Complicated, skillful and honestly horrific

There were moments in the narration where the skipping between British and South African accents made it hard for the narrator to keep up but her reading was natural and engaging. I changed how I felt about this book part way through - I have definitely struggled with empathy towards the characters with their racist views at the start, and this made me disengage from really engaging with their situation. And I was fully prepared to dismiss this book and finish and move on… then we reach the second part of the book when we are focussed more on the modern day South Africa - and I found myself intrigued by the real life inspiration for the book and took myself on a tangent of reading about the motivation for Barr to write it. I think this book will
stay with me for a long time. It’s horrific. But I feel like it has resonated with me in an area where I was perhaps not challenging myself. That said, it is also very disturbing to think about how these awful, misogynistic, homophobic, racist practices are being glorified in the world today.

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What a journey!

Having grown up part of my life in South Africa, this book intrigued me. We emigrated to South Africa in 1983 in the thick of apartheid lured there by the promise of opportunity after my Dad’s career imploded in the UK thanks to Thatcher’s policy on manufacturing.

Some of this is the history that I learnt (Boer War and concentration camps) and some of it I’ve seen growing up. Listening to this book made me feel so many emotions, it’s an amazing story and the author ties all the parts together so beautifully.

If I had one small complaint it would be the Afrikaans accent on the boer war/concentration part there is too much emphasis on rolling R’s and putting them in places where they’re not needed. Also Geldenhuys’s name in the last part changed a few times to Geeldenhuys which was a bit annoying. It should rhyme with gel but not with reel phonetically. Other than that a really good performance from the narrator and an astoundingly heartfelt novel that I related to so very much.

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Excellent

It was fascinating. Part of history I was unaware of. Terrible that such things continue today

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Astonishing, informative, and beautifully read

This novelisation of real events in South Africa in two eras is constantly absorbing and is enhanced by the reading which uses accents well and accurately.

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Illuminating and clever narrative

A sad but extremely compelling read illuminating one aspect of South Africa’s complex history, that of the legacy of the boer war and how the savage British behaviour echoes through to the present day. And apart from the history it is a clever and engaging story.

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Great story

Loved it a story full of history that not many of us are aware of.

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Superb, brutal. Must read

My only caveat would be that book is two stories in one and sags dramatically at the beginning of the second part. It could have done with a robust edit at this stage to keep readers interested. Secondly there are point of view jumps mid scene where the author jumps into the head of another character. This is disconcerting and a bit surprising for an author as well known as Barr. It is probably the playwriter in the author coming out. An editor should have sorted that. But do read and persist through the sag in the middle. Warning. It is shocking and brutal. I do highly recommend but you need to be in a robust mood.

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amazing audio book I really enjoyed it.

amazing audiobook the writing and Performance are incredible. historically interesting and well worth a listen

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compelling, moving and informative

I thought the performance was brilliant, I was completely absorbed. Well written story with interesting characters.

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Not a light or enjoyable read

A dark reflection on the 2nd Anglo Boer war and how concentration camps caused a perpetual inheritance of abuse and bigotry

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