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Cry, the Beloved Country (Oprah's Book Club) (平装)
by Alan Paton
| Category:
Fiction |
| Market price: ¥ 168.00
MSL price:
¥ 158.00
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MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
A compelling novel that allows people of all cultures to see through the eyes of those that suffer under opression and injustice. |
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AllReviews |
1 Total 1 pages 7 items |
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James Ferguson (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
Alan Paton certainly had his heart in the right place but couldn't disguise his paternalistic feelings of the plight of the native South African, bringing down what was otherwise a good novel. While Paton recognized the vast injustices being committed in his nation, he failed to recognize the ability of the African to address these concerns. Instead, he created dramatic contrasts between the rural countryside and the City of Gold, Johannesburg, which drew these rural natives into its teeming midst, only to find pain and heartache. In this case it is a father looking for his son, Absalom, only to find that his son has killed a white man. The book resonates with Biblical allusions, taking on the form of a parable, but Paton did not explore the complexities of the situations he created too deeply. He used them more for effect. This is what is most disconcerting about the novel, as it seemed aimed more at a liberal white reader, forcing him to identify with one of his own in the victim he created in Arthur Jarvis.
While Paton struggled admirably to get into the mind of Stephen Kumalo, the berieved father of the son who was an accomplice in the murder of Jarvis, Kumalo is forced to turn to a benevolent white lawyer to represent his son in court. This relationship reinforced Paton view that utimately it was the white man who would save the black man by attacking his own system of government. While this served as an indictment, of sorts, against the apartheid system, it had a hollow ring to it, not taking into account the vast number of protests and other forms of non-violent demonstrations Black, Colored and Indian South Africans held in defiance of apartheid laws. Instead, Paton reduced apartheid South African to the most simplistic of terms, unable, it seemed, the understand, or at least come to terms with, the number of gradients in the system.
Still, it is a moving novel, especially when Paton deals with what he understands most, the anguish of the conscientious white man in reconciling himself with a corrupt system of government. This is seen mostly through James Jarvis, whose son was murdered by Stephen Kumalo's son. One gets the sense that Paton put a lot of himself into Jarvis.
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An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
The Reverend Kumalo is at the center of a social experiment that has destroyed tribes, families, societal values and human beings. He is a poverty-stricken minister, caring for his flock of villagers living in a drought-stricken area of South Africa. The drought and its devastating effects on the capacity of the already-poor to farm and provide for their families seem to be a metaphor for the human drought born of racism and emerging apartheid.
The land will no longer feed them, the young flock to already-teeming Johannesburg and they then get swallowed up in the further degradation of thievery, murder and prostitution. And the majority Afrikkaners then satisfy themselves with the proof positive that blacks are inherently weak, untrustworthy, lazy and are beneath dignity.
This novel both paints a devastating picture of everything that's wrong with racism and the ensuing apartheid while holding out hope that there are some among the white who see the problem as clearly as Reverend Kumalo and strive to do something about it. Unfortunately, however, those who advocate for the despised sometimes get destroyed in the process.
And that is exactly what happens to one idealistic young man, the son of a wealthy Afrikkaner landowner, who writes extensively and publicly advocates for those who have no power. But the young man is not destroyed by one of his own, who fears a change in the power balance, but by one of those for whom he advocates.
Each father mourns the loss of his son; the father of the murdered knows the white man's justice will prevail but will still leave him childless and the black man's father knows he has lost a son on two counts. One, he lost his son when Absalom left the village and broke all communication with his heartbroken parents. Two, for a black man who killed a white man, there is only the white man's justice.
Reverend Kumalo meets the good, the bad, the indifferent, the greedy and the generous. His dialogue is that of a humble man, loved by his townspeople, deeply respectful of others. While his demeanor is very self-deprecating, he cannot be mistaken for one who is servile. Reverend Kumalo's deep understanding of human beings, with all their inherent imperfections and machinations, is awesome. Despite this, he forgives.
Thankfully, despite his great personal losses, Reverend Kumalo witnesses a number of small miracles thanks to an unexpected source. His benefactor, and that of the village's, is the father of the young man who was murdered.
This is an eloquent book written by one who truly understood the evil and great destructive powers of any system that strips a people, any people, of their basic and fundamental rights to be respected, independent and self governing.
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D. Smolarek (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
Alan Paton writes eloquently about personal struggles, triumphs, and losses. Almost biblical, the lyrical dialogues and descriptions draw you into the reality that is South Africa and don't let you go. Stephen Kumalo becomes a hero and a friend to empathize with and admire. As a college student, I have read this book 5 times and written papers on it for English, History, and Sociology classes. (I got A's on all of them!). I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys great literature and a great story. The 1995 movie with James Earl Jones was superbly done and was the first of the three versions made to be filmed in South Africa. The last scene with Kumalo on the mountaintop was so beautiful and moving it made me cry. |
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Leslie Nelson (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
This is a powerful book. The theme is universal. If the names were changed it could have been about native americans or any oppressed peoples. In parts of it I felt a Grapes of Wrath type quality. People go to the city with hope looking for a better life. There they loose their hope and turn to vices and crime. They disappear into the woodwork not making contact with their former lives - almost like a loss of innocence.
The only problem I had with the book was that the progress and improvement experienced in the valley occured because of a tragic murder. I almost got the feeling as I was reading that it was a good thing this man was killed. That bothered me. I am sure that is not what the author had in mind. Otherwise, it is a very worthwhile book to read - especially the first two books. (An American reader)
Have you ever set up dominoes on their end all in a line, then once they
are all set up you touch the first one and it sets off a cascade effect
knocking them all over one at a time? The beginning of the game is slow
and tedious, but the cascade effect is worth it. Some classics are like
setting up dominoes. They begin slowly, and the unfortunate reader will
put the book down in disgust and never return to it. A more persistent
reader is richly rewarded for their patience. Cry, The Beloved Country is
that kind of a classic, others are Tale of Two Cities by Dickens and Jane
Eyre by Bronte.
The language is beautiful, I don't enjoy flowery descriptions of scenery, but in Cry the descriptions helped you feel as if you were there without being too lengthy. The characters are well developed, and some are people I would really love to know. However, because I did care about the characters, the story in the beginning, is just so sad that I almost fell into that catagory of unfortunate readers who quit reading early and miss out on the treasure. I'm grateful that I didn't.
Inspite of the difficult beginning, this has become one of my favorite books. It carries you from despair to hope. It is a story about South Africa and its people, but it is also a story that has something for each of us.
Cry, The Beloved County leaves you a better person when you put it down than when you started it. It is a journey not to be missed. |
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Brad Eastridge (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
Reverend Stephen Kumalo is a minister in Natal whose sister, Gertrude, and his son, Absalom, have gone to the South African metropolis of Johannesburg to search for a better living. Receiving a letter saying that Gertrude is ill, he travels there to discover that her sickness is a spiritual one: she has become a prostitute. After meeting up with the pastor, Msimangu, he finds that Gertrude is willing to come back to the village with him, taking her son along. Sadly, he finds that Absalom and his brother's son have been accused of killing a man, a white layman of the church and a great activist for native freedom, in a break-in. The father of the accused, Jarvis, meets Kumalo and comes to reconcile. A priest hires a white lawyer for Absalom. He confesses, however, and is sentenced to be hanged, while Kumalo's nephew is declared innocent. All hope seems lost. Defeated, Kumalo decides to return to his village of Ndotsheni. He takes along his son's wife, wed to Absalom in prison, and nephew. Gertrude, however, is nowhere in sight. Returning to Ndotsheni, Kumalo finds a month-long drought is starving the people. Jarvis's grandson is the one who sets up a system, sends an agricultural demonstrator to teach the people farming, and builds a dam to bring water to the village. Jarvis helps reconstruct the church and restore the village, bringing peace and reconciling Kumalo with life.
Cry, the Beloved Country is a story of the quest for justice, the search for freedom in an impoverished and oppressive land. Love and forgiveness are themes prevalent to ending the human struggle. One must overcome whatever trials and injustices have been dealt to move on and live. It is in making peace that these two men join to support each other in grief and save a community.
It is beautifully written, in descriptive language, even with Zulu words and the pronunciations in their native tongue. One certainly feels a connection with the trials of Kumalo and his people, because they are about the basic human rights that are struggled for univerally. There is a well-established bond and a deep love for South Africa in Paton's writing that show just how strongly he feels about the reality of the injustice suffered there. It is a work that will outlast us all and continually remind people to strive for freedom. This is a book not simply to read, but truly to be experienced.
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Bayliss (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
Somehow this was a classic I "missed" in high school and college. I just finished reading it yesterday and still find myself thinking about many of the beautifully rendered scenes. Others have summarized the plot - I love the labyrinthine (Dante-esque in scope) descent from the country side into the hell of Johannisburg. As we watch the narrator weave his way in and out of the horrible living conditions, we are presented with a modern day Inferno that would have made Dante proud.
The dialogue is rich and detailed and the character's well-developed. There are some gut wrenchingly scenes between a father and his son, not to mention between his other siblings as well. Bitter disappointments, difficult circumstances and a trial that makes To Kill a Mockingbird's look fair add to the book's tension. Overall, a lyrical and stirring portrait of unfairness and oppression (but also beauty and purity) in South Africa and one family's trials and tribulations. It makes one wonder how much things have really changed from Paton's day.
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An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2007-01-04 00:00>
While the plot has a good basis, it is very slow and dull. Basically, the philosophy of the Afrikaners could have been established in less than a page, instead of constantly "quoting" passages written by civil rights leaders. The main character's struggle, while both real and symbolic, is one that is established, but not resolved. Inspires some thought, but not great. |
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1 Total 1 pages 7 items |
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