Books of the Week: May 6, 2013

Every week, ZODML spotlights three great books from our extensive collection to inspire readers to try out books they might not have previously heard of. The selections fall under three major categories – fiction, non-fiction and children and young adult literature – so there’s a book to suit every taste. Also check out our archives and see which books have been selected in the past.  
Fiction: Mine Boy by Peter Abrahams Mine Boy is about love and race and highlights the racial discrimination and prejudices that existed in South African society before the official implementation of apartheid in 1948. The story revolves around Xuma, who has migrated from his village in the north of the country to Johannesburg in search of a job in the mines, as he goes through one heartbreak after another. Non-fiction: Precolonial Black Africa by Cheikh Anta Diop A comparison of the political and social systems of Europe and black Africa from antiquity to the formation of modern states by one of the continent's most noted thinkers, Precolonial Black Africa examines the black contribution to the development of Western civilization. Children and Young Adults: Weep Not, Child by Ngugi Wa Thiong'o In the forests of Kenya, the Mau Mau are waging war against the white government, and two brothers, Njoroge and Kamau, and the rest of their family, must decide where their loyalties lie. For the practical man, the choice is simple, but for Njoroge the scholar, the dream of progress through learning is a hard one to give up.