THWALA - the abduction and forced marriage of a young girl to an older man in South African tribal custom... This book is a MUST READ for anyone who wants to know more about South Africa and its various cultures. It takes the reader under the skin of many of the diverse strands of human nature that entwine themselves to form the knotty cord that this new democracy. It deals with the unfeeling arrogance of apartheid, the exploitation and degradation of tribal culture and the and descent of South Africa into the deadly vortex of AIDS and criminality. 'Thwala' could it be a metaphor for the way in which Colonialists took possession of the young, virgin nations of Africa, lusting after the mineral gifts of the soil, the possession of pristine countryside and innocent souls to be exploited in their quest for power. This love story across the divide of age and colour; an older white farmer and a beautiful young Xhosa girl, set in the last days of Apartheid, bears testimony to so many South African lives, twisted by the ruthless hand of political imperatives. It takes the reader into the mysterious and powerful world of Xhosa culture: thwala; igqira, the diviner; ceremonial marriage; the circumcision ritual, and the way these sacred institutions have been eroded and corrupted by the ambivalent influence of Western values. Can the meeting of these powerful forces really create the rainbow nation that South African people so deeply desire? Follow the lives of Nosuthu Stokwe and Andrew Christy from the awe-inspiring rural South African countryside to the urban sprawl of Kayelitsha and the metropolis of Cape Town to try and appreciate the complexity of the challenges faced by South African people today. Can there be healing after "Thwala Syndrome"?
About the Author: Eve Clayton (born Evelyn Stewart) spent her formative years in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Born in 1955, a second child with 3 brother siblings, she completed a Bachelor's Degree at Rhodes University (majoring in English and Speech and Drama) and then qualified as a teacher. She taught at Cambridge High School in East London (South Africa) for 5 years, marrying the love of her life, Robin Clayton in 1981, and they moved into the Lower Albany farming district (also known as Settler Country because of its colonial links with the British Settlers) in 1983. She had two children (wrote a historical saga, TV script and a short story, none published) and then in 1994 started a six year spell teaching at Shaw Park Primary, a small, white farm school earmarked for closure under the new democracy that South Africa was to become. As Principal she opted to open the doors to all race groups rather than closing, and Shaw Park Primary became a haven for black parents desperate to access decent education. Numerous dramatisations and school plays kept the pen in hand. After six years she took a break from teaching and immersed herself in supporting her daughters through high school. Towards the end of this spell she wrote the first version of Thwala, under a different title, but again failed to publish, and so she returned to teaching. When she reached the age of 60, close to retirement, she made up her mind to self-publish no matter what. It was a 'Eureka moment' when she decided to use the Xhosa title 'THWALA' because the book was about Africa, and all South Africans of various races, but especially the Xhosa people. The result has been an extremely tough, thrilling and rewarding journey. And she has not reached the destination yet.