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The Road to Absalom by Michael Gastrow (Gorilla Books)
Let me start off by getting the following off my chest: The Road to Absalom is not the kind of book I would usually read.
As a rule, I make a point of not reading books about crime, corruption and politics in SA - not because I'm blind to the reality of the daily foibles of our country, but simply because I prefer reading books that allow me to escape from the reality I live in every day, if only for a little while.
That being said, I can tell you that I found myself - much to my surprise - intrigued and pleasantly surprised by this novel.
I was mainly surprised because Michael Gastrow, author of the book, showcases a strong ability to take what could be seen as an uninteresting topic to many, and transform it into an evocatively written novel.
The Road to Absalom chronicles the journey of David, a hedonistic, hard-partying, young lawyer who is sent to rural Eastern Cape in search of a possible heir to a recently murdered chief. Seems like an easy feat right?
Not so much.
Between travelling, and his hard-partying drug ways, his search leads him to a web of criminal schemes, corrupt business deals and political drama - with the realisation that everything that is, is not always as it seems. Along the way, he also learns that there's more to his life than just going through the motions through a drug-induced haze.
It's an ambitious attempt at capturing a young South Africa in its well-defined and bad moments, something which not many people get right, but Michael Gastrow does.
His descriptions of the hard-partying Jozi and Cape Town night-life scenes are vivid and frightening all at once, while SA's landscape is described in exquisite detail and leave you feeling as if you yourself are on a road trip with David in his quest to find the missing heir to the chieftaincy.
The book is a testimony to a real, young and flawed South Africa and is something that every young and old South African citizen alike should read.
Click here to get your copy.
Have you read the book before? Tell us what you thought of it in the comment box below.
Let me start off by getting the following off my chest: The Road to Absalom is not the kind of book I would usually read.
As a rule, I make a point of not reading books about crime, corruption and politics in SA - not because I'm blind to the reality of the daily foibles of our country, but simply because I prefer reading books that allow me to escape from the reality I live in every day, if only for a little while.
That being said, I can tell you that I found myself - much to my surprise - intrigued and pleasantly surprised by this novel.
I was mainly surprised because Michael Gastrow, author of the book, showcases a strong ability to take what could be seen as an uninteresting topic to many, and transform it into an evocatively written novel.
The Road to Absalom chronicles the journey of David, a hedonistic, hard-partying, young lawyer who is sent to rural Eastern Cape in search of a possible heir to a recently murdered chief. Seems like an easy feat right?
Not so much.
Between travelling, and his hard-partying drug ways, his search leads him to a web of criminal schemes, corrupt business deals and political drama - with the realisation that everything that is, is not always as it seems. Along the way, he also learns that there's more to his life than just going through the motions through a drug-induced haze.
It's an ambitious attempt at capturing a young South Africa in its well-defined and bad moments, something which not many people get right, but Michael Gastrow does.
His descriptions of the hard-partying Jozi and Cape Town night-life scenes are vivid and frightening all at once, while SA's landscape is described in exquisite detail and leave you feeling as if you yourself are on a road trip with David in his quest to find the missing heir to the chieftaincy.
The book is a testimony to a real, young and flawed South Africa and is something that every young and old South African citizen alike should read.
Click here to get your copy.
Have you read the book before? Tell us what you thought of it in the comment box below.
