Children of Sugarcane

Children of Sugarcane is a triumph. Joanne Joseph crafts compelling historical fiction while skilfully exposing the intergenerational wounds caused by the British empire’s project of colonialism. The novel centres on Shanti, a formidable heroine whose journey thrusts us into the horrors of indentured labour at the Colony of Natal during the nineteenth century. Ultimately, this is a well-written, intriguing epic about love and reconciliation, whose historical context amplifies a message of hope, resistance and resilience.