Lägg till bokmärkeThe Stone Virgins: A Novel
Winner of the Macmillan Prize for African Adult Fiction
An uncompromising novel by one of Africa's premiere writers, detailing the horrors of civil war in luminous, haunting prose
In 1980, after decades of guerilla war against colonial rule, Rhodesia earned its hard-fought-for independence from Britain. Less than two years thereafter when Mugabe rose to power in the new Zimbabwe, it signaled the begining of brutal civil unrest that would last nearly a half decade more.
With The Ston... (show more)
Winner of the Macmillan Prize for African Adult Fiction
An uncompromising novel by one of Africa's premiere writers, detailing the horrors of civil war in luminous, haunting prose
In 1980, after decades of guerilla war against colonial rule, Rhodesia earned its hard-fought-for independence from Britain. Less than two years thereafter when Mugabe rose to power in the new Zimbabwe, it signaled the begining of brutal civil unrest that would last nearly a half decade more.
With The Stone Virgins Yvonne Vera examines the dissident movement from the perspective of two sisters living in a small township outside of Bulawayo. In a portrait painted in successive impressions of life before and after the liberation, Vera explores the quest for dignity and a centered existence against a backdrop of unimaginable violence; the twin instincts of survival and love; the rival pulls of township and city life; and mankind's capacity for terror, beauty, and sacrifice. One sister will find a reason for hope. One will not make it through alive.
Weaving historical fact within a story of grand passions and striking endurance, Vera has gifted us with a powerful and provocative testament to the resilience of the Zimbabwean people.
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in the STONE VIRGINS Yvonne Vera examines the dissident movement - a subject long taboo among her countrymen - from the perspective of two sisters living in a small township outside of Bulawayo. She explores their quest for dignity and a centered existence against a backdrop of appalling brutality; the rival tension between township and city life; and the twin instincts of survival and love that motivate them in the face of mankind's capacity for terror, beauty and sacrifice.
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This book was beautifully written with gorgeous and vivid descriptions, although it took me a while to get used to the abstract way in which Yvonne Vera writes. I did find it hard to read though because of the violence and of course, Kezi being so close to home - the descriptions referred to places that I know and love.
The violence inflicted on the two sisters, Thenjiwe and Nonceba, although abstractly described in a way, still were extremely hard to read.
I think that many people ar... (show more)
This book was beautifully written with gorgeous and vivid descriptions, although it took me a while to get used to the abstract way in which Yvonne Vera writes. I did find it hard to read though because of the violence and of course, Kezi being so close to home - the descriptions referred to places that I know and love.
The violence inflicted on the two sisters, Thenjiwe and Nonceba, although abstractly described in a way, still were extremely hard to read.
I think that many people are not aware of the guerilla war that went on after independence and the atrocities that were commited even after Zimbabwe was supposed to have gained its freedom.
However, this book comes highly recommended, for an insight into the goings on after independence in Zimbabwe, the personal view (even though fictional) of the people affected, and of course, the beauty of Yvonne Vera's writing. (show less)
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