It would have been a better option to market this as young adult fiction, or perhaps I’m too old.
The writing is good and the story is beautifully told, but it’s extremely young in feel and approach. It’s the tale of Anna, 22, at the start of her professional life. Just as she has to start work, she is contacted by her father’s boyfriend who tells her that her dad is ill. Her two dads live in a small town in KwaZulu-Natal and she feels responsible. There’s no choice, she has to move there, find a job, which she does on a local paper, and check that his health improves.
Her mom lives in Pretoria, which is an additional complication because, as an only daughter, her loyalty is torn between her two parents.
For Anna it is about finding out that life doesn’t always go the way you’d expect. It’s about choices and responsibilities.
It’s a charming glimpse at a life that is standing on the brink of taking that first step into adulthood.
* The Paper House by Dalena Theron is published by Umuzi and is available in Afrikaans as well