September 11, 2004
We Read
This trio of books seems perfectly timed in our lives. Right in the thick
of our thoughts about culture, rural poverty, development, evangelism,
education, and agriculture, along come three potent stories that wrestle
with all these issues. And they were “page turners” to boot!
• Alan Paton, Cry the Beloved Country. The story of a black African priest
and his search for family members lost in the labyrinthine frenzy of
Johannesburg. In a hopeful, moving way, it illuminates and mourns the
problems of early 20th century South Africa: racism, urban population
pressure, crime.
• Kamala Markandaya, Nectar in a Sieve. Written from the perspective of a
poor tenant farmer’s wife, Markalaya’s novel is rich in imagery and the
experience of poverty. A powerful love story, it also provides some idea of
what it is like to live off the land, feasting when it yields and starving
when it rebels.
• Shusaku Endo, Silence. Novel about a Portuguese priest during the heavy
persecution of Christians in 17th century Japan. A gripping story of
belief, doubt, suffering, and cross-cultural complications.
