Somehow Tenderness Survives: Stories of Southern Africa

by Hazel Rochman

Apartheid. It's about suffering, about violence. Here are ten stories and autobiographical accounts, by southern African writers of various races. Some of the writers -- Nadine Gordimer, Mark Mathabane, Doris Lessing -- are well-known; all of them deserve to be. Their stories, individually and as a group, create a moving, sometimes shockingly vivid portrait of what it feels like to grow up in a land where racism is the law.

Crackling day / Peter Abrahams --
The old Chief Mshlanga / Doris Lessing --
A day in the country / Dan Jacobson --
Country lovers / Nadine Gordimer --
When the train comes / Zoë Wicomb --
The toilet / Gcina Mhlope --
The road to Alexandra / Mark Mathabane --
A chip of glass ruby / Nadine Gordimer --
A farm at Raraba / Ernst Havemann --
It's quiet now / Gcina Mhlope

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, South Africa, Africa, Young Adult

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1990

About the author

Hazel Rochman was born and raised in South Africa, where she worked as a journalist. She left Johannesburg for England in 1963, and the following year, the South African authorities withdrew the passports of her and her husband. She taught high school in London, and in 1972 she and her husband moved to Chicago. A graduate of the University of Chicago, she worked for eight years as a junior high school librarian and high school librarian at the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. She is now an assistant editor at ALA Booklist.

Reviews

[nikita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Soooo this was a hard one to rate. Most of the stories are incredibly written. Buttttt as many of the other ratings have stated, there is too much of an emphasis on white authors (sometimes telling stories of non white people) and white stories. For a book claiming to "portray what it feels like to grow up where racism is the law," it felt like a let down. That being said I will be looking into the works of certain authors from this collection.

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of passionate, poignant and precise stories told by people who have lived the pain they write. Moving and sad, the stories may, at least in part, be lost to non-South African readers. Those of us who lived through these times know the tension, pain, guilt, fear and frustration of the daily life of those times. There was no escaping it, present in the eyes and body language of all. Even the most arrogant whites who were determined to maintain the status quo, carried behind their bravado and arrogance a deep knowledge and understanding that these times would inevitably end. It was just a question of when and how. Most assumed that, like the rest of Africa, it would be a bloodbath. It is a great tribute to all the people of South Africa that the transition from white supremacy to democracy took place in a calm and civilized manner: truth and reconciliation. The world in general has not given the peoples of South Africa the credit, praise and support that they deserve for so miraculous an accomplishment.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lake Oswego Public Library

[Morefiiyaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories were well written, however it was all too clear that this is aimed at propagating and celebrating the White Supremacy in South Africa at the time of Apartheid. I understand that these are based on the happenings at the times, however I got furthered angered in reading the stories- as it seems to celebrate the injustice done to black people- however i need to keep in mind that almost all of the contributors are white south Africans and this is written from their perspective of life under aparthied- which had no negative effects on them as it did for those who had their land stolen and subjugated to White people who celebrate brutality, tourture and theft. I had value for the prospective and the stories were interestering, however it did anger me and I have no further interest in reading about White 'suffering'-as the descendants of these people still enjoy and rest on the stolen lives of black people. May they all get what they deserve in the next life.

[Tariq Reid · Rating 3 out of 5]

when i first saw this book it was on the free rack in my high school library,it was a old withered thing and it looked exactly what like you would expect an twenty eight year old book to look like after being passed around the hormone raddled instantiation that is american high school. The cover was faded and the first page was missing but still i gave it a chance and found that i was not disappointed.the author (hazel rochman) tells a story of apartheid in south Africa that gives you a first hand account of the struggle faced by these people from not just one point of view but many,each pov character has a distinct voice and though at times the book can get a bit slow it is worth the read. if you don't read any chapter read the last " all quite now" which is the shortest of all the other chapters i cant really put my finger on it but this chapters imagery is simply beautiful.

[Monica Caldicott]

- Ordinary people can be brave
- Whites in apartheid society are challenged not to sit by and watch
- 10 stories, Nadine Gordimer, Mark Mathebane, Doris Lessing
- Humanize statistics on apartheid
- From white, black and “colored” pov.
- Good YA story Gordimer “Country Lovers”

[Nathan DL · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rather than a review all I can say is that if you are over 30 years old, South Africa was under apartheid rule in your life time. That should disturb us all greatly.

[Erin Reilly-Sanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this as a follow-up to a South African Children's Literature class, this moving collection of beautifully written stories seems a little harsh. Written in the late 1980's, when conditions for many South Africans were at their lowest point, this portrait of the country makes sense but can also be misleading as an older photograph. The stories seem to have a uniform darkness and desolation to them, despite being by different authors, which is certainly part of the story of this troubled country. The note of hope is difficult to find in each tale, in contrast to Beverly Naidoo

[Mr. Olvera · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very powerful collection of short stories which deal with racism against blacks in South Africa. The book is full of complex, challenging relationships which struggle to hold on to kindness in the face of brutality.

Sometimes it can be hard to follow some of the descriptions if you don't have a sense of South Africa's history (or haven't been to a developing country), but the message of struggling against oppression is still easy to relate to for anyone reading.

[Trina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good stories, it is a world that I know very little about. The feelings expressed were hard for me to grasp at times since I did not have a frame of reference. It was an eye opening classic.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again, not sure what genre this goes in. It's a collection of short stories and there are some really good ones and some not so good. Somewhat uneven.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vivid memories of reading these stories as a child during our family's year in Cape Town.

[Peyton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for school. Some of the stories were good, but it was a pretty sad book.