Tsotsi by Athol Fugard

We are all here because we are readers. We love books. We read books all the time. So why is it that as soon as something becomes prescribed reading, interest vanishes?

Welcome to the book that is going to be prescribed reading for my Grade 11s next year (if the government has the money for the books. Always a valid question around these parts.) I have a choice between this one and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. I read Achebe earlier this year (before I knew it was the alternative book, and thus actually looked forward to reading it) and although I loved its literary merit and the message it has to give, I know I will never manage to get that class to sit and stay awake during it. So Tsotsi it is - unless I can choose something else.

I suppose I am already setting this review up negatively. That isn't exactly fair, because I didn't hate this book. But I was reading it from the perspective of the sucker that has to teach it next year, as opposed to someone just reading for pleasure. It makes a huge difference, I promise.

Anyway, Tsotsi is a fairly young black, South African male living in Apartheid South Africa in Soweto. The word 'tsotsi' mean hoodlum. He is a vile piece of work, until something happens to change him.

There were parts that I liked. The writing for one was very good. I appreciated Fugard's use of imagery. The supporting characters were also very vivid and believable. I liked all the back stories we got on characters. They helped show the horror that Tsotsi was responsible for, and also helped us understand another member of his gang. They were not long winded, but written with an African charm.

My ambivalence towards this book is with the main character, Tsotsi. In the beginning of the novel, we see him and his gang committing a heinous crime, murder. This is made even more so by learning about the man who they kill. As a reader, it is impossible to not feel for that man and to dislike Tsotsi. That same night, we witness Tsotsi beating one of his gang members, Boston, nearly to death, for asking him questions about his past, asking how they could do such horrific acts and not feel anything. While this raises questions about Tsotsi's past and character, and sets the plot of the novel -  Tsotsi remembering his past and learning to feel - it does not endear him to the reader either. After beating and breaking Boston, Tsotsi runs off where he encounters a woman, who it appeared, from my point of view at least, that she was going to abandon her baby. Tsotsi, not knowing about the baby, was thinking of raping her and instead, ends up with the baby. Basically, we have a despicable character that no reader would be able to find anything positive in. It is this that raises my disbelief in what happens next. It is only a handful of days (about four I think), before Tsotsi becomes a 'new man'. He shows mercy to a would-be victim and 'cares' for the baby. (I use the term 'cares for' very loosely, as I do not think his parenting methods would be approved of my anyone with an iota of common sense.) But even in this, one could not necessarily approve of his methods. The ending left me feeling that it was a bit of a cop out, as Tsotsi would not be tested to see if he would be able to continue on the path he had just started in life because I could not believe that he had changed permanently. If he had let the baby live with him, for example, I might have been more inclined to see progress. The ending, although conclusive, was inconclusive. Tsotsi's back story was interesting though. It made it clear that he became who he was as a result of Apartheid and not because of an innate character flaw.

I need to give this one more thought - which I will be doing when I start making the study guide for it. For now, I am going to leave the remainder of my questions to tackle later. I suppose, if nothing else, this book is going to give us plenty to discuss in class.

Who would enjoy reading this? Shew. Good question. I suppose people interested in reading diversely, for starters. Folks who are interested in seeing what it was like for a black person growing up during Apartheid could also find it interesting. Anyone who would like to immerse themselves in some good visual imagery.

This is the 71st book I have read for the 2015 TBR Pile Reading challenge.

I gave this 3 stars on Goodreads. My rating might change with subsequent reads, but for now, I am sticking with my initial reaction.