- Hardcover: 400 pages
- Publisher: Sinclair-Stevenson Ltd (31 Jan 1994)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 185619230X
- ISBN-13: 978-1856192309
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,376,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
In 1977, at the age of 18, Mark McCrum went to Southern Africa to wash dishes and teach English at a new multi-racial school in the fledgling republic of Botswana. He found his hitch-hiking trips round neighbouring South Africa - then at the height of the apartheid regime - profoundly affecting and confusing. 15 years later he returns. The all-white Referendum has just taken place, transition to black Government is being negotiated, Boipatong is yet to happen. McCrum embarks on a journey that is to take him from Crossroads township to the splendours of Johannesburg's Northern Suburbs. On the way he meets people as diverse as a Cape Town down-and-out and Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi. He returns to a Botswana which has chnaged almost beyond recognition and where his ex-pupils have developed in a variety of surprising ways. South Africa is often considered a subject too complex for comprehension. In this personal account, McCrum provides a slice-of-life view of a country in the throes of an historic and irreversible transition.
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First Sentence
I'm on my third breakfast. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
I'm on my third breakfast. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
...Writer Marc McCrum travels around Australia, starting in Sydney and working his way around in an anti-clockwise direction.
First thing to note is that this is not really a guide to the sights and attractions of Oz, it's more a guide to the people, their lives and their opinions, that the author meets on his journey. Pretty soon the recurring theme of Aborigines drinking away their 'social' payments turns into the main focus of the book.
I'd have preferred to have read more about other aspects of Oz life, but as a wannabe Oz immigrant I have learned a hellova lot about the interaction between the Aborigines and the more recent arrivals. Useful information indeed for anyone planning to move down under.
Considering the price and the 300+ pages it's a good buy, though I'd have to admit it wasn't what I was expecting.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
At last. A travel writer from up-over who's actually bothered to dig that little bit deeper down-under, thus almost avoiding the usual weather-beaten cliches about beaches, barbies and beer monsters. (He's also managed to put art, aboriginals and Adelaide back on the map - without patronising its natives, first generation or otherwise. No mean feat that.)
Indeed, while cultural cringe is still very much alive and cowering in Oz, at least one enlightened soul has seen fit to withhold judgement until he's done his research. And even then, he still shows a generosity of spirt and warmth of word that more curmudgeonly minded authors would do well to follow.
Oh, and any reader who complains that the book goes off-track and takes the less-than-scenic route round Australia upon occasion, should perhaps stick to reading travel brochures in future.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
What more can I say? Mark McCrum's dry wit and excellent 'people watching' skills had the ability to make me laugh out loud as well as reflect seriously on certain political issues. In my opinion he doesn't make a big point of stereotyping- he writes about many different aspects of Australia (people,culture,politics,opinions of Australians themselves) and throughout the book his underlying message about his journey through Oz is that its people are extremely friendly and welcoming.I would thoroughly recommend this book to anyone interested in Australia and its culture in a lighthearted way.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Disappointing
I purchased the book hoping for a very lighthearted and informative look on Australia and its culture. Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2001
absolutely hilarious
Don't read this book if you are in bed with anyone! They will get very annoyed with you for keeping them awake all night with your chuckles! Read more
Published on 21 Mar 2001
South Africa brought home
Mark McCrum brings South Africa forth in gleaming detail in this work. McCrumb travels back to a different Africa from the one he knew while working in a small, progressive school... Read more
Published on 18 Dec 1998
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