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Way Back Home
I, Kimathi Fezile Tito, do solemnly declare that I am a soldier of the South African revolution. I am a volunteer fighter, committed to the struggle for justice. I place myself in the service of the people, The Movement and its allies.
13 August 1986, Angola
Kimathi Tito has it all. As a child of the revolution, born in exile in Tanzania, he has steadily accumulated wealth and influence since arriving in South Africa in 1991. But even though everything appears just peachy from outside the walls of his mansion in Bassonia, things are far from perfect for Comrade Kimathi. After a messy divorce, accelerated by his gambling habit and infidelities, he is in danger of losing everything. And now, to top it all, he’s seeing ghosts. Sometimes what happens in exile doesn’t stay in exile.
A caustic critique of South Africa’s political elite from the author of Dog Eat Dog and After Tears (both recently reissued).
13 August 1986, Angola
Kimathi Tito has it all. As a child of the revolution, born in exile in Tanzania, he has steadily accumulated wealth and influence since arriving in South Africa in 1991. But even though everything appears just peachy from outside the walls of his mansion in Bassonia, things are far from perfect for Comrade Kimathi. After a messy divorce, accelerated by his gambling habit and infidelities, he is in danger of losing everything. And now, to top it all, he’s seeing ghosts. Sometimes what happens in exile doesn’t stay in exile.
A caustic critique of South Africa’s political elite from the author of Dog Eat Dog and After Tears (both recently reissued).
224 pages, Paperback
First published March 15, 2013
8 people are currently reading
200 people want to read
About the author
Niq Mhlongo
18 books81 followersMhlongo was born in Midway-Chiawelo, Soweto, the seventh of nine children, and raised in Soweto. His father, who died when Mhlongo was a teenager, worked as a post-office sweeper. Mhlongo was sent to Limpopo Province, the province his mother came from, to finish high school. Initially failing his matriculation exam in October 1990,[1] Mhlongo completed his matric at Malenga High School in 1991. He studied African literature and political studies at the University of the Witwatersrand, gaining a BA in 1996. In 1997 he enrolled to study law there, transferring to the University of Cape Town the following year. In 2000 he discontinued university study to write his first novel, Dog Eat Dog.[2]
He has been called, "one of the most high-spirited and irreverent new voices of South Africa's post-apartheid literary scene".[1]
Mhlongo has presented his work at key African cultural venues, including the Caine Prize Workshop and the Zanzibar International Film Festival, and was a 2008 International Writing Program fellow at the University of Iowa.[3] His work has been translated into Spanish and Italian.
He has been called, "one of the most high-spirited and irreverent new voices of South Africa's post-apartheid literary scene".[1]
Mhlongo has presented his work at key African cultural venues, including the Caine Prize Workshop and the Zanzibar International Film Festival, and was a 2008 International Writing Program fellow at the University of Iowa.[3] His work has been translated into Spanish and Italian.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
July 8, 2017
Read the book in one sitting. Clearly well researched.
Niq went into too much pains with getting the facts right.
There is a scene of the drive from Parkhurst 4th Avenue to the Emmarentia dam. It seems Niq drove that same route when writing the book to ensure that he got all the street name right.
I think wanting to get the facts right all the time took away some creativity in his scenes & images.
I loved the illusion of suspense. I say illusion because the book revolves around a few characters & obviously they are very much connected & you should infer certain outcomes but all the time you can't be certain & there's plenty of room for curve balls.
All in all, loved the book and appreciate a writer that takes his craft this seriously.
Niq went into too much pains with getting the facts right.
There is a scene of the drive from Parkhurst 4th Avenue to the Emmarentia dam. It seems Niq drove that same route when writing the book to ensure that he got all the street name right.
I think wanting to get the facts right all the time took away some creativity in his scenes & images.
I loved the illusion of suspense. I say illusion because the book revolves around a few characters & obviously they are very much connected & you should infer certain outcomes but all the time you can't be certain & there's plenty of room for curve balls.
All in all, loved the book and appreciate a writer that takes his craft this seriously.
January 11, 2018
Brilliantly told story of Senami and Kimathi going back and forth between 1988 Angola and 2007 South Africa.
Kimathi, a successful tenderpreneur in post-democratic South Africa, is plagued by dreams of a horrid nature, a dramatic ex-wife and associates from days of "The Movement" who, in their eagerness to build riches, stab him in the back.
The narrative takes a huge turn to the left when Kimathi mysteriously falls ill and Niq takes us through a hazy maze of twists and turns bringing us back to where Kimathi's woes originated. Kimathi survived exile and its gruesomeness but it is clear that he suffers from post traumatic stress disorder. Lady Comrade Mkabayi doesn't make it back to the land of the freed but her story doesn't end in Angola. It is carried by two sets of people whose lives are changed forever by her appearance and disappearance.
After a few false starts, I eventually took to "Way Back Home" like a fish to water. I guess I wasn't ready for it last September but picking it up early in the new year, I was mesmerized.A few spelling mistakes, but which book worth reading doesn't have them, right👍!
Niq Mhlongo has a gift for story telling. Both short and long/tall stories. Very rich in detail and dialogue. Some of the conversations didnt work thag well in English but i could see how they'd sounded in any of the Nguni or SeSotho languages. I am so looking forward to his latest work, "Under The Apricot Tree", coming out soon.
Kimathi, a successful tenderpreneur in post-democratic South Africa, is plagued by dreams of a horrid nature, a dramatic ex-wife and associates from days of "The Movement" who, in their eagerness to build riches, stab him in the back.
The narrative takes a huge turn to the left when Kimathi mysteriously falls ill and Niq takes us through a hazy maze of twists and turns bringing us back to where Kimathi's woes originated. Kimathi survived exile and its gruesomeness but it is clear that he suffers from post traumatic stress disorder. Lady Comrade Mkabayi doesn't make it back to the land of the freed but her story doesn't end in Angola. It is carried by two sets of people whose lives are changed forever by her appearance and disappearance.
After a few false starts, I eventually took to "Way Back Home" like a fish to water. I guess I wasn't ready for it last September but picking it up early in the new year, I was mesmerized.A few spelling mistakes, but which book worth reading doesn't have them, right👍!
Niq Mhlongo has a gift for story telling. Both short and long/tall stories. Very rich in detail and dialogue. Some of the conversations didnt work thag well in English but i could see how they'd sounded in any of the Nguni or SeSotho languages. I am so looking forward to his latest work, "Under The Apricot Tree", coming out soon.
May 24, 2017
For me the book is a lucid account of how the past and the supernatural can catch up with a person and make them account. Kimathi Tito the main character was a guerrilla freedom fighter initially based in Angola. He relocates to South Africa post liberation, and becomes an affluent tenderpreneur. He was at a point in his life where he thought , been there, done that - and then the wheels gradually began falling off.
A well narrated and researched sequence of events. Mhlongo takes his craft seriously . He showcases literary skill , attention to detail and ability to keep the reader captivated throughout. The unapologetic use of vernacular especially in relating about Makhanda is refreshing and gives off an undiluted version.
Excellent read. I enjoyed it
A well narrated and researched sequence of events. Mhlongo takes his craft seriously . He showcases literary skill , attention to detail and ability to keep the reader captivated throughout. The unapologetic use of vernacular especially in relating about Makhanda is refreshing and gives off an undiluted version.
Excellent read. I enjoyed it
July 14, 2013
Niq Mhlongo has a style of writing that's his, whether it works or not. Sometimes I'd like him to challenge me with slightly more complex imagery, metaphor and dialogue, but he does 'simple' and it defines him.
In Way Back Home, this simple narrative is accompanied by a rather impressive plot. The story for me comes alive when Khimathi Tito gives a lift to this mystery girl from the M1 highway off Rosebank, Johannesburg to Soweto.
Niq doesn't glorify his main character and not at any stage do you end up liking him.
This plot actually proves how flashbacks and the present can develop together at one pace without adversely affecting the flow. And the climax is big, really big. Took me by surprise.
It also tells readers of South African literature that it's going to be a while before our stories will leave the struggle alone.
If you don't believe in ghosts this will be a lost cause for you. I must say it stretched my belief in the supernatural the whole length. As a result I couldn't decide whether I liked this one or not.
In Way Back Home, this simple narrative is accompanied by a rather impressive plot. The story for me comes alive when Khimathi Tito gives a lift to this mystery girl from the M1 highway off Rosebank, Johannesburg to Soweto.
Niq doesn't glorify his main character and not at any stage do you end up liking him.
This plot actually proves how flashbacks and the present can develop together at one pace without adversely affecting the flow. And the climax is big, really big. Took me by surprise.
It also tells readers of South African literature that it's going to be a while before our stories will leave the struggle alone.
If you don't believe in ghosts this will be a lost cause for you. I must say it stretched my belief in the supernatural the whole length. As a result I couldn't decide whether I liked this one or not.
May 29, 2015
This is a devastating story. It is dreadful in the true sense of the word, because the reader knows that something terrible is going to happen. It is a story of the camps in Angola during the liberation struggle for South Africa. The name Quattro will hang round the rainbow nation like an albatross until there is an exorcism. This is the story of how one individual needs to come to terms with what happened, trying to face the truth, being forced to take responsibility. It is a story of nightmares and hauntings, and of the consequences of what happened in those camps. It is a story about the needs for closure, and the ways of seeking that closure. It is a story of how corruption destroys the soul.
This is not an easy read, but it is essential for anyone seeking to understand the need for truth and reconciliation following any conflict anywhere in the world. It is a story of what can go wrong and why.
This is not an easy read, but it is essential for anyone seeking to understand the need for truth and reconciliation following any conflict anywhere in the world. It is a story of what can go wrong and why.
September 13, 2017
I enjoyed this book so much that I read it in one sitting, it is a page turner. A simple read with an interesting story line.
The book alternates between the past and the present, the living and the dead on the life of Kimathi Fezile Tito a former guerilla fighter. It is actually about how the past never completely remains forgotten and hidden, how the ghosts of your past can come back to haunt you.
The book alternates between the past and the present, the living and the dead on the life of Kimathi Fezile Tito a former guerilla fighter. It is actually about how the past never completely remains forgotten and hidden, how the ghosts of your past can come back to haunt you.
February 9, 2026
Niq Mhlongo takes on a journey with Kimathi Fezile Tito who was born in exile Tanzania to be specific to a Tanzanian mother and South African (Xhosa) father. He was fluent in both Xhosa and Swahili, his father was a camp commissar so it came naturally for him to follow in his father's footsteps and continue fighting for SA's freedom. However, in his journey of life as a comrade in exile, he unfortunately killed the wrong person for no reason who would later haunt him in his glory days as a free wealthy man in SA.
Kimathi went on to become a greedy businessman who would go on to kill anybody who betrayed him or stood in his way of getting what he wanted in the midst of Senami's spirit haunting and making him to see things leading him to hospitalization twice in a month. Medicine called it trauma and was advised counseling.
However, his friend and fellow comrade recommended he go to see a traditional healer who would help him follow his fate in Angola in the form of suicide in the same room/camp he killed Senami. Dying in the same way his father did in almost similar circumstances because just like his father he wanted to sleep with Senami unwillingly while his father suspended as a commissar lured new female recruits in his bed.
Amazing page turner that is hard to put down set in both pre and post apartheid SA.
Kimathi went on to become a greedy businessman who would go on to kill anybody who betrayed him or stood in his way of getting what he wanted in the midst of Senami's spirit haunting and making him to see things leading him to hospitalization twice in a month. Medicine called it trauma and was advised counseling.
However, his friend and fellow comrade recommended he go to see a traditional healer who would help him follow his fate in Angola in the form of suicide in the same room/camp he killed Senami. Dying in the same way his father did in almost similar circumstances because just like his father he wanted to sleep with Senami unwillingly while his father suspended as a commissar lured new female recruits in his bed.
Amazing page turner that is hard to put down set in both pre and post apartheid SA.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 17, 2020
Way Back Home is a missed opportunity. The idea is good: a ghost story that serves as a metaphor for the ANC's change from freedom fighters to a corrupt government. Sadly, Mhlongo fails to deliver on that promise.
Mholongo's plot fails to create any real tension. Ghost stories work best when there is at least initially some ambiguity as to whether the supernatural is real or imagined. Here no one questions that the main character is seeing ghosts. That's hardly the plot's only weakness. Several mysterious deaths tie back into the story too late to make us care and the main character is so unlikable that we have no reason to emphasize with him. Worse still, the dialouge is stilted throughout.
The book is damning in what it says about the ANC and makes an interesting pair to Johnson's non-fiction Fighting for the Dream which I read immediately before. However, the literary quality isn't high enough to justify choosing this one out of the many books set in contemporary South Africa.
Mholongo's plot fails to create any real tension. Ghost stories work best when there is at least initially some ambiguity as to whether the supernatural is real or imagined. Here no one questions that the main character is seeing ghosts. That's hardly the plot's only weakness. Several mysterious deaths tie back into the story too late to make us care and the main character is so unlikable that we have no reason to emphasize with him. Worse still, the dialouge is stilted throughout.
The book is damning in what it says about the ANC and makes an interesting pair to Johnson's non-fiction Fighting for the Dream which I read immediately before. However, the literary quality isn't high enough to justify choosing this one out of the many books set in contemporary South Africa.
March 2, 2018
An amazing read with insight into the mentality of current day South Africa's political and economic elite, having lost touch with the original ideals of the ANC and opting instead for corrupt practices and quick riches. Some choice quotes from the novel...
p. 51: I know it may appear to you as if I've sold out my country because I drive this car and smoke Cuban cigars. But the nature of the world today is such that we have to survive and make money...
p. 107: The masses... are a useless bunch... who still vote for us even when we embezzle their tax monies... use their taxes to buy expensive houses and cars and sleep with their wives.
p. 51: I know it may appear to you as if I've sold out my country because I drive this car and smoke Cuban cigars. But the nature of the world today is such that we have to survive and make money...
p. 107: The masses... are a useless bunch... who still vote for us even when we embezzle their tax monies... use their taxes to buy expensive houses and cars and sleep with their wives.
October 24, 2017
The story itself is quite fascinating and makes for interesting reading. I found the ending to be somewhat anti-climactic, as though the author ran out of steam and wrote down the first acceptable ending that he could think of.
Having recently been spoiled with the writing of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Ngugi Wa Thiongo, I found this piece of writing to be somewhat unimaginative in terms of its style and imagery.
Overall, an interesting story, but the lack of imagery and flair in the actual writing lets it down somewhat.
Having recently been spoiled with the writing of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Ngugi Wa Thiongo, I found this piece of writing to be somewhat unimaginative in terms of its style and imagery.
Overall, an interesting story, but the lack of imagery and flair in the actual writing lets it down somewhat.
August 6, 2018
A man is falling apart. He is drinking heavily, mourning his broken marriage, having nightmares, and seeing ghosts. It is possible that Kimathi Tito is post-traumatic, even so many years on from his time in Angola and the dehumanising horrors of war.
This novel takes us all over Johannesburg, and into Angola. It is scathing and sad, but also full of scenes to which the reader responds with amused recognition.
This novel takes us all over Johannesburg, and into Angola. It is scathing and sad, but also full of scenes to which the reader responds with amused recognition.
September 11, 2017
Really enjoyed this book. Story line was fascinating and quick moving vacillating from present day corruption to comrades fighting for freedom-and how the two end up linked. The introduction of the supernatural gave the story a mystical twist that worked and brought in the native culture. Best novel of 2017 for me.
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August 25, 2020A brutal reckoning with sins, past and present, of the ANC cadres. Kimathi Tito, liberation hero, distant father, alcoholic, eater of public money and generally a despisable person, suddenly finds his sins catching up him. The walls of reality comes crumbling down, while bodies piles up around him. Recommended!
December 15, 2016
Wow!
I love how this story was narrated, however I believe some of the detail was wasted on me as it conjured no images of the things being described.
I love how this story was narrated, however I believe some of the detail was wasted on me as it conjured no images of the things being described.
September 11, 2017
Interesting in some respects. It deals with a lesser-known area of the South African struggle, namely what went on with the people in exile in Angola and Moçambique.
September 26, 2017
Amazing. Niq has taken himself to the next level.
May 25, 2021
A Master piece
February 20, 2017
A journey into the troubles of apartheid, I enjoyed the story from the start right through to the end. It's somewhat sad to actually think that there's families who have lived through such pain described in this book.
May 30, 2016
Brilliant, bra Niq. The story that needs to be told. More people need to read this and think about how the revolution is today being betrayed by people who used to be comrades. Great story. Great characters. Good descriptions. Very engrossing nto read.
September 2, 2021
Loved this book! It was beautifully written the story, the story had me hooked the whole time. A total page turner. Will be reading more of Niq Mhlongos work.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews