April Love - Day 17

I have read many books. Not many have been life changing. I'd say Shades by Maguerite Poland has been the most life changing for me.

Penguin Books South Africa had this to say about it: 

"Against a backdrop of drought, the rinderpest pandemic, the South African War, the burgeoning gold-mining industry and the complex birth of the exploitative system of recruiting migrant labour, Shades explores the growing tensions between cultures in South Africa at the turn of the twentieth century and the deepening awareness of the black mission-educated elite, empowered by the printing press, of the need to articulate their political and spiritual beliefs. Set within the microcosm of an isolated Eastern Cape mission, Shades is not only a love story and the chronicle of a family but a sensitive and perceptive insight into the country's wider conflicts. It explores the slow but inexorable destruction of the fabric of a community, the assault on its traditions and the struggle to reconcile two faiths: the Christian and the traditional beliefs of the amaXhosa in their ancestral shades. It is the story of those far-sighted enough to seek convergence and those destined to undermine its wisdom. Primarily, Shades is an intimate tale of love, friendship, acceptance and profound loss: of life, of faith and of belonging."

It's rather funny how I came to know the novel. My mom was actually reading it aloud to my sister as it was her Matric set book (my sister is not a reader, she is more of an auditory learner), and I took an interest and listened along with her. After my mom finished reading it, I immediately started reading it on my own. Since then I think I have read it another twice (the first time I was rather young, only 11/12, so  I didn't pick up on some aspects). 

The aspects of the novel that changed me the most were the realistic views it has on colonialism and religion. It somehow spoke to me more than any history lesson about Apartheid or any church service ever had. It made me see how selfish and obnoxious the White colonialists were. It also opened my eyes to how sometimes we get so set in our ideas (whether it is religion, or culture) that we don't take time to listen and learn from each other. We're too busy trying to shove our ideas down each other's throats.

You can buy the book from Amazon or Takealot. Read it and let me know what your thoughts are.