In the original novel, readers are exposed to Poppie Nongena’s backstory, highlighting the effects of apartheid. But the film’s visual shorthand doesn’t capture the nuances
Readers write in about KZN not being a bantustan, and the sad state of Africa
But others recall the brutality of his soldiers and police and the illusion of freedom
It’s not strange that people feel nostalgic about Bophuthatswana – it’s part of being South African
Breaking the silence on sexual violation is powerful but how we do it is another question
The dynamics of power established under apartheid, especially in the ‘homelands’, still play a major role in rural government.
The elite networks of the early 20th-century ANC leadership, with so many coming from a mission-school rural background, are still really important.