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Children of Sugarcane
"Shanti is a heroine that the reader will not easily forget. The story that is told here is worth not only knowing but also remembering." – Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, author, filmmaker and academicVividly set against the backdrop of 19th century India and the British-owned sugarcane plantations of Natal, written with great tenderness and lyricism, Children of Sugarcane paints an intimate and wrenching picture of indenture told from a woman's perspective.Shanti, a bright teenager stifled by life in rural India and facing an arranged marriage, dreams that South Africa is an opportunity to start afresh. The Colony of Natal is where Shanti believes she can escape the poverty, caste, and troubling fate of young girls in her village. Months later, after a harrowing sea voyage, she arrives in Natal only to discover the profound hardship and slave labour that await her.Spanning four decades and two continents, Children of Sugarcane demonstrates the lifegiving power of love, heartache, and the indestructible bonds between family and friends. These bonds prompt heroism and sacrifice, the final act of which leads to Shanti's redemption.
358 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 6, 2021
157 people are currently reading
1145 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 149 reviews
December 26, 2021
Set against the British owned sugarcane plantations of Natal South Africa, this is a fantastic story told about indenture from an Indian woman’s perspective. The fact that this book does speak to my own background meant that I had a lot of hope when opening it. And Joseph did not disappoint. Beautiful, well-written with complex characters, I was hooked from the first page. I’m very grateful that this book helped me to understand a part of my family history that I’ve only really been able to experience through text books.
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November 24, 2021A vivid account of the lives of women living and working in unjust systems they didn't choose to belong to. Joanne has done a stellar job of ensuring this horrific part of our history in South Africa is not forgotten -what she writes about still exists today. Injustice, human rights abuses, a polarized society. Yet I continue to hope, that like characters in the book, we can forgive and continue with the arduous task of nation building. For the sake of Shanti - we soldier on!
November 26, 2022
*I received a copy of this book through LibraryThing Early Reviewers.*
I knew very little, if anything, about indentured laborers who journeyed from India to South Africa to work on sugarcane plantations in the late 19th century prior to this novel. The story of Shanti, who ran away from her home in rural India to escape an arranged marriage and agreed to travel to Port Natal, is harrowing and heartbreaking. The abuse, violence, and cruelty she and her fellow indentured Indians experienced is difficult to read at times, but I also found hope in the resistance Shanti engages in - first, by continuing her education, and then by fighting back even when it nearly costs her her life. Overall, I appreciated this novel for helping me to learn about a new facet of history I knew so little of, and presenting the harrowing experiences many of laborers likely would have been familiar with.
I knew very little, if anything, about indentured laborers who journeyed from India to South Africa to work on sugarcane plantations in the late 19th century prior to this novel. The story of Shanti, who ran away from her home in rural India to escape an arranged marriage and agreed to travel to Port Natal, is harrowing and heartbreaking. The abuse, violence, and cruelty she and her fellow indentured Indians experienced is difficult to read at times, but I also found hope in the resistance Shanti engages in - first, by continuing her education, and then by fighting back even when it nearly costs her her life. Overall, I appreciated this novel for helping me to learn about a new facet of history I knew so little of, and presenting the harrowing experiences many of laborers likely would have been familiar with.
January 2, 2022
I loved this book, being South African of Indian descent I always knew that my forefathers had many hardships but this book highlighted issues that I was not aware of. I love that Joanne’s hero was female and showcased the hardships the female indentured labourers endured.
What I loved the most was her poetic writing and her description of events. This book was written with so much of passion and love as a reader the entire story just came alive from Madras to Port Natal.
Cannot wait for the next book.
What I loved the most was her poetic writing and her description of events. This book was written with so much of passion and love as a reader the entire story just came alive from Madras to Port Natal.
Cannot wait for the next book.
November 10, 2021
Well written, engaging and heartfelt. My best read this year by far.
October 2, 2024
3.5 :)
March 5, 2023
This novel really touched my heart!
This journey of a young Indian woman from the 1880’s looking for a better life in another continent is a masterpiece!
I don’t know much of this time of history but the reviews that I read on goodreads are consensual on admitting how good of a research Joanne Joseph did for this book.
As I said, I don’t know much of this part of history but I do know this: the horrible things that happen in this period of time of our history have, until today, repercussions. It is novels like this that remind people like me (the fortunate ones from the settlers/ colonists) the atrocities our ancestors did.
The writing on this book is beautiful and the characters are all well written. It is impossible not to love some, hate others and empathize with a lot of them. I cried my eyes out at least three times and learned about indenture (what for me it is not more than a fancy word for slavery).
Joanne tells a tale of injustice and of a disgusting system that, in the name of “civilization”, failed and violated the most basic of human rights. But she also tells you the tale of friendship, sacrifice and love and how you can find all of that in the worst of places. Because, I believe (or want to), people are capable of horrible things but they are also capable of the most altruist and beautiful actions.
A must read.
Trigger warning: rape.
This journey of a young Indian woman from the 1880’s looking for a better life in another continent is a masterpiece!
I don’t know much of this time of history but the reviews that I read on goodreads are consensual on admitting how good of a research Joanne Joseph did for this book.
As I said, I don’t know much of this part of history but I do know this: the horrible things that happen in this period of time of our history have, until today, repercussions. It is novels like this that remind people like me (the fortunate ones from the settlers/ colonists) the atrocities our ancestors did.
The writing on this book is beautiful and the characters are all well written. It is impossible not to love some, hate others and empathize with a lot of them. I cried my eyes out at least three times and learned about indenture (what for me it is not more than a fancy word for slavery).
Joanne tells a tale of injustice and of a disgusting system that, in the name of “civilization”, failed and violated the most basic of human rights. But she also tells you the tale of friendship, sacrifice and love and how you can find all of that in the worst of places. Because, I believe (or want to), people are capable of horrible things but they are also capable of the most altruist and beautiful actions.
A must read.
Trigger warning: rape.
September 30, 2024
TW : Rape, abuse , death , abortion, famine, grief , immorality, violence, suicide, humiliation, execution.
OMG , I love a well researched historical fiction book.
I’m just going to start off by saying the story broke my heart in so many ways .
This book reminded me so much of Rosanna Amaka’s Rose and the Burma Sky and Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns.
Children of Sugarcane masterfully delves into the profound struggles of women enduring oppression, violence, and impossible choices, while still holding onto hope for freedom.
In all three novels, the central characters are women who are trapped in circumstances that strip away their autonomy and challenge their spirits. In Children of Sugarcane, Shanti, much like Mariam and Laila in A Thousand Splendid Suns, faces the crushing weight of patriarchal and societal expectations. Both stories explore how women’s lives are controlled by the men in their communities, and how they must fight, in their own ways, to reclaim their power and agency.
Similarly, the brutality of colonial rule in Children of Sugarcane draws parallels to the racial and political oppression explored in Rose and the Burma Sky. In Amaka’s novel, Rose faces the violence and devastation of war and racism in British-occupied Burma, while Shanti must endure the dehumanizing conditions of indentured servitude on a sugarcane plantation. Both women are subjected to exploitation and brutality, yet they find ways to cling to hope, to survive, and to continue dreaming of a better life.
The character development in Children of Sugarcane also echoes the rich, multi-dimensional portrayals in A Thousand Splendid Suns and Rose and the Burma Sky. In particular, the relationships Shanti has with Devi, Father John, and Mustafa are pivotal in shaping her life. These relationships reveal the complexity of human connection amid suffering, with some characters offering support and others reinforcing the very structures of oppression that Shanti seeks to escape.
Reading this book left me with a profound sense of both heartbreak and hope. The rich imagery and vivid descriptions felt so cinematic that I couldn’t help but think this story deserves to be made into a movie. This is a story that needs to be shared with a wider audience, and a film adaptation would capture the raw emotion and historical significance of the novel in a way that could move and inspire even more people.
Rich, powerful, poignant, and deeply trans formative.
“I found myself deeply grateful for it all: for every moment of my life, even those when I had suffered. I allowed my regrets to resurface, but only momentarily. I thought of my family and my friends, my one love, and everything I had shared with each of them from my birth until this day. And I promised myself forgiveness for all my mistakes. I decided in the last few hours that remained, I would stop punishing myself. I would come to terms with everything I had done – the foolish, the selfish, the shameful and the ignorant. I would not let myself leave this body without that wish fulfilled. And it gave me some small joy to believe that I was almost ready to leave this life unburdened. “I forgive you, Shanti,” I whispered under my breath. “I forgive your mistakes.” When I closed my eyes again, the morning light played on them and the sunshine warmed my face. As I breathed in, I faintly caught the scent of jasmine in the air.”
“All that Devi wishes is for you to board that ship and return home. She was determined that you should not die. She could not take the injustice of it – of you being punished for Wilson’s crime. This plan was all of her devising. I had no say in it. Once she had made up her mind, she was resolute.”
“Shanti, there is something you must know. The night you thought you’d lost your baby – you didn’t actually. The fruit made you violently ill. It caused you to go into labour and hallucinate. But you were so far along in your pregnancy that your child survived. She was healthy, and Devi saved her. She got Dilip to spirit her off”
“Both of you, go with God”
“Shanti! John chapter 15, verse 13. Do not forget it.”
“That very dawn, as I had welcomed the new day and cooed over my baby, Devi had taken her final step toward death – for my sake. It occurred to me how premeditated it had all been – how I’d stripped down to hand her my execution sari while I wound this one round me in the dark, not realising until now, as I gazed more closely at the patterns, that it was hers. When the guards came to seize me in the morning, they would have found me missing – unless my mirror image sat before them, waiting to die in my place. At that moment, they would be taking her down that frightful passage as I safely floated away – her last short journey to the waiting noose and the trapdoor below, the voices of jeering onlookers revelling in her pain, the executioner decrying my crime as though it were her own”
AMAZING!!
OMG , I love a well researched historical fiction book.
I’m just going to start off by saying the story broke my heart in so many ways .
This book reminded me so much of Rosanna Amaka’s Rose and the Burma Sky and Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns.
Children of Sugarcane masterfully delves into the profound struggles of women enduring oppression, violence, and impossible choices, while still holding onto hope for freedom.
In all three novels, the central characters are women who are trapped in circumstances that strip away their autonomy and challenge their spirits. In Children of Sugarcane, Shanti, much like Mariam and Laila in A Thousand Splendid Suns, faces the crushing weight of patriarchal and societal expectations. Both stories explore how women’s lives are controlled by the men in their communities, and how they must fight, in their own ways, to reclaim their power and agency.
Similarly, the brutality of colonial rule in Children of Sugarcane draws parallels to the racial and political oppression explored in Rose and the Burma Sky. In Amaka’s novel, Rose faces the violence and devastation of war and racism in British-occupied Burma, while Shanti must endure the dehumanizing conditions of indentured servitude on a sugarcane plantation. Both women are subjected to exploitation and brutality, yet they find ways to cling to hope, to survive, and to continue dreaming of a better life.
The character development in Children of Sugarcane also echoes the rich, multi-dimensional portrayals in A Thousand Splendid Suns and Rose and the Burma Sky. In particular, the relationships Shanti has with Devi, Father John, and Mustafa are pivotal in shaping her life. These relationships reveal the complexity of human connection amid suffering, with some characters offering support and others reinforcing the very structures of oppression that Shanti seeks to escape.
Reading this book left me with a profound sense of both heartbreak and hope. The rich imagery and vivid descriptions felt so cinematic that I couldn’t help but think this story deserves to be made into a movie. This is a story that needs to be shared with a wider audience, and a film adaptation would capture the raw emotion and historical significance of the novel in a way that could move and inspire even more people.
Rich, powerful, poignant, and deeply trans formative.
“I found myself deeply grateful for it all: for every moment of my life, even those when I had suffered. I allowed my regrets to resurface, but only momentarily. I thought of my family and my friends, my one love, and everything I had shared with each of them from my birth until this day. And I promised myself forgiveness for all my mistakes. I decided in the last few hours that remained, I would stop punishing myself. I would come to terms with everything I had done – the foolish, the selfish, the shameful and the ignorant. I would not let myself leave this body without that wish fulfilled. And it gave me some small joy to believe that I was almost ready to leave this life unburdened. “I forgive you, Shanti,” I whispered under my breath. “I forgive your mistakes.” When I closed my eyes again, the morning light played on them and the sunshine warmed my face. As I breathed in, I faintly caught the scent of jasmine in the air.”
“All that Devi wishes is for you to board that ship and return home. She was determined that you should not die. She could not take the injustice of it – of you being punished for Wilson’s crime. This plan was all of her devising. I had no say in it. Once she had made up her mind, she was resolute.”
“Shanti, there is something you must know. The night you thought you’d lost your baby – you didn’t actually. The fruit made you violently ill. It caused you to go into labour and hallucinate. But you were so far along in your pregnancy that your child survived. She was healthy, and Devi saved her. She got Dilip to spirit her off”
“Both of you, go with God”
“Shanti! John chapter 15, verse 13. Do not forget it.”
“That very dawn, as I had welcomed the new day and cooed over my baby, Devi had taken her final step toward death – for my sake. It occurred to me how premeditated it had all been – how I’d stripped down to hand her my execution sari while I wound this one round me in the dark, not realising until now, as I gazed more closely at the patterns, that it was hers. When the guards came to seize me in the morning, they would have found me missing – unless my mirror image sat before them, waiting to die in my place. At that moment, they would be taking her down that frightful passage as I safely floated away – her last short journey to the waiting noose and the trapdoor below, the voices of jeering onlookers revelling in her pain, the executioner decrying my crime as though it were her own”
AMAZING!!
February 18, 2024
I remember when this book came out a couple of years ago. I listened to an interview with Joanne Joseph on the radio. At the time, I thought to myself, sounds interesting, but I'm not likely to read it - I have too many other things to read. I thought of Joanne Joseph as a news reader and not as an author. Then, a few days ago, a friend, Cyril Turton, wrote on Facebook how he had enjoyed the book. Cyril has recommended quite a few books to me over the years, and, as he knows - "Readers are Leader." So I picked Children of Sugarcane up yesterday at Love Books in Melville, and finished it a moment ago. Yes, I couldn't put it down.
Set primarily on a sugar plantation in Natal, it's the story of a young woman trying to beak out of a life of misery by becoming part of the indentured labour system rather than be forced to marry a man chosen by her parents back at home in her Indian village. Even today, being a woman presents challenges many men will never experience. In the late 19th century, being a female indian indentured worker on a sugar cane plantation was beyond horrific, with little hope of redemption. Shanti challenged the system. This is her story. This book is about to become a gift for a dear friend.
Set primarily on a sugar plantation in Natal, it's the story of a young woman trying to beak out of a life of misery by becoming part of the indentured labour system rather than be forced to marry a man chosen by her parents back at home in her Indian village. Even today, being a woman presents challenges many men will never experience. In the late 19th century, being a female indian indentured worker on a sugar cane plantation was beyond horrific, with little hope of redemption. Shanti challenged the system. This is her story. This book is about to become a gift for a dear friend.
April 10, 2024
I don't know what to say, I was left speechless. This book could easily become a classic. The literary quality, the relevance of the narrative, the idiosyncrasies of each character... This is a masterpiece. The climax of the book has a bible verse, just as Oscar Wilde's Portrait of Dorian Grey. Both authors present the verse they use in all its power and that's the type of literature we have here: one that can be compared to Oscar Wilde's.
This book will stay with me forever.
Also, I had no idea of what indenture was and how the British got Indian people to go to South Africa. So, adding to the quality of the book in itself, there's also much to learn by reading this book. Vividly recommend. Don't be discouraged if you don't understand the first scene of the book. I did not understand a word, but then when the book started, I had no problems. The author made a bad choice, in my opinion, and the book starts with what I guess it was a letter from a character that only appears by the end of the book, making remarks about things that happened and that the reader is still not familiar with... Despite that small problem, the book is amazing!
This book will stay with me forever.
Also, I had no idea of what indenture was and how the British got Indian people to go to South Africa. So, adding to the quality of the book in itself, there's also much to learn by reading this book. Vividly recommend. Don't be discouraged if you don't understand the first scene of the book. I did not understand a word, but then when the book started, I had no problems. The author made a bad choice, in my opinion, and the book starts with what I guess it was a letter from a character that only appears by the end of the book, making remarks about things that happened and that the reader is still not familiar with... Despite that small problem, the book is amazing!
August 12, 2022
It was refreshing to find a novel about South Africa that didn't focus on Apartheid for one. Children of Sugarcane was an insightful read about how the British system of indenture that resulted in millions of people being relocated from India to Colony of Natal. The story is told from the perspective of a somewhat rebellious female protagonist, Shanti. Each of the characters is complex and the writing is excellent so the reader feels themselves invested in the plight of the protagonist while impressed at her resilience. I liked how the author attempted to show the complex nature of relations at the time rather than making it a simplistic good vs.evil story. 100% recommend.
March 3, 2024
This book is so well written, you can tell that Joanne put in some extensive hours of research to craft this historical fiction and I must say I love reading about history.
I really enjoyed exploring the history of how some Indians came to Africa, this book is focused on those who came via the Indenture process around late 1860s. It was mainly focused on Shanti who left India when she was 14 because she refused to marry her cousin. I think her character was moulded by the education/lessons she received from Aunty Saras and to me it was testament that education can shape how you think for the better which means you won’t always confirm to the standards that society sets.
Shanti was the girl, from her attitude when she was in India, during the commute process to when they got to the Colony of Natal. She always spoke her mind, negotiated her way out of many situations which was frowned upon for an Indian woman. She encountered a lot of hardships when she started working at the sugarcane farm, but girl put out at fight to put an end to the misery in her life. She experienced love as well with a gent named Mustafa but at some point had to end things cos he wasn’t honest about his past. A beautiful gift of friendship was also explored where Devi and Pastor John were her pillars of strengths.
These are some of the quotes that I liked:
“…like love, promises could not be bound by the limitations of time”
“I could not imagine a life without my lessons, or access to the books that had become my lifeblood.”
“…there were rules that that said a roll of the dice and a family honour were more important than protecting your daughter”
“There comes a time when the teacher must say to the student, I have taught you all that I can. It is time for you to move on to greater things.”
I really enjoyed exploring the history of how some Indians came to Africa, this book is focused on those who came via the Indenture process around late 1860s. It was mainly focused on Shanti who left India when she was 14 because she refused to marry her cousin. I think her character was moulded by the education/lessons she received from Aunty Saras and to me it was testament that education can shape how you think for the better which means you won’t always confirm to the standards that society sets.
Shanti was the girl, from her attitude when she was in India, during the commute process to when they got to the Colony of Natal. She always spoke her mind, negotiated her way out of many situations which was frowned upon for an Indian woman. She encountered a lot of hardships when she started working at the sugarcane farm, but girl put out at fight to put an end to the misery in her life. She experienced love as well with a gent named Mustafa but at some point had to end things cos he wasn’t honest about his past. A beautiful gift of friendship was also explored where Devi and Pastor John were her pillars of strengths.
These are some of the quotes that I liked:
“…like love, promises could not be bound by the limitations of time”
“I could not imagine a life without my lessons, or access to the books that had become my lifeblood.”
“…there were rules that that said a roll of the dice and a family honour were more important than protecting your daughter”
“There comes a time when the teacher must say to the student, I have taught you all that I can. It is time for you to move on to greater things.”
January 13, 2023
This was a book that stayed true to its subject matter. And such honest writing must be appreciated. I've decided to keep the not-so-good comments to myself after that beautiful ending so as not to sully my review with anything less than beautiful.
May 21, 2023
Devastating yet oh so beautiful. An intricate and eye-opening story of life as an indentured labourer
September 24, 2022
*Spoilers TLDR: writing style not to my taste, could’ve explored South African Indian community a bit more & slight white savior vibes towards the end, good example of colonial cruelty.
Interesting and lovely to see my history being represented in fiction. South Asian diaspora fiction is so hard to find and often stories regarding my heritage are oral so I wanted badly to like this book. Probably the most enjoyable aspect of this novel where references to places and things my parents and grandparents have mentioned regarding my ancestors who were also indentured laborers in Natal.
The writing style seems quite juvenile which I guess is fine if you want to produce a novel that is accessible but I felt like there were intense scenes that were not literarily strong. The tone of the writing also didn’t quite match the era in which the book was set often. Grammar and style of writing aside, let me comment on my thoughts of the actual story:
The disenfranchisement of POC communities was wonderfully conveyed. Joseph does truly highlight the lack of justice one would face as a non-white person in a British colony. Interesting to see the abuse from Indian people, trying to appease their British ‘bosses’ and the plantation owners, doctors and judge. Decent plot twist as I was expecting Shanti to use her literacy to her advantage in progressing in Port Natal though this novel is a reminder that the intelligence of an indentured laborer is not enough when you’re put in a system design for you to fail.
I felt like this novel wasn’t super well research, maybe it was and there is much of a corpus to work off. Shanti was raped by a British plantation owner and the ending seems so sympathetic to her daughter falling in love with another British man? It seemed very cliché and I can see a real attempt to create a full circle (of forgiveness??). Was it necessary to make her daughter fall in love with a bruising soldier to try and make it seem like not all brits were cruel to Indian people? It just seemed so disappointing and would have really loved for the author to have explored more of South African Indian identity being created since the characters were witnessing the start of a new culture.
Interesting and lovely to see my history being represented in fiction. South Asian diaspora fiction is so hard to find and often stories regarding my heritage are oral so I wanted badly to like this book. Probably the most enjoyable aspect of this novel where references to places and things my parents and grandparents have mentioned regarding my ancestors who were also indentured laborers in Natal.
The writing style seems quite juvenile which I guess is fine if you want to produce a novel that is accessible but I felt like there were intense scenes that were not literarily strong. The tone of the writing also didn’t quite match the era in which the book was set often. Grammar and style of writing aside, let me comment on my thoughts of the actual story:
The disenfranchisement of POC communities was wonderfully conveyed. Joseph does truly highlight the lack of justice one would face as a non-white person in a British colony. Interesting to see the abuse from Indian people, trying to appease their British ‘bosses’ and the plantation owners, doctors and judge. Decent plot twist as I was expecting Shanti to use her literacy to her advantage in progressing in Port Natal though this novel is a reminder that the intelligence of an indentured laborer is not enough when you’re put in a system design for you to fail.
I felt like this novel wasn’t super well research, maybe it was and there is much of a corpus to work off. Shanti was raped by a British plantation owner and the ending seems so sympathetic to her daughter falling in love with another British man? It seemed very cliché and I can see a real attempt to create a full circle (of forgiveness??). Was it necessary to make her daughter fall in love with a bruising soldier to try and make it seem like not all brits were cruel to Indian people? It just seemed so disappointing and would have really loved for the author to have explored more of South African Indian identity being created since the characters were witnessing the start of a new culture.
November 24, 2024
“The struggles of your ancestors are sewn into you. Their joys are wound into your sinews. The secrets of love already circulate in the chambers of your heart.”
This was an incredibly important and deeply personal story to read. The history of my husband’s family, which is now the history that will shape and inform the identity of my son. While the story is fictionalised, the reality of an ancestral connection to the indentured labour scheme in Durban is real for many Indian South Africans. Joseph expressed the feeling of connection with the new land beautifully. She also so cuttingly expressed the atrocities and brutal sanctimony of the British colonial scheme. The power of education as liberation was depicted with grace through Aunty Saras and Shanti (as well as the threat this posed to the regime). The role of religion was an interesting thread throughout the novel, with the exploration of Hindu roots and Shanti’s interaction with the Christian gospel through Father John. The story illustrated the way customs can subtly change from generation to generation, as young people challenge the way things have been done, and how this can actually bring a renewal, not degradation to the cultural essence. It’s hard to rate a book that is so personal to my own context, particularly one that is the only in its field (I researched and there are no other novels out there about the Indian indenture in Durban at all), but for what it taught me and showed me, it was such a worthy read. The writing was beautiful and lyrical, the story was harrowing and inspiring, the context was captured with distinction. It has changed me and for that, it’s worth five stars.
This was an incredibly important and deeply personal story to read. The history of my husband’s family, which is now the history that will shape and inform the identity of my son. While the story is fictionalised, the reality of an ancestral connection to the indentured labour scheme in Durban is real for many Indian South Africans. Joseph expressed the feeling of connection with the new land beautifully. She also so cuttingly expressed the atrocities and brutal sanctimony of the British colonial scheme. The power of education as liberation was depicted with grace through Aunty Saras and Shanti (as well as the threat this posed to the regime). The role of religion was an interesting thread throughout the novel, with the exploration of Hindu roots and Shanti’s interaction with the Christian gospel through Father John. The story illustrated the way customs can subtly change from generation to generation, as young people challenge the way things have been done, and how this can actually bring a renewal, not degradation to the cultural essence. It’s hard to rate a book that is so personal to my own context, particularly one that is the only in its field (I researched and there are no other novels out there about the Indian indenture in Durban at all), but for what it taught me and showed me, it was such a worthy read. The writing was beautiful and lyrical, the story was harrowing and inspiring, the context was captured with distinction. It has changed me and for that, it’s worth five stars.
November 19, 2024
I feel like my English class is always recommending the best books
March 16, 2024
An absolutely beautiful and moving book. And one that is so close to home…as my great grandfather was an indentured labourer from India. My heart still feels raw after reading this book but I don’t regret having read it. A must read for all South African Indians. ♥️
December 11, 2021
An absolutely addictive read.. loved it!
August 3, 2024
Real score 7/10 Children of Sugarcane is a spectacular debut novel.
Shanti and Devi are incredible characters full of life, love and determination not be restricted by the rules of their time. This book contains alot of trauma, but the spirits of Devi and Shanti shine through.
On the note of the trauma, this book contains alot of graphic scenes. It's an uncensored dive into the dark past of indentured labour in the Natal colony and what that meant for the workers who went there under the hope of seeking a better life. Many chapters can be uncomfortable to get through but this balanced against the will of Shanti and Devi to get through.
The book is ultimately quite an unchallenging read with simple language and few characters. This would make a spectacular matric class book.
Holding the book back, only marginally, is the unnatural dialogue between characters which can be over written or expository.
Nevertheless, I recommend Children of Sugarcane for anyone looking for a solid historical fiction set in a period and place little explored in writing. The book succeeds in creating two memorable characters who will stick in your mind long after the last page is turned.
Shanti and Devi are incredible characters full of life, love and determination not be restricted by the rules of their time. This book contains alot of trauma, but the spirits of Devi and Shanti shine through.
On the note of the trauma, this book contains alot of graphic scenes. It's an uncensored dive into the dark past of indentured labour in the Natal colony and what that meant for the workers who went there under the hope of seeking a better life. Many chapters can be uncomfortable to get through but this balanced against the will of Shanti and Devi to get through.
The book is ultimately quite an unchallenging read with simple language and few characters. This would make a spectacular matric class book.
Holding the book back, only marginally, is the unnatural dialogue between characters which can be over written or expository.
Nevertheless, I recommend Children of Sugarcane for anyone looking for a solid historical fiction set in a period and place little explored in writing. The book succeeds in creating two memorable characters who will stick in your mind long after the last page is turned.
December 14, 2022
Joanne Joseph has brilliantly crafted this novel into a magnificent humanization of untold intersectional South African herstories. I was fully engrossed in this novel, devouring it word for word. It took me on an emotional roller-coaster at every twist and turn. This book brought me to tears due to feeling the magnitude of how meaningful and real this book is and how great of an impact it has made. I wish for every South African to read this historically accurate depiction of a very common story that has been suppressed due to generational trauma, cultural shame and and institutional oppression. This book shows how the traumatic affects of indentureship has been transmitted intergenerationally, and and how we, as descendants, can learn to empathise with our ancestors who sacrificed so much, and to learn from the lessons that their lives have taught.
September 11, 2022
A glorious novel, despite the brutality and suffering through most of it. The life of indentured from India in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, toiling on sugarcane plantations in Natal Colony [now part of South Africa], through a woman's voice. Shanti, to escape an arranged marriage, and gulled by lies beckoning her to Africa as an indentured worker, arrives there and finds out quickly the harsh reality of that life. Discussing the themes of love, trust, friendship in spite of hardship and of secrecy both benign and of hurting others, the novel ends on a note of hope. Beautifully written, the story is based on the life of the author's great-grandmother. I thank LibraryThing for giving me an ARC.
May 26, 2023
Beautifully written. Illuminating and inspiring!
January 25, 2024
I found this book enthralling, as it revealed so much about the indentured labour practise in Natal. It was heart-wrenching.
December 26, 2021
I just finished Children of Sugarcane and I had to come and say how incredible I found it. Reading the acknowledgements and understanding the efforts she put into it over the past 9 years, made it even more special and treasured. I've already encouraged all my friends on Instagram to read it and bought copies for my family as the first read of our little book club. It fills me with so much pride as a former Durbanite to read such a great quality book from one of our own.
That doesn't even begin to cover the depth and emotion of the story itself. I truly felt everything from the hope and optimism that Port Natal promised, to falling in love with Mustafa, to the heartbreak of Faizals callous murder and the rage of Shanti's court outburst. I was also devastated to realise that Devi had traded her life for Shanti's. She did such an excellent job in conveying the emotion and essence of every scene and painting the most vivid pictures of the locations and characters.
Definitely encourage reading it.
That doesn't even begin to cover the depth and emotion of the story itself. I truly felt everything from the hope and optimism that Port Natal promised, to falling in love with Mustafa, to the heartbreak of Faizals callous murder and the rage of Shanti's court outburst. I was also devastated to realise that Devi had traded her life for Shanti's. She did such an excellent job in conveying the emotion and essence of every scene and painting the most vivid pictures of the locations and characters.
Definitely encourage reading it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 24, 2022
A sensitive topic that Joanne Joseph handles with great care. Horrific incidents and way of life for the indentured labourers that were brought to the Port of Natal to labour in the cane fields. To South African readers, it is very close to home and although a work of fiction - the facts are accurate and stark.
December 8, 2023
Superbly written, eye-opening and one of my best reads for 2023
January 9, 2023
I have learnt a lot about my ancestry and past because of this book. I never truly understood the suffering of the indentured labourers collectively, leave alone the experience of an Indian woman with no emotional and supportive structure. The heinous crimes committed against the labourers are sickening and I am glad to have learnt about the struggles and suffering of the past. Highly recommended.
November 17, 2024
This was intensely beautiful story. It makes me sad to think of all the stories of oppressed people throughout history that have not been heard. Yes it is a work of fiction, but the facts are there. The indentured laborer’s, the brutality of the colonizers against people of colour. We need more stories like this.
July 16, 2023
A work of brilliance - the vocabulary was rich and the descriptions mesmerising, filled with sincere emotions and harsh historical facts that we should all embrace in order to evoke sympathy and understanding for all races and simply embrace being human
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