Synopses & Reviews
In this novel by celebrated South African writer Zakes Mda, Kristin Uys, a tough magistrate who lives alone with her cat in the Roodepoort district of Johannesburg, goes on a one-woman crusade to wipe out prostitution in her town. Her reasons are personal, and her zeal is fierce. Her main targets are the Visagie Brothers, Stevo and Shortie, who run a brothel, and although she fails to take down the entire establishment, she manages to nail Stevo for contempt of court, serving him a six-month sentence. From Diepkloof Prison, the outraged Stevo orchestrates his revenge against the magistrate, aided and abetted by the rather inept Shortie and his former nanny, Aunt Magda.
Kristin receives menacing phone calls and her home is invaded and vandalizedeven her cat isnt spared the threatsand the chief magistrate has no choice but to assign a bodyguard to protect her. To Kristins consternation, security guard Don Mateza moves into her home and trails her everywhere. This new arrangement doesnt suit Dons longtime girlfriend Tumi, a former model and successful businesswoman, who is intent on turning Don into a Black Diamonda member of the wealthy new black South African middle class. And Don soon finds that his new assignment has unexpected complications that Tumi simply does not understand.
In Black Diamond, Mda tackles every conceivable South African stereotype, skillfully turning them upside down and exposing their ironiesoften hilariously. This is a clever, quirky novel, in which Mda captures the essence of contemporary life in a fast-changing urban world.
Review
“As a whole, the novel's strength is . . . this new phenomenon of the socially divisive push for wealth and status. Personal wealth, Mda seems to be saying, is the new arbiter of class and privilege.”
Review
“A vibrant portrait of South Africa today.”
About the Author
Zakes Mda is professor of creative writing in the Department of English at Ohio University, and a South African novelist, poet, and playwright. His novels include Ways of Dying, The Heart of Redness, and The Sculptors of Mapungubwe, the latter also published by Seagull Books.