A difficult book

Book Club Meeting – 4th September 2023

This was a difficult book…

We were all agreed on that. The Promise by Damon Galgut was a challenging read but one which scored higher (at an average of 8.9/10) than most of the other titles we have reead.

It wasn’t difficult because it was badly or awkwardly written – quite the opposite. We nearly all found the writer’s unusual ability to write from multiple perspectives almost simultaneously was impressive. It was difficult to read because of the story it told. Galgut leads us through nearly half a century of the new South Africa’s emergence from apartheid into an uncertain future. A future which has not yet lived up to the ‘promise’ of its foundation. Told from the perspective of different, deeply flawed members of a white South African family the story is laced with moments of stark violence but also dark humour giving an overall impression of a society struggling to find and retain a new identity.

A difficult read… yes. But one which we appreciated and would heartily recommend. Our recommendations would also include the cake provided to sweeten our discussions this month which was a memorably sweet concoction from a traditional recipe from Mozambique!

Next month’s title is The Song of the Partisans by Kathryn Gauci.