Synopses & Reviews
Jack Viljees hometown of Johannesburg is still divided by apartheid, though the old order is starting to crumble. According to eleven-year-old Jack, the world is a rational and simple place. But if life doesnt conform to Jacks expectations, there is always the sympathy and approval of the familys maid to console him. Not that Susie is a pushover. She believes violence, of the nondisfiguring variety, is a healthy form of affection—hence her not infrequent expression “Jack, I love you so much. I will hit you.” Jack himself is not above socking his best friend in the eye or scamming his little sister into picking up the dog mess. The Viljee household, in its small way, mirrors the politics of the country.
This noisy domesticity is upset by the arrival of Susies fifteen-year-old son. Percy is bored, idle, and full of rage. When Percy catches Jack in an indelibly shameful moment, Jack learns that the smallest act of revenge has consequences beyond his imagining. The world, it turns out, is not so simple.
Subversively smart and unapologetically funny, clever and a little dangerous, The Dubious Salvation of Jack V. explores the cost of forgiveness. It is a powerful debut from a fearlessly original voice.
Review
“Strauss juggles Salvations many elements with such apparent ease that its not immediately obvious what a feat hes pulling off.”---The Portland Mercury
“Honest…Compelling…[Youll] laugh out loud in the face of darkness.”---The Literary Review
“Strauss writes with poise and comic timing….His highly enjoyable novel reads more as inspired memoir, so adroit is the telling.”---The Irish Times (Dublin)
“A terrific read. Its smart, charming, funny, highly astute, and subtly political. Its set in Johannesburg, but the story could map onto life anywhere.”---Douglas Coupland, author of Generation X
“Childhood innocence can be hilarious. And brutal. Jacks move from bystander to oppressor breaks up everything....A searing debut.”---Booklist
Synopsis
Winner of the Commonwealth Regional Prize, Africa For eleven-year-old Jack Viljee, apartheid Johannesburg is a rational and simple place. Whether hes picking fights with his little sister or fretting over his possibly gay best friend, Jack can always depend upon Susie, his familys black maid, for a word of sympathy and approval. The Viljee household, in its small way, mimics the politics of South Africa. But Jacks little world is upset by the arrival of Percy, Susies teenaged son. When Percy catches Jack in a shameful moment, Jack discovers that even small acts of revenge can have unimaginable consequences. Subversively smart and unapologetically funny, Jacques Strauss's The Dubious Salvation of Jack V. is a powerful debut from a fearlessly original voice.
About the Author
Jacques Strauss is a thirty-year-old South African. He studied philosophy at university, obsessed over Derrida, and now writes reams of corporate copy for a London firm.