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Wolf, Wolf
How should a man be? Mattie Duiker is trying very hard to live up to his dying father’s wishes. He's putting aside childish things, starting his first business serving food to the workers in Cape Town. His Pa is proud.
At the same time, Mattie is pulled toward an altogether different version of masculinity, in which oiled and toned bodies cavort for him at the click of a mouse. His porn addiction threatens his relationship with his boyfriend, Jack, and imperils his inheritance.
Pa’s days as a swaggering businessman are done, but even as cancer shrivels him, his ancient authority intensifies. While the family wrestles with his patrimony, around them a new South Africa moves forward, demanding they confront the challenges of the future as well as the past.
At the same time, Mattie is pulled toward an altogether different version of masculinity, in which oiled and toned bodies cavort for him at the click of a mouse. His porn addiction threatens his relationship with his boyfriend, Jack, and imperils his inheritance.
Pa’s days as a swaggering businessman are done, but even as cancer shrivels him, his ancient authority intensifies. While the family wrestles with his patrimony, around them a new South Africa moves forward, demanding they confront the challenges of the future as well as the past.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
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267 people want to read
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April 21, 2015
Wolf, Wolf is a lengthy, somewhat convoluted, but highly rewarding story. In simple terms it's about a South African man in his thirties - Mattheüs Duiker - and his relationship with his dying father, Benjamin. But it's incredibly dense and frequently strays away from that. It's full of tension, which has no discernible source, and constantly seems to be moving towards a shock that never quite comes. This isn't to say it is in any way disappointing, but it can be an uncomfortable read in an unconventional way. I think the best way to address it is probably by looking at the themes that emerge from the various threads running through the story:
What it means to be a man. The blurb for Wolf, Wolf poses the question: 'how should a man be?' This is a particularly pertinent question for Mattheüs because of his sexuality - not just the fact that he is gay (and the fact that his father has never been able to truly accept this), but also (and, really, more importantly) his addiction to internet porn, which controls his life to such an extent that it frequently takes precedence over his real-life partner, Jack. Mattheüs' obsession is in fact so dominant that, while the porn he watches is explicitly detailed, his actual sex life with Jack is touched on so lightly that I was nearing the end of the book before I realised they actually did sleep together after all. He spends his nights searching for 'sex ever more bent and battered to conform to a closed circuit where only he and the screen in front of him exist', sometimes even seeing his father's needs as distractions from this preoccupation.
As the story progresses, Mattheüs is increasingly forced to confront the realities of manhood as opposed to boyhood - something he has long avoided, apparently spending his twenties doing nothing of note apart from travelling and ostensibly 'having fun', although he rarely seems to have actually been happy. Now back in the family home, he feels infantilised but is unwilling to leave, unable to conceive of a life elsewhere. His lifestyle has been enabled by his father's wealth -a privilege Mattheüs has taken advantage of yet never fully embraced, having rejected the opportunity to take up a role in the successful Duiker luxury car dealership, partly due to a conviction that he lacks an essential masculinity or is somehow just too 'other' to participate in the business, to step into Benjamin's shoes.
The relationship between a father and his son. Both Mattheüs and Benjamin spend the whole of the story on a journey towards accepting and understanding one another. This is not always easy, and nor is it necessarily ultimately successful. Mattheüs has selfish motivations in wanting to repair their relationship - he needs money to start a business, and dreams of an inheritance that will include the family home - and his unwillingness to share his father's care with neighbours or other family members often seems to owe more to this than to love or a sense of duty. Benjamin dotes on his son, but cannot properly embrace who he is, or hide the fact that he is disappointed by Mattheüs' inability to take over the family business or produce children who will carry on the Duiker name. Despite all this, Venter's depiction of the relationship between the two is heartfelt, touching, honest. There is a closeness between them that, while stilted, awkward and sometimes uncomfortable, highlights the real love underscoring their interactions. Mattheüs' protectiveness and devotion to his father's care is a way for him to win Benjamin's acceptance before it's too late.
Throughout the book, the main narrative is punctuated by monologues from Benjamin, messages he has recorded on a tape recorder for Mattheüs to listen to. In these he offers his ruminations on masculinity and is honest about his feelings towards Mattheüs in a way he cannot be face-to-face. Communication (or miscommunication) in general is a theme of its own. Unsure how to cope with Mattheüs' porn problem, Jack takes to Facebook to express his feelings, posting a passive-aggressive stream of photographs and pointed public questions. (In fact, 'facebook' - no capital F - is a verb in this novel; definitely the first time I've come across this in a book.) The couple rarely talk about anything of significance - at one point Jack is driven to ask 'am I in this room for you, Matt? Do you at least know that I'm here?' They don't even talk about Benjamin's reluctance to allow Jack into the Duiker home - this is instead addressed, somewhat surreally, by Jack donning a disguise consisting of a wolf's head mask. Both men know this isn't really stopping Benjamin (who, in any case, has been left blind by his illness) from realising that Jack is there; instead it becomes a game between them, which gives the book its title.
Dreams vs. ambitions; dreams vs. reality. In the first half of the novel, Mattheüs strives towards his dream of opening a takeaway serving healthy fast food. He is obsessed with the idea that his father might write him a cheque big enough to fund the business, but too crippled by uncertainty and shame to ask for it - or even intimate his need for it. Several times, he makes false starts towards obtaining the money elsewhere; when it seems he's on the verge of actually attaining it, he panics, sabotages his own chances, and flees. What becomes clear from all of this is that the takeaway is a dream, not an ambition. Like so many things in this story, it's a symbol. Nevertheless, it does eventually become real, and in naming it 'Duiker's', Mattheüs makes a step towards continuing the family name in his own way. The business represents a compromise between what Benjamin wants Mattheüs to achieve, and Mattheüs' desire to fulfil his father's hopes for him on his own terms.
(An aside: while this doesn't add anything to my review, I couldn't help noticing the parallels between this and The Curator by Jacques Strauss, also published this year. Both are set in South Africa, and focus on male protagonists whose sexuality is key to the plot. In both cases, the protagonist is caring for his ailing father; both books open with a scene demonstrating this. In both books, the son wants or needs a substantial amount of money from his father in order to start a business venture. Both even feature a secondary character who works as a teacher at a boys' school. They do, however, move in very different directions from there, with Strauss exploring the psyche of his character in great detail while Venter focuses more intensely on relationships and family.)
Towards the end of Wolf, Wolf, things become ever more horrible for the embattled Mattheüs, who sinks deeper into failure and despair. The book ends on a poignant note as he resolves to change his behaviour towards Jack, to make up for past mistakes, not knowing that his dreams are - once again - impossible. There are no safe, satisfying conclusions to be drawn from the stories of Mattheüs, Jack and Benjamin. Wolf, Wolf itself, though, is a satisfying novel, a potent depiction of one family that also acts as a broader portrait of contemporary manhood and post-apartheid South Africa.
What it means to be a man. The blurb for Wolf, Wolf poses the question: 'how should a man be?' This is a particularly pertinent question for Mattheüs because of his sexuality - not just the fact that he is gay (and the fact that his father has never been able to truly accept this), but also (and, really, more importantly) his addiction to internet porn, which controls his life to such an extent that it frequently takes precedence over his real-life partner, Jack. Mattheüs' obsession is in fact so dominant that, while the porn he watches is explicitly detailed, his actual sex life with Jack is touched on so lightly that I was nearing the end of the book before I realised they actually did sleep together after all. He spends his nights searching for 'sex ever more bent and battered to conform to a closed circuit where only he and the screen in front of him exist', sometimes even seeing his father's needs as distractions from this preoccupation.
As the story progresses, Mattheüs is increasingly forced to confront the realities of manhood as opposed to boyhood - something he has long avoided, apparently spending his twenties doing nothing of note apart from travelling and ostensibly 'having fun', although he rarely seems to have actually been happy. Now back in the family home, he feels infantilised but is unwilling to leave, unable to conceive of a life elsewhere. His lifestyle has been enabled by his father's wealth -a privilege Mattheüs has taken advantage of yet never fully embraced, having rejected the opportunity to take up a role in the successful Duiker luxury car dealership, partly due to a conviction that he lacks an essential masculinity or is somehow just too 'other' to participate in the business, to step into Benjamin's shoes.
The relationship between a father and his son. Both Mattheüs and Benjamin spend the whole of the story on a journey towards accepting and understanding one another. This is not always easy, and nor is it necessarily ultimately successful. Mattheüs has selfish motivations in wanting to repair their relationship - he needs money to start a business, and dreams of an inheritance that will include the family home - and his unwillingness to share his father's care with neighbours or other family members often seems to owe more to this than to love or a sense of duty. Benjamin dotes on his son, but cannot properly embrace who he is, or hide the fact that he is disappointed by Mattheüs' inability to take over the family business or produce children who will carry on the Duiker name. Despite all this, Venter's depiction of the relationship between the two is heartfelt, touching, honest. There is a closeness between them that, while stilted, awkward and sometimes uncomfortable, highlights the real love underscoring their interactions. Mattheüs' protectiveness and devotion to his father's care is a way for him to win Benjamin's acceptance before it's too late.
Throughout the book, the main narrative is punctuated by monologues from Benjamin, messages he has recorded on a tape recorder for Mattheüs to listen to. In these he offers his ruminations on masculinity and is honest about his feelings towards Mattheüs in a way he cannot be face-to-face. Communication (or miscommunication) in general is a theme of its own. Unsure how to cope with Mattheüs' porn problem, Jack takes to Facebook to express his feelings, posting a passive-aggressive stream of photographs and pointed public questions. (In fact, 'facebook' - no capital F - is a verb in this novel; definitely the first time I've come across this in a book.) The couple rarely talk about anything of significance - at one point Jack is driven to ask 'am I in this room for you, Matt? Do you at least know that I'm here?' They don't even talk about Benjamin's reluctance to allow Jack into the Duiker home - this is instead addressed, somewhat surreally, by Jack donning a disguise consisting of a wolf's head mask. Both men know this isn't really stopping Benjamin (who, in any case, has been left blind by his illness) from realising that Jack is there; instead it becomes a game between them, which gives the book its title.
Dreams vs. ambitions; dreams vs. reality. In the first half of the novel, Mattheüs strives towards his dream of opening a takeaway serving healthy fast food. He is obsessed with the idea that his father might write him a cheque big enough to fund the business, but too crippled by uncertainty and shame to ask for it - or even intimate his need for it. Several times, he makes false starts towards obtaining the money elsewhere; when it seems he's on the verge of actually attaining it, he panics, sabotages his own chances, and flees. What becomes clear from all of this is that the takeaway is a dream, not an ambition. Like so many things in this story, it's a symbol. Nevertheless, it does eventually become real, and in naming it 'Duiker's', Mattheüs makes a step towards continuing the family name in his own way. The business represents a compromise between what Benjamin wants Mattheüs to achieve, and Mattheüs' desire to fulfil his father's hopes for him on his own terms.
(An aside: while this doesn't add anything to my review, I couldn't help noticing the parallels between this and The Curator by Jacques Strauss, also published this year. Both are set in South Africa, and focus on male protagonists whose sexuality is key to the plot. In both cases, the protagonist is caring for his ailing father; both books open with a scene demonstrating this. In both books, the son wants or needs a substantial amount of money from his father in order to start a business venture. Both even feature a secondary character who works as a teacher at a boys' school. They do, however, move in very different directions from there, with Strauss exploring the psyche of his character in great detail while Venter focuses more intensely on relationships and family.)
Towards the end of Wolf, Wolf, things become ever more horrible for the embattled Mattheüs, who sinks deeper into failure and despair. The book ends on a poignant note as he resolves to change his behaviour towards Jack, to make up for past mistakes, not knowing that his dreams are - once again - impossible. There are no safe, satisfying conclusions to be drawn from the stories of Mattheüs, Jack and Benjamin. Wolf, Wolf itself, though, is a satisfying novel, a potent depiction of one family that also acts as a broader portrait of contemporary manhood and post-apartheid South Africa.
December 7, 2014
Sjoe! Glad nie wat ek verwag het nie. Vir een of ander rede het ek gedink dis 'n who-dunnit, alhoewel dit duidelik roman op die voorblad se. Ongelooflik mooi geskryf, maar baie ongemaklik. Eben Venter kry dit reg om elke karakter se beste en slegste trekke vir ons te wys. Ons kan dan ook sien hoe mense en verhoudings oor tyd verander. As jy 'n boek wil lees oor regte mense met regte issues is hierdie vir jou. As jy 'n sensitiewe kyker is bly eerder weg. Ek dink ek sal definitief weer een van sy boeke lees.
March 1, 2015
I selected Wolf, Wolf by Eben Venter to read in order to satisfy a reading challenge requirement, but my curiosity was piqued by the premise and some flattering reviews, Cape Times named it one of the 10 best books of 2013 and it was shortlisted for the 2014 Sunday Times (South Africa) prize.
The narrative of Wolf, Wolf shifts between the perspectives of Benjamin, Mattie and Mattie's boyfriend Jack, a school teacher at a private school. It a story about manhood, love, family and legacy - not only that which a father passes on to a son, but also in relation to South Africa's struggles with a post-apartheid society.
The translation by Michiel Heyns from Eben Venter’s Afrikaans has received much praise but unfortunately I struggled with the dense prose from the first pages and couldn't seem to find a rhythm in the narrative to suit me. I persevered until the end, but with little enjoyment.
May 4, 2013
Mattheus Duiker se pa is sterwend aan kanker, en Mattheus versorg hom tot aan die einde. Tydens hierdie proses bedink pa en seun albei hulle ingewikkelde verhouding. Benjamin is nogal ouskool, en sou verkies het dat sy seun sy besigheid, Duiker's Motors, by hom sou oorneem. Mattheus se belangstellings is egter elders. Hy het verkies om vier jaar lank oorsee te gaan swerf. Sy pa voel dat sy seun nog niks in die lewe vermag het nie; wanneer Mattheus dan besluit om 'n besigheid te begin met voedsame wegneemkos, ondersteun Benjamin hom finansieel.
'n Kwessie in hul verhouding is die feit dat Mattheus gay is. Benjamin het dit in 'n redelike mate aanvaar, maar hy stel dit eksplisiet aan Mattheus dat sy geliefde Jack nie in die huis mag oorbly nie. Jack is 'n onderwyser aan 'n seunskool en verloor weens 'n onaangenaamheid sy verblyf in die koshuis. Hy manipuleer Matt suksesvol en hulle meen dat hulle wegkom daarmee om saam in die huis te bly: die blinde oubaas sal mos niks kan sien nie.
Om Matt se situasie verder ingewikkeld te maak, is daar sy pornoverslawing en sy selftwyfel. Kan hy hom oorgee aan 'n liefdevolle verhouding met Jack? Kan hy sy verhouding met sy suster en haar gesin handhaaf na sy pa se dood? Kan hy sy besigheid laat slaag?
Terwyl die testament gelees word, speel Jack met die suster se kinders in die tuin. Hy verbeel hom die idille wat op hom en Matt wag.
Die testament ruk egter een van drie pilare van vastigheid onder Matt se voete uit. Daarna verloop die verhaal met nog 'n hele paar ontnugterings wat 'n mens nie kan glo nie. Natuurlik het 'n mens geweet dat 'n roman van hierdie kaliber nie op 'n sprokieseinde afstuur nie. Die gebeure is geensins ongeloofwaardig nie, maar 'n mens wil steeds nie glo dat dit gebeur nie!
Die slot eggo die mismoedigheid van HORRELPOOT, al is WOLF, WOLF nie naastenby so donker nie.
Venter bou 'n boeiende verhaal op met ingewikkelde, oortuigende karakters en verhoudings. EK STAMEL, EK STERWE bly steeds vir my sy belangrikste werk, maar hierdie nuwe roman lewer 'n stewige bydrae tot sy oeuvre. Die grootste aantrekkingskrag na Venter se werk is steeds vir my die spierkrag van sy taalgebruik en sy sinne. Hoe donker die gegewe ook al is, op taalvlak bly Venter betowerend.
WOLF, WOLF was translated into English by Michiel Heyns, a seasoned translator.
'n Kwessie in hul verhouding is die feit dat Mattheus gay is. Benjamin het dit in 'n redelike mate aanvaar, maar hy stel dit eksplisiet aan Mattheus dat sy geliefde Jack nie in die huis mag oorbly nie. Jack is 'n onderwyser aan 'n seunskool en verloor weens 'n onaangenaamheid sy verblyf in die koshuis. Hy manipuleer Matt suksesvol en hulle meen dat hulle wegkom daarmee om saam in die huis te bly: die blinde oubaas sal mos niks kan sien nie.
Om Matt se situasie verder ingewikkeld te maak, is daar sy pornoverslawing en sy selftwyfel. Kan hy hom oorgee aan 'n liefdevolle verhouding met Jack? Kan hy sy verhouding met sy suster en haar gesin handhaaf na sy pa se dood? Kan hy sy besigheid laat slaag?
Terwyl die testament gelees word, speel Jack met die suster se kinders in die tuin. Hy verbeel hom die idille wat op hom en Matt wag.
Die testament ruk egter een van drie pilare van vastigheid onder Matt se voete uit. Daarna verloop die verhaal met nog 'n hele paar ontnugterings wat 'n mens nie kan glo nie. Natuurlik het 'n mens geweet dat 'n roman van hierdie kaliber nie op 'n sprokieseinde afstuur nie. Die gebeure is geensins ongeloofwaardig nie, maar 'n mens wil steeds nie glo dat dit gebeur nie!
Die slot eggo die mismoedigheid van HORRELPOOT, al is WOLF, WOLF nie naastenby so donker nie.
Venter bou 'n boeiende verhaal op met ingewikkelde, oortuigende karakters en verhoudings. EK STAMEL, EK STERWE bly steeds vir my sy belangrikste werk, maar hierdie nuwe roman lewer 'n stewige bydrae tot sy oeuvre. Die grootste aantrekkingskrag na Venter se werk is steeds vir my die spierkrag van sy taalgebruik en sy sinne. Hoe donker die gegewe ook al is, op taalvlak bly Venter betowerend.
WOLF, WOLF was translated into English by Michiel Heyns, a seasoned translator.
February 12, 2015
There are books that transcend the idea of ‘reading’. The words drip into your eyes, black wisps of inky smoke forging with your memory, nesting somewhere inside of you. To haunt, to enthral, to call you back to them.
Wolf, Wolf is, without a doubt, the kind of book that does this. It makes you uncomfortable, it makes you hopeful, it teases you with promises of deliverance that you just know aren’t going to happen.
We follow the lives of Mattheüs Duiker and his dying father, Benjamin, in their Rondebosch mansion. Mattheüs, or Mattie as his father lovingly calls him, is his father’s caretaker by day, and a rabid porn addict by night. Benjamin is dying from cancer, and has to make peace with himself, his life choices, and his dear son Mattie, who is (in contradiction to all the values Ben holds dear) gay.
Read the full review here.
Wolf, Wolf is, without a doubt, the kind of book that does this. It makes you uncomfortable, it makes you hopeful, it teases you with promises of deliverance that you just know aren’t going to happen.
We follow the lives of Mattheüs Duiker and his dying father, Benjamin, in their Rondebosch mansion. Mattheüs, or Mattie as his father lovingly calls him, is his father’s caretaker by day, and a rabid porn addict by night. Benjamin is dying from cancer, and has to make peace with himself, his life choices, and his dear son Mattie, who is (in contradiction to all the values Ben holds dear) gay.
Read the full review here.
August 4, 2015
It was tough to start off with and I wanted to give up at about 1/4 into the book, but then some face book friends said " just continue" and anyway it was our book to read for our book club at the library and wow was I wowed by the language the imagery and the description of relationships. I read it in Afrikaans and apparently it does seems harsher reading the book in Afrikaans. We had a lively discussion this morning and all agreed that it was indeed a great read with lots of food for thought. We just wondered what would have happened to Mattie in the end! Did he become a vagrant??
December 22, 2015
Thirty-something Mattheus Duiker exists in an extended adolescence, with four years overseas financed by his father and dreams of opening a takeaway serving healthy food to the ordinary workers of Cape Town. As he nurses his father through his final months of cancer, Mattie looks forward to the day when the four-bedroom house, in an area patrolled by security guards round the clock, will be his and, perhaps, his boyfriend Jack’s.
Full review http://annegoodwin.weebly.com/annecdo...
Full review http://annegoodwin.weebly.com/annecdo...
July 29, 2016
It was interesting with food for thought. It was the first time I read Eben Venter and will do so again.
June 22, 2021
Ek lees op die boekomslag: "Ontstellend, meesleurend" en stem saam. Terwyl die tonele (meestal sonder dialoog) hulle afspeel wonder mens deurgaans wat gaan volgemde gebeur? Soos "Waiting for Godot" voel mens aanhoudend asof jy wag vir iets ... maar wat? Wanneer Mattheüs (tipiese naam vir die eersgeborene) se pa eindelik op bladsy 202 te sterwe kom meen jy die poppe gaan dans net om teleurgestel te word.
Daar is ook die spel op "wolf, wolf". Ek het die hele tyd gewonder wanneer en wie dan "wolf" gaan skree, totdat dit heel, héél aan die einde van die boek eers gebeur - en dan kom dit nie eens op iets daadwerkliks neer nie, maar dis Mattie en Jack wat 'n speletjie speel. Emile, die Kongolees wat Mattheüs by die werk kom help het 'n groot hond, maar selfs daar is nie die gebluf van gevaar te bespeur nie: Die gevaar is voor die hand liggend en dis vreesaanjaend weens die weklikheid daarvan (ook buite die grense van die boek). Dit is dalk die hele punt van die roman, om na die werklikheid van ons menswees te kyk. Dit bevraagteken talle van ons gemeenskap se norme en gee telkens 'n rede vir die gedrag wat die karakters openbaar.
Venter maak baie gebruik van ironie om sy verhaal oor te dra wat mens laat wonder of daar nie meer nuanse is wat mens by die eerste lees misgekyk het nie. Ek sal die boek egter nie weer lees nie. Dis op 'n manier maar net te tragies en ontstellend.
Daar is ook die spel op "wolf, wolf". Ek het die hele tyd gewonder wanneer en wie dan "wolf" gaan skree, totdat dit heel, héél aan die einde van die boek eers gebeur - en dan kom dit nie eens op iets daadwerkliks neer nie, maar dis Mattie en Jack wat 'n speletjie speel. Emile, die Kongolees wat Mattheüs by die werk kom help het 'n groot hond, maar selfs daar is nie die gebluf van gevaar te bespeur nie: Die gevaar is voor die hand liggend en dis vreesaanjaend weens die weklikheid daarvan (ook buite die grense van die boek). Dit is dalk die hele punt van die roman, om na die werklikheid van ons menswees te kyk. Dit bevraagteken talle van ons gemeenskap se norme en gee telkens 'n rede vir die gedrag wat die karakters openbaar.
Venter maak baie gebruik van ironie om sy verhaal oor te dra wat mens laat wonder of daar nie meer nuanse is wat mens by die eerste lees misgekyk het nie. Ek sal die boek egter nie weer lees nie. Dis op 'n manier maar net te tragies en ontstellend.
December 25, 2024
Hierdie boek…waar om te begin? Heel eerste sou ek jou aanraai om die Afrikaanse weergawe te lees as jy kan. Dit is so ‘n inherente Afrikaanse storie - dis dalk wat dit so ontstellend vir my gemaak het. Die sterk Afrikaanse tema’s: geloof bo alles, die belangrikheid van aardse sukses en die kerk, alomteenwoordig, die ‘beginsels’ wat alles beheer en nooit bevraagteken mag word nie… .die vasklou aan dromerige kinderdae, die verbodenheid van dinge, die taboe van dinge, die definisie van manwees.
Dis net só Afrikaans. Dis ‘n deel van ons kultuur wat min skrywers so kan vasvat. Ek ken hierdie mense, ek ken daai huis.
Ek was mal oor die skryfstyl. Amper meer ’n vloei van bewussyn ipv verteller en dialoog. Dit dra sterk by tot die afwagting. Jy weet iets kom, iets erg, iets so erg, maar niks kon my voorberei nie. Ek weet ek moet Wolf, Wolf weer lees want daar is soveel wat ek verseker gemis het, maar my hart moet eers herstel.
Die boek gaan lank by my bly.
Lees dit asseblief.
Dis net só Afrikaans. Dis ‘n deel van ons kultuur wat min skrywers so kan vasvat. Ek ken hierdie mense, ek ken daai huis.
Ek was mal oor die skryfstyl. Amper meer ’n vloei van bewussyn ipv verteller en dialoog. Dit dra sterk by tot die afwagting. Jy weet iets kom, iets erg, iets so erg, maar niks kon my voorberei nie. Ek weet ek moet Wolf, Wolf weer lees want daar is soveel wat ek verseker gemis het, maar my hart moet eers herstel.
Die boek gaan lank by my bly.
Lees dit asseblief.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 16, 2020
Die was vir my 'n sukkel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 7, 2015
This book came highly recommended by The Guardian, and JM Coetzee declared himself "deeply impressed" by this "outstanding novel". I couldn't get into it at all - it's slow, and almost every character lacks charm and much more besides. It's maybe the point that you're not supposed to empathise with white South Africans gradually losing a grip on their wealth and what they've always supposed to be their entitlements, but getting across that loss is a painful drag through 260 pages.
Pa is the former car-dealing old pain in the ass who's dying way too slowly of cancer in his big house, while son Matt, a directionless lad in his 30s who wants to start his own local fast food outlet for poor people, is addicted to gay porn, a plot strand that rears itself tirelessly and tediously throughout the book, but seems to serve no purpose whatsoever. His boyfriend Jack is a bit of an idiot who spends a lot of time Facebooking with friends we barely get to meet. Mat's sister Sissy is out in the sticks on a drought-ridden farm with husband and kids. It all reminded me of watching Aussie TV soap Neighbours back in the 80s. Everybody whines the whole time, and everyone gets serially offended by anything anyone else says, and when you stop watching/reading you forget about them completely.
SPOILER:
The plot with Emile, the Congolese refugee who starts work in Matt's fast-food outlet, is telegraphed in big flashing lights, but Matt doesn't bother to do anything about it. And when Emile finally does what we've been expecting for 150 pages, it's hard not to blame him. Maybe that's how we're supposed to feel, I don't know. If Matt had actually treated Emile and his family with less mistrust and more humanity, maybe he'd have been okay. By that point, though, I didn't care much either way.
And don't even get me started on the sledge-hammered wolf metaphor.
Pa is the former car-dealing old pain in the ass who's dying way too slowly of cancer in his big house, while son Matt, a directionless lad in his 30s who wants to start his own local fast food outlet for poor people, is addicted to gay porn, a plot strand that rears itself tirelessly and tediously throughout the book, but seems to serve no purpose whatsoever. His boyfriend Jack is a bit of an idiot who spends a lot of time Facebooking with friends we barely get to meet. Mat's sister Sissy is out in the sticks on a drought-ridden farm with husband and kids. It all reminded me of watching Aussie TV soap Neighbours back in the 80s. Everybody whines the whole time, and everyone gets serially offended by anything anyone else says, and when you stop watching/reading you forget about them completely.
SPOILER:
The plot with Emile, the Congolese refugee who starts work in Matt's fast-food outlet, is telegraphed in big flashing lights, but Matt doesn't bother to do anything about it. And when Emile finally does what we've been expecting for 150 pages, it's hard not to blame him. Maybe that's how we're supposed to feel, I don't know. If Matt had actually treated Emile and his family with less mistrust and more humanity, maybe he'd have been okay. By that point, though, I didn't care much either way.
And don't even get me started on the sledge-hammered wolf metaphor.
March 13, 2015
Anxiety over the “right” way to be a man is something many men face. Pressure is frequently placed upon men to continue a legacy for the family by taking on the father’s business and creating progeny to carry on the family name and bloodline. This is something that the central character of Mattie in “Wolf, Wolf” by Eben Venter has refused to do. Rather than joining his father’s successful motorcar business, he’s spent his twenties travelling, engaging in sexual escapades and indulging in narcotics. When the novel begins he’s back at his father’s home in South Africa where he’s become his Pa’s primary care-giver. His terminally ill father has lost his sight and his physical health is rapidly declining due to the chemo-therapy he’s been receiving. Before his Pa dies, Matt wants to prove to him that he can be a responsible man with a successful business of his own. His father is a committed Christian and disapproves of Matt’s homosexuality and his relationship with a teacher named Jack. Matt needs his father’s financial backing to get his plan to establish a healthy food stall. With each man wanting the other to compromise their beliefs about what a man should be, father and son are embroiled in a battle of will.
Read my full review on LonesomeReader review of Wolf, Wolf by Eben Venter
Read my full review on LonesomeReader review of Wolf, Wolf by Eben Venter
May 10, 2016
I found this book really hard going because I couldn't find anything to like about any of the characters, and I really didn't care about the fate of any of them. However, given it was more or less a dare, I kept going long past the time I would ordinarily have given up, until its final shocking conclusion.
Essentially, it is the story of a man (Mattheus) caring for his dying father (Benjamin) while juggling his relationship with boyfriend Jack. Deeply religious father trying to come to terms with his homosexual son while the son seeks his domineering father's approval. Meanwhile, the boyfriend tries to reconcile their differences in class and life expectations.
If nothing else, it has given me some insight into my South African friends as well as the relief that other people share some of the feelings I experienced caring for a dying parent.
But given the hard read, the unpleasant characters and the monstrous (but not entirely unjustified) ending, I can really only recommend it to people who like to challenge themselves.
Essentially, it is the story of a man (Mattheus) caring for his dying father (Benjamin) while juggling his relationship with boyfriend Jack. Deeply religious father trying to come to terms with his homosexual son while the son seeks his domineering father's approval. Meanwhile, the boyfriend tries to reconcile their differences in class and life expectations.
If nothing else, it has given me some insight into my South African friends as well as the relief that other people share some of the feelings I experienced caring for a dying parent.
But given the hard read, the unpleasant characters and the monstrous (but not entirely unjustified) ending, I can really only recommend it to people who like to challenge themselves.
September 30, 2014
Mattheüs Duiker versorg sy sterwende pa in hul spoggerige huis in Rondebosch. Hy wag vir Benjamin Duiker om sy laaste asem uit te blaas sodat sy lewe uiteindelik kan begin. Dan kan sy liefling, Jack, by hom intrek wat sy pa nie-oor-sy-dooie-liggaam onder sy dak sal duld nie.
Eben Venter skets meesterlik die ingewikkelde verhouding tussen die verstokte pa en sy seun. Hul intieme verhouding, gebore uit wederkerige afhanklikheid, laat jou hoop op volkome versoening. Jou lojaliteit swaai met elke toneel na ’n ander karakter – elk volkome menslik.
Die einde is ontstellend, onafgehandel. Beslis nie vir sensitiewe lesers nie.
Eben Venter skets meesterlik die ingewikkelde verhouding tussen die verstokte pa en sy seun. Hul intieme verhouding, gebore uit wederkerige afhanklikheid, laat jou hoop op volkome versoening. Jou lojaliteit swaai met elke toneel na ’n ander karakter – elk volkome menslik.
Die einde is ontstellend, onafgehandel. Beslis nie vir sensitiewe lesers nie.
July 31, 2014
An unsettling book... definitely not a feel-good read. But extremely well-written! Venter's descriptions - especially those of the relationship between Mattheus Duiker and his father Bennie, and of Bennie's slow death - will stay with me.
March 23, 2015
Notes: I won this one in a Goodreads Giveaway.
This was certainly not a feel good book or an easy read. The story was compelling and the characters interesting. However I struggled with the dense prose which made this book difficult to get through.
This was certainly not a feel good book or an easy read. The story was compelling and the characters interesting. However I struggled with the dense prose which made this book difficult to get through.
August 15, 2015
I recently interviewed the author about Wolf, Wolf's English language release, as well as posted a review.
March 11, 2016
Very well read, really interesting characters
January 22, 2016
BLEAK, but SOOO real...amazing writing
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