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Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Near the southern tip of Africa, there is a mountain that does a conjuring trick with the biggest tablecloth on earth. In a sacred forest near the Limpopo river, there is a bird that flies on wings of thunder, flashing lightning from its eyes and bearing rain in its beak. In between, there is a hauntingly beautiful land and millions of confused people. When Archbishop Desmond Tutu dubbed his native South Africa the 'Rainbow Nation', he conjured a vision of ethnic diversity and harmony in a country with eleven official languages, two national anthems, and a parliament that shuttled between two cities. As a foreign correspondent reporting on the last days of apartheid, Gavin Bell thought it was a brave image and wondered how long it would endure. A few years later, he returned to find out what had happened to Tutu's rainbow. In his travels he found a country at odds with itself, swinging between hope and despair, buoyed by a sense of freedom and haunted by a fear of violent crime. SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW is not only a fine travel book by an award-winning writer, it is a compelling portrait of a country in search of an identity. The leopard stories are good too.
314 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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About the author
Gavin Bell
2 booksGavin Bell is a former foreign correspondent raised in Glasgow who has returned to live in his native city. He is now an award-winning travel writer.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 22, 2017
I added this book to my wish list recently as an idle reminder to myself to ask for it for Christmas. An enterprising friend found my wishlist and sent me this book as a surprise for my birthday.
I found the book compelling reading. Full of insightful comments and amusing or thought-provoking anecdotes it taught me much about South African people, politics and history without being in the slightest bit dull or dry.
By describing his encounters with ordinary citizens of South Africa Gavin Bell brings the country and it's people to life and provided me with understanding that I would have found difficult to obtain from a straight history or current affairs book.
His writing is beautiful and sympathetic and some of the best I've read in the genre for a long time.
I very highly recommend it.
I found the book compelling reading. Full of insightful comments and amusing or thought-provoking anecdotes it taught me much about South African people, politics and history without being in the slightest bit dull or dry.
By describing his encounters with ordinary citizens of South Africa Gavin Bell brings the country and it's people to life and provided me with understanding that I would have found difficult to obtain from a straight history or current affairs book.
His writing is beautiful and sympathetic and some of the best I've read in the genre for a long time.
I very highly recommend it.
June 11, 2021
Perhaps you have been to South Africa. Perhaps not. In either case, you will really enjoy this travel book. Gavin Bell goes on a long six month trip, and explores country and culture, past and future, and good sides and bad sides of this wonderful country.
He writes with enough detail and humour to make this interesting and very readable, without overlong diversions perhaps wanted by the more expert traveller. Although this was written 20 years ago, when South Africa was flush with optimism for a better future for its 'rainbow' population, I imagine his observations and conclusions are as relevant to todays traveller.
A really interesting and enjoyable book for anyone that was in, or ever wants to visit, South Africa.
He writes with enough detail and humour to make this interesting and very readable, without overlong diversions perhaps wanted by the more expert traveller. Although this was written 20 years ago, when South Africa was flush with optimism for a better future for its 'rainbow' population, I imagine his observations and conclusions are as relevant to todays traveller.
A really interesting and enjoyable book for anyone that was in, or ever wants to visit, South Africa.
April 3, 2023
Fascinating to read this account from here in Johannesburg, over 20 years after it was written. A fun but uneven travel book. Despite the many troubles of modern South Africa, I'd love to have six months to travel around the country and loiter off the beaten track like he did.
July 14, 2018
Just a short quibble - would have been better if book has a map. But otherwise, great read
December 15, 2022
An honest look at the people of South Africa and their lives after the end of apartheid.
December 4, 2012
Written by a journalist who, after working in SA for several years, returned to the country to drive around for six months and experience all the things he missed out on when working there.
The book's a good mix of history and personal experience and is very enjoyable to read. Even so, some of Bell's 20 or so chapters lack that little bit of inspiration which would have made them great.
Much of the book seems to radiate a sense of melancholy, a longing for something that's now lost. Both Bell and the people he interviewed, black and white, seem to subscribe to this. The interviews also make it clear that South Africa has not yet become the rainbow nation Tutu envisioned. In fact, you could even be forgiven to that that South Africa, as many other African nations, is spiraling down and out of control.
The book's a good mix of history and personal experience and is very enjoyable to read. Even so, some of Bell's 20 or so chapters lack that little bit of inspiration which would have made them great.
Much of the book seems to radiate a sense of melancholy, a longing for something that's now lost. Both Bell and the people he interviewed, black and white, seem to subscribe to this. The interviews also make it clear that South Africa has not yet become the rainbow nation Tutu envisioned. In fact, you could even be forgiven to that that South Africa, as many other African nations, is spiraling down and out of control.
March 13, 2014
Read this while staying in Cape Town for three months.
I chose it because of its comparative approach -- journalist in SA before the first free elections returns to see what has changed. I was in SA in '93, and back 20 years later, so I was really interested to hear what Bell had to say. But I found that it was mostly a travelogue. A witty, often charmingly written travelogue, with a keen eye for detail. Definitely worth reading while traveling in SA.
I chose it because of its comparative approach -- journalist in SA before the first free elections returns to see what has changed. I was in SA in '93, and back 20 years later, so I was really interested to hear what Bell had to say. But I found that it was mostly a travelogue. A witty, often charmingly written travelogue, with a keen eye for detail. Definitely worth reading while traveling in SA.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews