Kaffir Boy
Book description
The classic story of life in Apartheid South Africa.
Mark Mathabane was weaned on devastating poverty and schooled in the cruel streets of South Africa's most desperate ghetto, where bloody gang wars and midnight police raids were his rites of passage. Like every other child born in the hopelessness of…
Why read it?
2 authors picked Kaffir Boy as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Phiona once told me that she grew up in Katwe believing that everyone in the world lived in the same desperate circumstances that she did and that if you’re born in Katwe, you are expected to die there. Mathabane was similarly anchored to his poverty-ravaged township of Alexandra outside of Johannesburg. “Kaffir” is an ugly ethnic slur common during Apartheid-era South Africa, a term that the author battled to overcome every day while surviving an environment plagued by gang violence. Mathabane’s salvation was his education (and, similar to Phiona, success in an unlikely sport), which eventually led him to attend…
From Tim's list on young African heroes.
As an African-American, raised in the Bantustans of America (Chicago – Southside/Westside/Northside) and called the N-word (cutified to “N-word”) and subjected to ALL of the shit Amerikkka has plastered in my face; I feel that some sensitive White folks might understand what a “Bantustan” feels like. For those who believe that these “Bantustans” are only in places like Africa or India. I suggest you reexamine our country. You should take a look into the Bantustans along the freeways, roadways in America today. This book should open your eyes to the fact that MOST PEOPLE do not want to live below…
From Odie's list on understanding the human condition.
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