These are the books our books editor, Meneesha Govender, received recently. They may be reviewed later
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Affluenza by Niq Mhlongo (Kwela)
Affluenza is a collection of short stories written in Niq Mhlongo’s characteristically piercing style.
With stories covering issues such as crime, xenophobia, racism, homophobia, the new black elite and land distribution in South Africa, Mhlongo writes about the span of South African democracy and the troubles of the past 20 years after the fall of apartheid.
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Under the Udala Trees by Chinelo Okparanta (Granta)
The year is 1968 – the height of the Nigerian civil war. Ijeoma’s father is killed and her world changes forever.
Separated from her mother, Ijeoma meets another lost girl, Amina, and the two become inseparable.
This is their story – a relationship is formed that will test faith and resolve.
This is a coming of age novel that takes the reader from a young girl’s war-torn childhood through the joys and sorrows of everyday life, marriage and motherhood.
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The Seed Thief by Jacqui L’Ange (Umuzi)
Botanist Maddy Bellani was born in Brazil, but works in South Africa.
When she is asked to return to the country where her estranged father still lives to collect rare seeds linked to a cure for cancer, she agrees to do so reluctantly.
The mission is challenging, even with the help of a local plant expert, Ze.
The seeds are guarded by a sect wary of outsiders. And there is the issue of unscrupulous pharmaceutical companies.
The Seed Thief is a modern love story with an ancient history.