"The wise ones usually say that there is knowing in the knowing that one doesn't know."
Our protagonist – Nwelezelanga – is an albino child borne to Nokwakha, whom unfortunately, doesn’t get to raise this child that she wept for because her midwife is under the rule of an evil reign led by Lord Bubi. The midwife convinces Nokwakha that this child is a bad omen so she should be killed. After much persuasion, the exhausted and baffled mother gives up the only thing that she hoped would bring meaning to her life. And so the journey of being born again begins. The end becomes the beginning.
"The soul is in a state of becoming; a continuous state of learning and development...When one experiences the 'perceived death', only to be followed by the reality of another existence, a weird sense of divine comedy sets in; realising that the end was only the beginning."
After being thrown to her death into the Umfolozi River, Nwelezelanga is ‘delivered’ by the mighty waters to her new home where we get to see her live out her divine purpose – passing messages from beyond. While her peers frown at her ‘weird’ nature, an old woman – Nomkhubulwana – offers friendship and because Nwelezelanga has an old soul, they get along like a house on fire! Here she receives love and a safe space to be herself. Instead of going to the river with the girls, talking about boys, she herds cattle with the boys and earns her place by beating them at stick fighting. She learns to work the land with her family and we see her sister – Zimasa – begrudged by Nwelezelanga being unable to stand the scorching sun because of her skin condition, so she deems her ‘lazy’ instead.
"Be the light, my child; let your spirit be felt in its purest...Open your heart bare and let the divine inspire; bow in humbleness...I will continue to walk by your side; we journey this road together and are bound by something deeper than both of us."
The writer doesn't gloss over the stigma around albinism. The stories of children being robbed of their childhoods through the dismembering of their bodies to create muti that is believed to be more powerful, are vivid and sends shivers down one’s spine. This stigma is still prevalent today and we need to continue raising awareness around it to create a better society.
Some of the themes that are covered include marriage where we see Nokwakha trying to sustain hers through giving her husband children and when she fails, he leaves her for another woman which, naturally, flips her world upside down. Mental health also comes up when she becomes a completely different person after throwing Nwelezelanga to drown in the river. The most important theme for me is that of family. Unathi Magubeni placing Nwelezelanga in a loving family led by a matriarch who would protect her gift, while at the same time allowing her to be a child and explore the valleys, hills, and rivers around her village, as well as letting her make her own decisions, while knowing very well that it isn’t safe for her out there, was a brave take. And that’s what it boils down to for parents - we can only equip our children to face the world but we can’t protect them from it.
"We, the ones who see, the children of the star, are here to reveal the great truth staring humanity in the face but that seems forever blind to its brightness."
Unathi Magubeni uses words so well that you can almost taste them with every page turn. His vocabulary is simple but precise and intentional and that makes for great storytelling. The short chapters of the book make it a more easy read. You know how you’re able to binge on series because of its short episodes but would not be able to do the same with a two hours long movie? That! This was the perfect book for me to tap back into reading and eventually pen down my thoughts.
You can find the book readily available on the BlackBird Books website. Happy reading!
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