JOURNEY TO JO'BURG

C.M. Smith narrates this 1986 novel documenting the era of South African racial segregation. Thirteen-year-old Naledi and her brother journey from their rural village to distant Johannesburg to bring their mother home to save their dying baby sister. Naledi's voice is determined and steady, matching her decisive and caring personality. In Jo'burg, they meet Grace, who shelters them in her Soweto home because staying in the white neighborhood where their mother works as a maid is a crime. Grace is kind, but Smith gives her a strong, forceful voice when she speaks about the egregious injustices of apartheid. This contrasts with the wary tone of their mother, who worries about retaining her job. All the characters speak English with their native Tswana accent. Adults may need to explain to young listeners that apartheid in South Africa ended in 1994. L.T. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2020]