moves back to Angola but due to political reasons he has to emigrate to South Africa. The rest of the story is basically about how shitty it is to be an immigrant in South Africa.
It is simply written for such an interesting tale. But there is always something a bit magical when someone writes in a language that is not their first. They show you something new about the language and tend to use words or phrases in an unexpectedly exquisite way. I think when you grow up thinking in one language and then become fluent in another language, your thoughts will always be affected and influenced by the language you grew up in. Which (I think) makes for incredibly interesting literature that brings up a myriad of new things to do with words. (My Thoughts About Language Are Riveting).
It is a pretty heartbreaking story but entirely worth reading. It ends abruptly. And completely unresolved - much like the dire situation of immigrant life in South Africa.
I was nervous about reading only African authors this year. I thought it would be too painful and awful and depressing. I'm amazed at how wonderful it is to read authors that are African, how important and good it is. I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner. It is very difficult to write about these books for a number of reasons (like sounding ponsy, white and bourgeois being just one of them) but it's incredible to read them. Already I have learnt more about this continent than I expected. Sounds super cheesy but there it is.
READ BOOKS! THEY MAKE YOU NICER AND BETTER. READ BOOKS WRITTEN BY AFRICANS! THEY MAKE YOU EVER MORE NICER. AND BETTER. DON'T PAY ATTENTION TO MY GRAMMAR.
A Picture:
It is simply written for such an interesting tale. But there is always something a bit magical when someone writes in a language that is not their first. They show you something new about the language and tend to use words or phrases in an unexpectedly exquisite way. I think when you grow up thinking in one language and then become fluent in another language, your thoughts will always be affected and influenced by the language you grew up in. Which (I think) makes for incredibly interesting literature that brings up a myriad of new things to do with words. (My Thoughts About Language Are Riveting).
It is a pretty heartbreaking story but entirely worth reading. It ends abruptly. And completely unresolved - much like the dire situation of immigrant life in South Africa.
I was nervous about reading only African authors this year. I thought it would be too painful and awful and depressing. I'm amazed at how wonderful it is to read authors that are African, how important and good it is. I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner. It is very difficult to write about these books for a number of reasons (like sounding ponsy, white and bourgeois being just one of them) but it's incredible to read them. Already I have learnt more about this continent than I expected. Sounds super cheesy but there it is.
READ BOOKS! THEY MAKE YOU NICER AND BETTER. READ BOOKS WRITTEN BY AFRICANS! THEY MAKE YOU EVER MORE NICER. AND BETTER. DON'T PAY ATTENTION TO MY GRAMMAR.
A Picture:
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