The Arrowing of the Cane Author:John Conyngham A series of fires on his sugar plantation in South Africa and the discovery of an ancestor's Boer War diary force James Colville to face the disturbing contradictions of his privileged life and his pragmatic liberalism. John Conyngham skillfully presents Colville's problems with arsonists, alcohol, painful romances, and his intense inner... more » turmoil as the mirror image of a society approaching its death watch.
This prize-winning first novel focuses on the accountability caused by the passage of time; it is steeped with mood and superbly evocative imagery. Timely and thought-provoking, this searing novel by a major new talent captures the essence of a man and a nation on the edge of the final cataclysm.
John Conyngham is a sub-editor on the Natal Witness newspaper in South Africa and the winner of the 1988 Olive Schreiner Prize.« less