I Write the Yawning Void

Now in her eighties, Dr Sindiwe Magona was first published aged 50, and has since then been prolific. Her social consciousness is profound and unapologetic and her wisdom can be found throughout the collection. In “Do Not Choose Poverty”, Magona uses her own experience of a hard but triumphant life to deconstruct the belief that poverty prevents success. “Why I Wrote Mother to Mother” recounts how Magona came to write about the death of American Fulbright scholar Amy Biehl, after discovering that the mother of one of the young killers was a childhood friend. And in “We Are All Racists!”, she challenges us to overcome the long-lasting effects of discrimination. Magona writes to shine a light on hard truths. Or, as she says, “I write the books I wish were not necessary – books for which there was no need.”