I have just listened to a book recommended to me long ago by my mother and wondered what she was thinking to give that book to a child hardly past her first decade. Recently, I have heard several references to Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. With only vague memories of it being about South Africa’s apartheid and being entranced by the book when I was a kid, I decided to read it again.
Cry, the Beloved Country, was first published in 1948 and became an immediate worldwide bestseller. Mama and her church women’s book club made it their selection, and she passed it along to me when she was finished. I’m fairly sure she knew that much of the meaning would go straight over my head, but also that there was enough that I understood to keep me engrossed. The book made a lasting impression and gave me an insight that has always helped me understand newscasts and programs that featured South Africa.
It has remained a classic, with movies made from the story and an Oprah Book Club selection over the years. It has come back into popularity and I have heard it mentioned several times recently, so I decided to revisit the book. I got an Audible recording with Michael York reading to listen as I walk. His voice had just the right gravitas for the heart rendering portrayal of living in an unjust world and added to the lyrical quality of the written work.
The heart of the story follows two fathers. The Zulu pastor Stephen Kumalo searches for his son Absalom who winds up being a murderer. His counterpart, James Jarvis is father of Arthur Jarvis, a young white activist writing for social justice. Reading his son’s writings changes the heart of the father. The connections between the two men and the other relationships they form make the reader care.
I’m glad Mama trusted me to read and understand the book as a kid, and equally glad I returned to refresh and to claim those parts that went over my head the first time.