You Can't Get Lost in Cape Town, 1987, Zoë Wicomb

I bought this book a long time ago. I could not read it, I find the writing style difficult, though poetic and a bit confusing. I did not struggle, I left it on my shelf and picked another one. Nevertheless, after reading Dance with a Poor Man's Daughter by Pamela Jooste  a novel that narrates on the ordeal of being "coloured" in apartheid South Africa, which, I enjoyed and highly recommend. Although, I felt there is some aspect of their story missing in the narrative as it is

Dance with a Poor Man's Daughter, 1997, Pamela Jooste *****

Dance with a Poor Man's daughter is the story of one of the "coloured" families forced to relocate from the Cape Town area known as District Six in South Africa during apartheid, told through the eyes of a little girl. 

District 6 Memorial Plaque

ALL WHO PASS

Remember the thousands of people who lived for generations in district six and were forced by law to leave their homes because of the colour of their skins. Remember St. Mark's Church and the community who resisted the destruction of district six. -Hands Off District Six Campaign 11.2.1989

Lily lives with her grand mother, her aunt Stella and uncle Gus-Seep (that is how she calls and spells his name). Her mother Gloria left for Johannesburg because the valley is too small for her. Lily loves her grandmother more than she loves her mother, which she makes clear.

'You don't always like your mother as much as you would like to, do you Lily?' he says and I don't even have to answer him because he knows it's true.

The Group Area Act is approved, Lily and her family are forced to leave their house and move to the flats. Her mother, from Johannesburg hears what is going on and decides to fight in order to make sure that the house where  six to

Fiela's Child, 1985, Dalene Matthee ****

A 3 year old white boy Lukas Van Rooyen got lost in the forest. He was  not found. Almost a decade later during census many kilometres away on the other side of the forest a white child named Benjamin Komoeties was found in the family of coloureds (in South Africa refers to people of mixed ethnic parentage). Was he the missing Lucas? Though, the white officials who carried out the census only cared about was why must a white child live with a black family? They took Benjamin away and was determined to never bring him back. Is Benjamin Komoties really the missing Lucas Van Rooyen?

As the story unfolds we get to see the impact all these changes had on Benjamin's