The Sunday Mail
BEYOND THE COVER by Andrew Moyo
I had my first encounter with South African literature back in high school when I read Sandra Braude’s “Mpho’s Search”, which I think is a brilliant work of art.
Over the years, I have come across several other books from south of the Limpopo with various themes that range from effects of apartheid to the present day hustle of the ordinary South African. Some of the writers have been able to intricately deal with most of the issues that affect South African citizens.
Luz van Dijk’s “Themba: A Boy Called Hope”, is one of the books I have read that shed light on the issue of HIV and AIDS and the stigma surrounding the disease.
The reason why I decided to review this is because the story does not only speak about the South African situation with regards to this virus but rather, it relates to situations in other countries, Zimbabwe included.
This work is not only entertaining but has a deeper message that is appealing, no wonder why the story was adopted as a movie. The book tells the story of Themba, a rural boy who grows up with the dream of being a soccer star but the road towards his goal is not smooth.
Despite living with HIV and AIDS, Themba still manages to scale greater heights in sport, earning a place in the national soccer team where he is one of the star players. At the beginning of the book, the protagonist has already made it in life and making use of first person narration, he tells the story of how he reached this point.
Growing up, Themba lived in poverty with his mother and younger sister but when his mother loses her job, she migrates to the city in search of work, leaving the two kids behind.
When things become tough, the two siblings end up venturing into the city to look for their mother who has stopped sending them letters. Although things are not working out well in the early years of the protagonist’s life, football becomes the avenue, which he uses to vanquish poverty.
Even after success, there are secrets that continue to haunt him, and he constantly struggles with the idea of opening up to someone about his situation.
In a world where people living with HIV and AIDS are stigmatised, it is difficult for individuals to speak out about their status or even accepting the fact that they have to live with the disease for the rest of their lives.
This book does not only give a broad perspective on people living with the disease, but also gives awareness to other people’s need to accept their affected friends and family members.
Van Dijk did not just pen an extraordinary piece of fiction, his work is also a significant contribution in the fight against stigma. This story is gripping and evokes varying feelings throughout, with the writer intertwining poverty, grief, hope, success, secrecy and isolation among other things.
This would be a great read for anyone who loves reading inspirational literature as the writer takes us through the journey of a young dreamer who manages to succeed amid adversity.
