Semi-Review: 'Coconut' by Kopano Matlwa
Two weeks ago, I embarked on a beautiful journey of reading "Coconut" by Kopano Matlwa. I heard about the novel from Anele's real talk show when Terry Pheto was talking about her plans of turning the book into a movie. I pestered my dad to buy me a copy, being the awesome dad that he is, he did.
I didn't over think the topic as the title might give away before I actually started reading the book. And I found myself turning most pages with my mouth wide open, thinking ''Oh no!! they didn't say/do that''. I appreciate Kopano for being so raw in her writing.
The book takes you through the lives of two young black ladies in a post-apartheid setting. We journey through what I came to sympathize on their behalf as identity crisis in a post apartheid 'rainbow nation'. Both of these ladies come from different ends of the socio-economic status. The first young lady Ofilwe, grows up from the suburbs, in a wealthy family. Her family lived the kind of life that 'normal' black people rarely experience. The kind of life they probably die wishing to have lived. And when we draw closer to Ofilwe's life, the book uncovers deep-seated identity struggles. Where Ofilwe finds herself in a world where she can never fully belong to because of the color of her skin. And on the other scale of the socio-economic status, the book introduces Fikile. Also bearing her own struggles, where she has been poor most of her life which made her wish to be 'white'so badly. Fikile's life tackles different issues of sexual abuse and racism which she barely even notices. Despite how different these ladies are and as much as they hail from different ends of the economical state, we see one commonality. Which is the identity struggle which can be summed up so well by the following extracts from the book:
"You will find, Ofilwe, that the people you strive so hard to be like will one day reject you because as much as you may pretend, you are not one of their own. Then you will turn back, but there too you will find no acceptance, for those you once rejected will no longer recognize the thing you have become. So far, too far to return. So much, too much you have changed. Stuck between two worlds, shunned by both"
"I am tired of looking around, in the mirror, at my legs and my hands, wondering when they will be different"
The book highlights, serious issues that we don't normally hold conversations about at the dinner table. Issues which are often discussed only behind closed doors. The humour of course makes it possible to read the book in a week if you are a natural slow reader without taking any offense. Get yourself a copy and your soul will thank you for that. Another thing I appreciate about the book is the relevance of the topics at hand even in 2016. The term "Coconut" still 'roams freely at school halls, offices and even the township streets'. Coconut is a book about the quest for identity, it's about striving to belong to a place sometimes at the cost of your own identity. And learning that you still don’t fit quite well. And now, that’s a tragedy that most black people have either struggled from or still struggling with.
If that doesn’t convince you to buy the book, I hope letting you know that it is only R185 at Exclusive Books will. Just R185, written by a South African!! What more can you ask for?
