After two years of hard work it is trange that there are mixed feelings when you let your brainchild into the world. You suffer a bit from "empty nest" syndrome, you are terribly excited, anxious and hopeful.
The characters that I have sculpted, brought to life and who have inhabited my mind for the last two years are now ready to enter the world and weave their magic.
So far I got good feedback from the Amazon Another Breakthrough Awards and those who read it. (posted below)
I very much wish my "baby" a chance to find its footing and have an impact on the readers.
ABNA Expert Reviewer
Lerato, a seven-year old South African boy, living under the horrors of apartheid in the mid-1970s, is being taken by his mother from the only home he has ever known. He is going to live with her in a small room attached to the home of a white family for whom his mother works as a domestic. The excerpt brings the politics and the atrocities of apartheid into clear focus by narrating the story of this small boy, his strong mother, and his even stronger, more politically active Aunt Filkie.
Even though my knowledge of this period in South African history is limited, I found this excerpt riveting. The prose is lyrical and conjures up strong visual images of what the child, Lerato, is experiencing. Even in this brief excerpt, the characters of Lerato, his mother, his aunt, his brothers and his murdered sister are brought to life in vivid realistic language.
I would very much like to read the rest of this novel. The author's voice is so strong and sure that I would be willing to follow it wherever it leads. An excellent beginning for a literary novel.
ABNA Expert Reviewer
The "When Color Happened" excerpt introduces a sad story, the story of Lerato, a young South African boy living in the 1970s apartheid. Lerato is seven and is about to leave his home with his mother to live on the property of her white employers. Miriam, his mother, accepts the consequences of apartheid almost willingly, despite the fact that it has torn her family irreparably apart. Her sister, Lerato's aunt, on the other hand, cannot accept. She is strong and rebellious. Lerato, despite his love for his mother, is drawn to his aunt. In these brief pages, he recalls the heartbreaking story of his sister's death.
Which path will Lerato choose? Will it be acceptance or rebellion? The conflict between the two sisters and the inner conflict in Lerato is established well. The dialogue is well written and is in fact the bulk of the excerpt. Lerato is a believable seven-year old who has lived through a horrible tragedy. The reactions of his mother and his aunt are reasonable reactions and the reader is curious to see which way Lerato will go.
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