There are a handful of standout South African fiction novels that demand to be read – and Hum If You Don’t Know the Words by Bianca Marais is undoubtedly one of them.

Powerful and unforgettable, Marais takes an unflinching look at apartheid South Africa, anchoring her story in the pivotal Soweto Uprising of June 16, 1976. At the heart of the novel are two deeply human stories, skilfully intertwined.

We meet ten-year-old Robin Conrad, a white girl whose sheltered suburban world is shattered when her parents are killed in the chaos of the uprising. Parallel to her is Beauty Mbali, a Xhosa woman from a rural Transkei village, desperately searching for her daughter, who vanished after joining the student protests.

This is a heart-wrenching coming-of-age tale, as both characters, scarred by grief, forge an unlikely alliance in the face of systemic hatred and fear. Thrust into the underground world of the resistance, Robin and Beauty must confront not only the brutal world around them, but also their own biases and search for identity.

Marais writes with empathy and nuance, crafting a story that is as emotionally rich as it is historically grounded. This is a novel that lingers, long after the final page.

Publisher: Penguin Random House South Africa (2017).

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