shonatiger's review
3.0
2.5
A really nice, meaty middle after what for me was a shaky beginning, but didn't really improve enough by the end for a higher rating.
A really nice, meaty middle after what for me was a shaky beginning, but didn't really improve enough by the end for a higher rating.
gmdudley4's review
I'm still gathering my feelings about this one. I'm still trying to digest the ending.
shaguftap's review
3.0
The book caught my eye at a local bookstore because the cover of the book is the skyline of each of the three cities it describes, and I found my copy at the Sandton Public Library.
The story opens with Germaine Spencer, wife of Martin O’ Malley, mother of Zuko Spencer – O’Malley grieving and furious over the death of her thirteen year old son who has taken his own life. She finds him on his birthday dead in the bathtub with his wrists slit and a suicide note addressed to his father in his room. She interprets his silence to signal anger with her, and she hates her husband for being the one that her son turned to in his final words. The book then shifts to her husband’s perspective of his son’s death. Neither character explains why their son has died, and the book then goes back in time to London 1994, where the two characters first meet. London, 1994 -1998 is the first section of the book, and takes up about half of the novel. Cape Town 1998 – 2008 is the second part of the novel and Joburg 2008 – 2011 is the final section of the book. Cape Town and Joburg together compose the other half of the novel. Because the novel is set in different time periods the reminders of time period feels a bit excessive at times (the characters listen to cassettes and save files to floppy disks for example) but the reminders didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the novel.
The structure of the novel is a description in London of the characters meeting, their journey of coming together, their reflections on identity and South Africa, and then a transition to Cape Town and Joburg as a married couple. Germaine is white and not South African, and though she has visited her mother in law before they move, South Africa is largely a new place to her, and she has a lot of adjusting to do and learning to do about her new home. From language learning to understanding the politics of race to building community to developing an understanding how she can best contribute as an artist to her new home, there is much for Germaine to experience and adjust to, and the book chronicles it all. Martin too adjusts to living in a new post-apartheid South Africa, negotiates corporate life and racial identity, and has a shared but separate adjustment path from Germaine. The journey and voice of both characters is interesting and distinct, as are the journal entries of their son Zuko, who seems like a very believable child-like voice.
For more of this review: pleas see: https://seriouslyplanning.wordpress.com/2015/11/08/on-family-marriage-and-african-reads/
The story opens with Germaine Spencer, wife of Martin O’ Malley, mother of Zuko Spencer – O’Malley grieving and furious over the death of her thirteen year old son who has taken his own life. She finds him on his birthday dead in the bathtub with his wrists slit and a suicide note addressed to his father in his room. She interprets his silence to signal anger with her, and she hates her husband for being the one that her son turned to in his final words. The book then shifts to her husband’s perspective of his son’s death. Neither character explains why their son has died, and the book then goes back in time to London 1994, where the two characters first meet. London, 1994 -1998 is the first section of the book, and takes up about half of the novel. Cape Town 1998 – 2008 is the second part of the novel and Joburg 2008 – 2011 is the final section of the book. Cape Town and Joburg together compose the other half of the novel. Because the novel is set in different time periods the reminders of time period feels a bit excessive at times (the characters listen to cassettes and save files to floppy disks for example) but the reminders didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the novel.
The structure of the novel is a description in London of the characters meeting, their journey of coming together, their reflections on identity and South Africa, and then a transition to Cape Town and Joburg as a married couple. Germaine is white and not South African, and though she has visited her mother in law before they move, South Africa is largely a new place to her, and she has a lot of adjusting to do and learning to do about her new home. From language learning to understanding the politics of race to building community to developing an understanding how she can best contribute as an artist to her new home, there is much for Germaine to experience and adjust to, and the book chronicles it all. Martin too adjusts to living in a new post-apartheid South Africa, negotiates corporate life and racial identity, and has a shared but separate adjustment path from Germaine. The journey and voice of both characters is interesting and distinct, as are the journal entries of their son Zuko, who seems like a very believable child-like voice.
For more of this review: pleas see: https://seriouslyplanning.wordpress.com/2015/11/08/on-family-marriage-and-african-reads/
pagesandsounds's review
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book starts with a bang, afterwards crawls along for a long while, then ends with a reverberation of the earlier bang. London Cape Town Joburg is primarily a family tale that is set in each of the three cities depicted in its title that spans a period of 17 years. It follows the lives of Germaine and Martin O’Malley.
The book opens with a brutal force as the Germaine finds the lifeless body of her son in the bathroom. The bulk of the story that follows seems mundane in the light of that apparent suicide. The mundanity of the rest of the story – the love, living, career and migration of the family is comfortably carried by the suspense created by the suicide at the onset. The ordinariness of the bulk of the story is not a reflection on the depth in character development of the major characters nor is it a reflection on Zukiswa’s writing, which is crisp, simple and free-flowing.
London Cape Town Joburg on the surface seems like an ordinary tale but scratch the surface and a lot come tumbling out. Race relations, fidelity, migration, child molestation and even homophobia are subtly and wittingly dealt with. The book is structured in a very accessible manner, making Germaine and Martin the narrator in turns, works very well.
The end is as tragic as the beginning. The fact that I did not see it coming is proof that we can never be careful enough with paedophiles able to wreak havoc in the most subtle of ways. The role of Martin in shielding the paedophile all these years is a sad indictment of his fatherhood.
An easy and good read. Recommended.
Blog: http://pagesandsounds.com/
An easy and good read. Recommended.
Blog: http://pagesandsounds.com/
ninachachu's review
3.0
I liked the alternating points of view. And yes the ending was definitely a shock!
More...