A bitter taste of things to come
THE VOLUPTOUS DELIGHTS OF PEANUT AND JAM<br>by Lauren Liebenberg <br>Virago, pp202, ISBN 978 1 84408 497 5
Rhodesia 1965. Ian Smith has declared independence from Britain. Zimbabwe, then Rhodesia, faces an uncertain future and by the late 1970s, tensions erupt into a civil war, as the country sheds both its colonial past and white rule. Against this backdrop, we join the O'Callahan family who, the irascible grandfather reminds us, has been in Rhodesia since the 19th century. The story is told through the eyes of Nyree O'Callahan, elder sister to Cia and an accomplished raconteur.
Nyree and Cia live on what appears to be an idyllic farm. As the story unfolds we learn that the general air of decay is symptomatic of Rhodesia, although Nyree and Cia reveal this unwittingly, as only children could. Their father is busy fighting both the native people and Smith's government, which by the late 1970s was considered to be selling out Rhodesia to the natives, who are referred to in a wide choice of derogatory terms common at the time. Yet the children are blissfully unaware of political upheavals. Indeed, their lives are imbued with Ndebele symbolism, which permeates their games and their lives as children. For Nyree and Cia, there is no shame in embracing the beliefs of the "Afs" - the least non-derogatory term used to refer to black Africans - and mixing them with their own brand of fairy magic.
Their overworked and lonely mother paints their father as a hero and the girls are happy to see him on occasion. He is strong and silent and we only catch glimpses of who this man is. It is up to Oupa to be a father figure, and this he does with a blend of mangled Catholicism and his own take on national pride. Nyree and Cia are frequently reminded of their family's bravery in facing the "savages" and building their own corner in the world. Not everybody in the family, however, is as noble. Great-grandfather was an Afrikaner missionary, a blight on the family, Oupa reminds us. Afrikaners and Rhodesians hardly enjoyed the most cordial of relations, and this rivalry started early in the playground as Nyree and Cia remind us while gleefully remembering the childish warfare carried out against Afrikaner children. On a more serious note, many Rhodesians who shared the O'Callahans' beliefs never forgave South Africa for ending apartheid and in many ways this story is a foretaste of things to come.
Perhaps the biggest blight in their family, however, is the character Oupa calls "the bastard", who enters the lives of the O'Callahans and changes it forever. With his arrival, the childhood idyllically set against Rhodesia's majestic beauty comes to an end. With the coming of "the bastard", the sisters experience a brutal loss of innocence. At the same time, Rhodesia experiences tragedy and a new chapter in its long, bloody history starts, one which rages on as you read.
Poignant, funny and heartbreaking, this first novel by Lauren Liebenberg, a Zimbabwean who experienced civil war and eventually moved to Johannesburg, makes no apologies for eliciting emotions. While the writing is sometimes somewhat unpolished, it does not detract from the novel. Indeed, when we remember that this tale is being told by a child, it somehow seems fitting to do away with the trappings of "perfect" technique.
This is indeed a voluptuous read. The languorous beauty of southern Africa draws the reader into a changing world and, at the same time, reminds us of the troubles facing Zimbabwe today. In a way, the knowledge of things to come adds to the tension of this book and makes the loss of innocence all the more poignant.
• Ms Vella Gregory is an archaeologist and devoted foodie. When she is not busy with ancient artefacts, she can be found cooking and enjoying good food and entertaining friends.
• A review copy of this title was supplied by Arco - Allied Retail & Commercial Co. Ltd.
Nyree and Cia live on what appears to be an idyllic farm. As the story unfolds we learn that the general air of decay is symptomatic of Rhodesia, although Nyree and Cia reveal this unwittingly, as only children could. Their father is busy fighting both the native people and Smith's government, which by the late 1970s was considered to be selling out Rhodesia to the natives, who are referred to in a wide choice of derogatory terms common at the time. Yet the children are blissfully unaware of political upheavals. Indeed, their lives are imbued with Ndebele symbolism, which permeates their games and their lives as children. For Nyree and Cia, there is no shame in embracing the beliefs of the "Afs" - the least non-derogatory term used to refer to black Africans - and mixing them with their own brand of fairy magic.
Their overworked and lonely mother paints their father as a hero and the girls are happy to see him on occasion. He is strong and silent and we only catch glimpses of who this man is. It is up to Oupa to be a father figure, and this he does with a blend of mangled Catholicism and his own take on national pride. Nyree and Cia are frequently reminded of their family's bravery in facing the "savages" and building their own corner in the world. Not everybody in the family, however, is as noble. Great-grandfather was an Afrikaner missionary, a blight on the family, Oupa reminds us. Afrikaners and Rhodesians hardly enjoyed the most cordial of relations, and this rivalry started early in the playground as Nyree and Cia remind us while gleefully remembering the childish warfare carried out against Afrikaner children. On a more serious note, many Rhodesians who shared the O'Callahans' beliefs never forgave South Africa for ending apartheid and in many ways this story is a foretaste of things to come.
Perhaps the biggest blight in their family, however, is the character Oupa calls "the bastard", who enters the lives of the O'Callahans and changes it forever. With his arrival, the childhood idyllically set against Rhodesia's majestic beauty comes to an end. With the coming of "the bastard", the sisters experience a brutal loss of innocence. At the same time, Rhodesia experiences tragedy and a new chapter in its long, bloody history starts, one which rages on as you read.
Poignant, funny and heartbreaking, this first novel by Lauren Liebenberg, a Zimbabwean who experienced civil war and eventually moved to Johannesburg, makes no apologies for eliciting emotions. While the writing is sometimes somewhat unpolished, it does not detract from the novel. Indeed, when we remember that this tale is being told by a child, it somehow seems fitting to do away with the trappings of "perfect" technique.
This is indeed a voluptuous read. The languorous beauty of southern Africa draws the reader into a changing world and, at the same time, reminds us of the troubles facing Zimbabwe today. In a way, the knowledge of things to come adds to the tension of this book and makes the loss of innocence all the more poignant.
• Ms Vella Gregory is an archaeologist and devoted foodie. When she is not busy with ancient artefacts, she can be found cooking and enjoying good food and entertaining friends.
• A review copy of this title was supplied by Arco - Allied Retail & Commercial Co. Ltd.