Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton

Cry, the Beloved Country

Alan Paton

1948

312 pp.

First line: "There is a lovely road that runs from Ixopo into the hills."

Isn't that just a great first line? I love it, and I think it is a great example of the prose style of this book. Paton had a great voice. This was a wonderful book. The powerful story was supplemented with these great bursts of lyrical exposition that helped to describe the setting and set the scene. I got this book in a big box of Oprah books, most of which I have passed on without reading. I am really glad I read this one.

One of the passages from which the book gets its title:

"Cry, the beloved country, for the unborn child that is the inheritor of our fear. Let him not love the earth too deeply. Let him not laugh too gladly when the water runs through his fingers, nor stand too silent when the setting sun makes red the velt with fire. Let him not be too moved when the birds of his land are singing, nor give too much of his heart to a mountain or a valley. For fear will rob him of all if he gives too much." (p.111)

Great description of what can drive a person to apathy and one of my favorite passages:

"There are many sides to this difficult problem. And people persist in dicussing soil-erosion, and tribal decay, and lack of schools, and crime, as though they were all parts of the matter. If you think long enough about it, you will be brought to consider republics, and bilingualism, and immigration, and Palestine, and God knows what. So in a way it is best not to think about it at all." (p.224)

Overall, a 5-star book. Probably my favorite of the year or close to it. I think this is my third book about South Africa this year. The others were Forgive Me by Amanda Eyre Ward and July's People by Nadine Gordimer.