Season In Paradise: A Travelogue After Exile―South Africa's Hellish Reality of Apartheid and Racial Discrimination

by Breyten Breytenbach

Breytenbach's first visit to South Africa, after thirteen years in exile, is more than just a dazzling travelogue. He is searching for a "paradise" that coincides with the geography, mysticism, and mythologies of Africa, but in reality his homeland is an often hellish region of racial discrimination and bigotry. Introduction by André Brink. Translated by Rike Vaughan.

Genres: Poetry, Africa

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Breyten Breytenbach was a South African writer, poet, and painter. He became internationally well-known as a dissident poet and vocal critic of South Africa under apartheid, and as a political prisoner of the National Party-led South African Government. He is also known as a founding member of the Sestigers, a dissident literary movement, and was one of the most important living poets in Afrikaans literature.

Reviews

[Amber · Rating 2 out of 5]

Viel tegen. Het verhaal is geschreven als een soort dagboek of notitieboek, waardoor er niet echt een plot is. Daarnaast is de stijl af en toe erg associatief, abstract en filosofisch, waardoor ik er niets van begreep. Ten slotte focust de schrijver erg op de politieke actualiteit van toen, waardoor ik (oftewel een lezer van nu) niet altijd wist hoe ik de tekst moest interpreteren. Dit neemt niet weg dat er mooie stukken tussen zaten, maar die waren niet voltallig genoeg om het echt een aangenaam boek te maken.

[Lee Osborne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up at the book exchange at my local railway station. I thought it looked interesting, and outside my normal reading comfort zone.

I'd never heard of the author before, but he's certainly led an interesting life. He tells the story of his first visit to South Africa in thirteen years, after he left as a young man in 1959.

In places I found the book a bit tricky to follow, and some of the historical and cultural references were lost on me, but the author's observations are fascinating. He was convinced that apartheid would fail to survive the twentieth century, and of course he turned out to be right.

I'm certainly keen to read more of his work.

[valerie QUICHAUD · Rating 2 out of 5]

je n'ai pas aime du tout et j'ai décide d’arrêter avant la fin .. sur le résume on nous parle d'un livre sur l’Afrique donc je m'attendais a beaucoup de descriptions sur l’Afrique dans de nombreux domaines ..finalement ce livre est le récit des diverses rencontres de l'auteur avec des personnalités connues ..style nous sommes allés la et nous avons rencontre untel puis nous sommes allés la et vu machin bref livre inintéressant a mon gout

[Judith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mooie omschrijvingen, kunstige bewoordingen. Veel filosofische gedachten over de toestand en actualiteiten van destijds toen het reisverslag geschreven werd. Ruim 45 jaar later vind ik dat soms moeilijk goed te plaatsen. Verhaal soms onnavolgbaar

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anti-apartheid Afrikaner poet, after spending years in exile, has come back to his home country to spend a couple of months there. This is his stream-of-consciousness account of his time returning to South Africa. It shows his love for the country and his anger at the apartheid regime that ruled it at the time of writing.

Although apartheid is long gone, its effects remain like a wound for South Africa. And although this book, as a reaction against apartheid, is a little outdated, it is still quite valuable as one man’s opinion of it. Parts of the book are dissections of apartheid while it is still going on, and those are quite interesting.

The author knows very well that he is white, and is ambivalent about it, calling himself “white-ish”. He describes the white people in South Africa is dead, and makes poignant comments on their conservatism and middle-classness. He has white guilt.

This book’s writing style is admirable if a bit confusing at times. The author’s descriptions of places are stream-of-consciousness, sometimes touching on apartheid or the nature or the history and sometimes saying nothing but his own personal impressions. The book is sprinkled with poems, and they are often lovely.

Some of the quotes in this book are amazing, especially the incisive insights on apartheid. A strange thing is that the author calls many people by nicknames, especially his wife, who he gives a new name every time she is mentioned. It is only a little bit confusing.

Despite containing several stereotypical elements of the “European-influenced deliberately confusing socialist poet,” this travelogue is still emotionally affecting, very well-written, and powerful, even today.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it in three languages. Afrikaan version the best.