When Morning Comes

by Arushi Raina

Hardcover, 2016

Status

Available

Collection

Publication

Tradewind Books (2017), 232 pages

Description

Young Adult Fiction. Young Adult Literature. HTML: It's 1976 in South Africa, and four young people are living in Johannesburg and its black township, Soweto: Zanele, a black female student organizer; Meena, a South Asian girl working at her father's shop; Jack, an Oxford-bound white student; and Thabo, a teen-gang member, or tsotsi. From each of their points of view, this book explores the roots of the Soweto Uprising and the edifice of apartheid in a South Africa about to explode. Introducing readers to a remarkable young literary talent, When Morning Comes offers an impeccably researched and vivid snapshot of South African society on the eve of the uprising that changed it forever. Bespeak Audio Editions brings Canadian voices to the world with audiobook editions of some of the country's greatest works of literature, performed by Canadian actors..… (more)

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User reviews

LibraryThing member Lindsay_W
This own-voices YA historical fiction novel focuses on the 1976 Soweto student uprising. Raina skillfully weaves together a rich cast of realistic characters on both sides of this conflict. The story provides an opportunity for readers to learn about the history of apartheid South Africa and the
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students who stood up and risked it all to resist its oppressive laws. The book never strays into being didactic though, rather it leaves the reader wanting to do a little research of their own on topics like the Bantu Education Act, the Immorality Act, and the South African Students Organization (SASO). Although Nelson Mandela is only briefly referred to in the novel, hopefully students will follow this nation’s story to the end of apartheid and Mandela’s election as president almost 30 years later. Ideally students will also see the power they have to bring change like Zanele and her fellow resistors did.
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Rating

(5 ratings; 3.3)
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