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Junx
It starts normally enough.
In Dobsonville, a few hours before the party of the year, a guy shares a joint with his friend Ari. Ari is always right. Ari is also imaginary. And winged. In a few hours, while Ari plays both angel and demon on his shoulder, our man will end up joyriding to a brothel in a snatched tourist rental car. But the police – and the burly tourists – are in pursuit. At some point, when you’re a hunted man and there’s a gun tucked in the waistband of your pants, things come to a head. Will he be okay? Ask Ari. Ari never lies.
Prepare for a party night that courses from Soweto to the Joburg cbd as Tshidiso Moletsane’s explosive novel serves shots of sex, drugs and anxiety while tearing into life, death, race and politics, with consequences only Ari could have seen coming.
In Dobsonville, a few hours before the party of the year, a guy shares a joint with his friend Ari. Ari is always right. Ari is also imaginary. And winged. In a few hours, while Ari plays both angel and demon on his shoulder, our man will end up joyriding to a brothel in a snatched tourist rental car. But the police – and the burly tourists – are in pursuit. At some point, when you’re a hunted man and there’s a gun tucked in the waistband of your pants, things come to a head. Will he be okay? Ask Ari. Ari never lies.
Prepare for a party night that courses from Soweto to the Joburg cbd as Tshidiso Moletsane’s explosive novel serves shots of sex, drugs and anxiety while tearing into life, death, race and politics, with consequences only Ari could have seen coming.
176 pages, Paperback
Published September 1, 2021
1 person is currently reading
97 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
October 6, 2021
WTF!
A nameless narrator of undetermined age, more than 18, but less than 25 (he has friends at Wits University) with an imaginary friend he'shad since he was a toddler. Very intelligent, retains facts and has an incredible grasp of world history, but battles with living in the present. Is he on drugs? Does he have mental challenges?Untrustworthy (he steals his friend's gun, money and car from a group he met at a street bash!). Forgetful, he looses his trail of thought frequently. Has questionable hygiene habits, but is a frequent bathroom visitor. A lazy eater, drinks too much and his knowledge of drugs and psychedelics is frightening. Unkempt and prone to rumbling. "My mind is a mess", second guesses himself a lot. Suicidal thoughts.
JUNX is not about a young man jolling on a Saturday night. JUNX is the degradation of a mind and body through systematic oppressions. From home, to school to the world. JUNX is what happens when mental disorders are left to grow into unmanageable mental challenges. JUNX is vile, exciting, macabre, disgusting. JUNX is Sodom and Gomorrah.
Tshidiso Moletsane is brave. His writing is exceptional. The narration is cringeworthy, but will force you to read between the lines. The narrator is totally unreliable and unlovable. But he lives amongst our communities. A child fallen through the cracks with no one to save him.
Is this a case of suicidality or is our nameless narrator parasuicidal?
Somebody save him from himself.
Does he want to be saved though?
JUNX borders along the lines of the Noir genre.
A nameless narrator of undetermined age, more than 18, but less than 25 (he has friends at Wits University) with an imaginary friend he'shad since he was a toddler. Very intelligent, retains facts and has an incredible grasp of world history, but battles with living in the present. Is he on drugs? Does he have mental challenges?Untrustworthy (he steals his friend's gun, money and car from a group he met at a street bash!). Forgetful, he looses his trail of thought frequently. Has questionable hygiene habits, but is a frequent bathroom visitor. A lazy eater, drinks too much and his knowledge of drugs and psychedelics is frightening. Unkempt and prone to rumbling. "My mind is a mess", second guesses himself a lot. Suicidal thoughts.
JUNX is not about a young man jolling on a Saturday night. JUNX is the degradation of a mind and body through systematic oppressions. From home, to school to the world. JUNX is what happens when mental disorders are left to grow into unmanageable mental challenges. JUNX is vile, exciting, macabre, disgusting. JUNX is Sodom and Gomorrah.
Tshidiso Moletsane is brave. His writing is exceptional. The narration is cringeworthy, but will force you to read between the lines. The narrator is totally unreliable and unlovable. But he lives amongst our communities. A child fallen through the cracks with no one to save him.
Is this a case of suicidality or is our nameless narrator parasuicidal?
Somebody save him from himself.
Does he want to be saved though?
JUNX borders along the lines of the Noir genre.
November 7, 2021
What a ride.
I remember starting off this novel, thinking what is going awn, but I also for the life of me couldn’t put it down, that was until I got to the end and my first reaction was “wtf wtf wtf!” followed by “I need more”.
“It starts normally enough”. Junx by Tshidiso Moletsane is a novel, while short in length, packs quite the punch. It’s about a young man and his imaginary friend Ari, on the night of “sexy-honey-super-chubby” a massive party that’s going to happen in the depths of joburg city.
Moletsane doesn’t hold back. His writing is grotesque, it’s raw, sometimes vulgar but at the end of the day it can be recognised as a honest depiction of our society and it some instances our psychology. In the foreword, Koketso Poho opens with the words “Black life is a juxtaposition” - our lives are filled with moments of extreme joy and just as much pain and I think this offering depicts that effortlessly.
This book also forms part of the first book in the trailblazers series and Im looking forward to see what else it offers.
I remember starting off this novel, thinking what is going awn, but I also for the life of me couldn’t put it down, that was until I got to the end and my first reaction was “wtf wtf wtf!” followed by “I need more”.
“It starts normally enough”. Junx by Tshidiso Moletsane is a novel, while short in length, packs quite the punch. It’s about a young man and his imaginary friend Ari, on the night of “sexy-honey-super-chubby” a massive party that’s going to happen in the depths of joburg city.
Moletsane doesn’t hold back. His writing is grotesque, it’s raw, sometimes vulgar but at the end of the day it can be recognised as a honest depiction of our society and it some instances our psychology. In the foreword, Koketso Poho opens with the words “Black life is a juxtaposition” - our lives are filled with moments of extreme joy and just as much pain and I think this offering depicts that effortlessly.
This book also forms part of the first book in the trailblazers series and Im looking forward to see what else it offers.
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September 12, 2021I used to go out on Saturday nights, now I stay home and read about other people going out on Saturday nights. 😆
Junx by Tshidiso Moletsane, is the first book to come out of the new Umuzi Trailblazer series (hence the number 1 on the spine - this might be worth something one day!). 'High-quality fiction that breaks new ground in terms of content, style and/or form... they tell stories that spark insight into what it means to live on this continent.'
Junx is a gritty, hard-core novel, that traces one night in the life of a local reprobate and his imaginary side-kick, Ari! Who is both the angel and the devil on his shoulder.
It starts in Dobsonville, a few hours before the party of the year.
Simply put, our hero is on a one-way joyride to either the best or worst night of his life. Drugs, sex, binge-drinking. By the end of the novel I wasn't sure how much more partying his body and my eyes could take. I wanted to stick him in rehab, cook him a meal and give him a lecture on wasted potential!
Hunter S Thompson meets Jack Kerouac, if they were young, South African, and on one hell of a bender through Soweto and the Joburg CBD.
Make sure you read the background to how this book came about, that's a mind-blowing story in itself. I've posted a shot of it from the back of the book.
I am so excited about this author! I wonder what he's working on next? I wanna read it!
'Tshidiso Moletsane's explosive novel serves shots of sex, drugs and anxiety, while tearing into life, death, race and politics...'
Junx by Tshidiso Moletsane, is the first book to come out of the new Umuzi Trailblazer series (hence the number 1 on the spine - this might be worth something one day!). 'High-quality fiction that breaks new ground in terms of content, style and/or form... they tell stories that spark insight into what it means to live on this continent.'
Junx is a gritty, hard-core novel, that traces one night in the life of a local reprobate and his imaginary side-kick, Ari! Who is both the angel and the devil on his shoulder.
It starts in Dobsonville, a few hours before the party of the year.
Simply put, our hero is on a one-way joyride to either the best or worst night of his life. Drugs, sex, binge-drinking. By the end of the novel I wasn't sure how much more partying his body and my eyes could take. I wanted to stick him in rehab, cook him a meal and give him a lecture on wasted potential!
Hunter S Thompson meets Jack Kerouac, if they were young, South African, and on one hell of a bender through Soweto and the Joburg CBD.
Make sure you read the background to how this book came about, that's a mind-blowing story in itself. I've posted a shot of it from the back of the book.
I am so excited about this author! I wonder what he's working on next? I wanna read it!
'Tshidiso Moletsane's explosive novel serves shots of sex, drugs and anxiety, while tearing into life, death, race and politics...'
December 16, 2021
Different, tackles mental health in a naunced manner. You will laugh out loud and fall inlove with the protagonist.
January 11, 2022
I loved it!
May 19, 2024
I finished this book out of spite.
January 16, 2023
Mental illness, oppression, and an uncomfortable realism characterise this novel. The author succeeds in making the reader feel the discomfort and anxiety of the narrator, and the pace and thrill of the book makes it hard to put down.
November 29, 2021
A riveting debut, fast paced, explicit, gory, disturbing, and thought provoking. A book not for the faint hearted and closed minded.
The scene opens in Soweto, moves to Jozi central business district, to Mellville and then to Braamfontein.
An eventful and drama filled day then ensues, after the protagonist and his imaginary friend Ari, leave home in the morning to attend a popular party titled ‘ sexy- honey- super- chubby’, which was earmarked for later the evening. The protag is a young adult male who is opinionated, and intelligent, he also grapples with mental health. Ari is described on page 122 as ‘a brightly coloured baby panda with wings….’ The creature eats, smokes talks, and can see into the future.
The outing from Dobsonville takes longer than expected as there are plenty of detours . The two basically paint the town red. As they go on with their business Ari and the protag ruminate on various topics, religion, beauty, education, xenophobia, mental illness, sexuality, identity, death, Africa, America, body shaming, presidents, parents, and politics.
Moletsane joins a range of renowned authors who have from time immemorial, effectively used unnamed protags in their writing , Ayi Kwei Amah in 'The beautyful ones are not yet born ' , Margaret Atwood in 'Surfacing' , Ralph Ellison in ‘Invisible man’, ‘Philip Roth in ‘ Everyman’ , and recently , Perfect Hlongwane in 'Sanity Prevail' . He also navigates well and maintains a fast pace in a book that does not have chapters.
The story and commentary are propelled by references to books, films, music and stand-up comedy. Some of the book drops were ‘The great Gatsby ‘, ‘Things fall apart’, ‘Ask the dust’ by John Fante, ‘The fear of freedom’ by Erich Fromm, ‘Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov and many others.
Reading in the back drop of songs by Oliver Mtukudzi, HHP, Mos Def, Ringo, Stimela, Hugh Masekela, Thandiswa Mazwai, and the group Underoath , resulted in an enjoyable reading experience.
Controversial quotes by comedians, Patrice O’neal, Chris Rock and Corey Holcomb evoked discomfort in characters we would love to hate.
Movies, 'The wire’, ‘The lion king’,’ Free willy’ , ‘Karate kid’, ‘Yizo yizo’, ‘Beauty and the beast’ and ‘ Wonderboy’ were good reference points, and they took me down memory lane.
Moletsane is a refreshing, brave new voice via the new Trailblazer imprint under Umuzi and Penguin publishers, where experimental writing in fiction is encouraged. The quote in the book from Yevgeny Zamyatin on page 109 aptly aligns the mission of author and Trailblazer , that ‘ true literature can exist only where it is created , not by diligent and trustworthy functionaries, but by madmen, hermits, heretics, dreamers , rebels, and sceptics’. And just maybe the church of creators called Junx will be born.
The scene opens in Soweto, moves to Jozi central business district, to Mellville and then to Braamfontein.
An eventful and drama filled day then ensues, after the protagonist and his imaginary friend Ari, leave home in the morning to attend a popular party titled ‘ sexy- honey- super- chubby’, which was earmarked for later the evening. The protag is a young adult male who is opinionated, and intelligent, he also grapples with mental health. Ari is described on page 122 as ‘a brightly coloured baby panda with wings….’ The creature eats, smokes talks, and can see into the future.
The outing from Dobsonville takes longer than expected as there are plenty of detours . The two basically paint the town red. As they go on with their business Ari and the protag ruminate on various topics, religion, beauty, education, xenophobia, mental illness, sexuality, identity, death, Africa, America, body shaming, presidents, parents, and politics.
Moletsane joins a range of renowned authors who have from time immemorial, effectively used unnamed protags in their writing , Ayi Kwei Amah in 'The beautyful ones are not yet born ' , Margaret Atwood in 'Surfacing' , Ralph Ellison in ‘Invisible man’, ‘Philip Roth in ‘ Everyman’ , and recently , Perfect Hlongwane in 'Sanity Prevail' . He also navigates well and maintains a fast pace in a book that does not have chapters.
The story and commentary are propelled by references to books, films, music and stand-up comedy. Some of the book drops were ‘The great Gatsby ‘, ‘Things fall apart’, ‘Ask the dust’ by John Fante, ‘The fear of freedom’ by Erich Fromm, ‘Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov and many others.
Reading in the back drop of songs by Oliver Mtukudzi, HHP, Mos Def, Ringo, Stimela, Hugh Masekela, Thandiswa Mazwai, and the group Underoath , resulted in an enjoyable reading experience.
Controversial quotes by comedians, Patrice O’neal, Chris Rock and Corey Holcomb evoked discomfort in characters we would love to hate.
Movies, 'The wire’, ‘The lion king’,’ Free willy’ , ‘Karate kid’, ‘Yizo yizo’, ‘Beauty and the beast’ and ‘ Wonderboy’ were good reference points, and they took me down memory lane.
Moletsane is a refreshing, brave new voice via the new Trailblazer imprint under Umuzi and Penguin publishers, where experimental writing in fiction is encouraged. The quote in the book from Yevgeny Zamyatin on page 109 aptly aligns the mission of author and Trailblazer , that ‘ true literature can exist only where it is created , not by diligent and trustworthy functionaries, but by madmen, hermits, heretics, dreamers , rebels, and sceptics’. And just maybe the church of creators called Junx will be born.
November 12, 2021
I am balance. I am opalescent. All around me, instead of mere people, I see celestial bodies. I feel like we're the centre of the universe. I exist and then I don't and then I do again. I think I died. I want to die again. I want to die a thousand times.
This razor-sharp debut from Tshidiso Modisane takes place over the course of a few hours, taking the reader from Dobsonville, Soweto to Braamfontein in Johannesburg.
It's a first-person narrative by a young man who refers to himself, once, as Junx (whether that's his actual name I wasn't clear on but let's call him that). Junx suffers from near-debilitating depression and anxiety. Junx is his own worst enemy. He's been off his meds for months and has been taking drugs and alcohol ("depression's best friend"), and eschewing food. Junx also has an imaginary best friend, Ari: "a brightly-coloured baby panda with wings and, like, pants almost". Ari never lies to Junx, or so he believes, and helps him make important decisions.
In just one evening, Junx will nearly OD, take a tourist's car for a joyride to a brothel, and attend the biggest party of the year. But the police, and angry Dutch tourists, are in hot pursuit, and Junx (who's never shot anyone before), happens to have a loaded revolver in his pants.
During the course of the night, Junx will elucidate and share his musings on sex, drugs, race, life, death and politics, in a story that feels like 'Trainspotting' meets 'Luster' meets 'Scar Tissue', yet is highly original.
Tshidiso Modisane's novella is fast and fresh and his writing is incandescent. A new voice on SA's literary scene to watch out for.
October 24, 2021
Junx is the debut of South African author Tshidiso Moletsane. It is set in Dobsonville and Johannesburg, South Africa, and starts off quite normal. A young guy rising in the morning, preparing for the day ahead. Very soon however, the reader comes to realize that our main character has an imaginary friend, Ari, who has been at his side since childhood. Ari knows it all, sees it all, does it all - and never leaves his side. Before they head out for the day, they share a joint and set the scene for a day of drugs, sex and partying, set up to end in disaster. Depression features quite strongly in the book, as does substance abuse, and the main character's lack of self-control and self-worth was evident in his inability to make the right choices - just continuously succumbing to physical impulses. Throughout the entire day of frolicking, Ari is the only one who sees objectively. Although this is not a book I would usually choose for myself, it did make for interesting reading.
October 18, 2023
This book is quite the grisly rollercoaster. A short, thought provoking, and worthwhile ride.
We venture on a wild night with an unnamed protagonist who has an imaginary friend. Whether this is a manifestation of a form of mental illness such as schizophrenia is undisclosed and left to the reader to decide.
The reflections of the author are some of the most important thoughts I’ve ever read. It’s a closer look into the deeply intricate fabric that is South Africa’s society. I learnt a great deal from the grisly yet accurate story of Ari and his best friend.
How this book came about is quite a story, I’m grateful the author survived and had the courage & grit to start his work all over again. I cannot believe this is Moletsane’s debut novel, I’m excited to read more of his work. He has important thoughts to share with us.
We venture on a wild night with an unnamed protagonist who has an imaginary friend. Whether this is a manifestation of a form of mental illness such as schizophrenia is undisclosed and left to the reader to decide.
The reflections of the author are some of the most important thoughts I’ve ever read. It’s a closer look into the deeply intricate fabric that is South Africa’s society. I learnt a great deal from the grisly yet accurate story of Ari and his best friend.
How this book came about is quite a story, I’m grateful the author survived and had the courage & grit to start his work all over again. I cannot believe this is Moletsane’s debut novel, I’m excited to read more of his work. He has important thoughts to share with us.
June 27, 2024
I liked reading this. It reminds me of the kind of literature K Sello Duiker, Perfect Hlongwane and Phaswane Mpe were producing in the early 2000s. It’s grimy, intelligent, emotional and funny at times. I love how the book narrates mental health. It’s so real. The ending is not what I expected but I loved it.
September 8, 2024
I cannot describe what it is about concretely but at some point shit hits the fan and you cannot stop devouring the book. Now I want to move to South Africa and party with the main character (or take care of him, or slap him in the face, or all of them).
November 27, 2022
Raw, real, uncomfortable, a must read! Haven’t read anything like it before and I cannot wait to see more from Tshidiso Moletsane.
January 7, 2023
Loved it!
February 23, 2023
A fantastic novel. Looking forward to reading more from this author.
November 17, 2025
Junx – Non basterebbe una notte, di Tshidiso Moletsane, è un romanzo costruito sui contrasti: brevità temporale e densità emotiva, realtà cruda e riflessione lirica, quel già detto e quel non detto che straborda lo spazio narrativo. L’ambientazione, la township di Johannesburg, è affidata a una voce che non indugia. Deve rendere visibile l’invisibile, e soprattutto pretende di far sentire il peso dell’essere dentro quel mondo.
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Continua qui: https://www.ibridamenti.com/2025/11/1...
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April 14, 2022Must read for everyone that knows the life that is lead in JHB
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