July's People - Nadine Gordimer

I'm catching up on my summer reading posts after having travelled a bit from May through July.

I picked this book up at Liard Hot Springs in Canada on our return trip from Alaska this year.
It's the story of a white family, mother, father, son and daughter, who are sheltered in the bush home of their former servant in South Africa.  It's a terrifying look at the stark differences in living and family relationships between the haves and have nots.  The central character, Maureen Smales, lived a life of middle class anywhere, with her husband a two children.  The uprisings in South Africa force them to flee to safety and they are taken in by July, their long time house servant.  Their life changes dramatically living in his village of mud huts without running water or the other accoutrements they've taken for granted.  The shift in authority between them reveals the assumptions and expectations burned into their interactions.  An interesting read.

Published: 1982   Read: July 2019  Genre: Fiction

Born a Crime - Trevor Noah

Subtitle: Stories from a South African Childhood

Read this on my Kindle Voyage I bought a couple of years ago and hadn't tried out.  With the upgraded software I liked the reading experience, though I need a better case.

The book was for one of my book clubs and I really enjoyed it.  It started sort of amateurish but got better a few chapters in.  I knew nothing of Trevor before reading his story and came away thoroughly impressed.  I watched his stand up comedy routine on Netflix.  Really thoughtful, intelligent and funny guy.

I bookmarked a bunch of quotes and Kindle is supposed to email them to me and I haven't figured that out so I'll add them when I do.

Published: 2018  Read: March 2019  Genre: Autobiography