As an Italian writer who has published her South African-based novel The Afrikaner  while living in Canada (Guernica Editions, Toronto, 2019), I am particularly eager to receive feedback from South African and Canadian readers. Thus, I am grateful to fiction editor Tracy Buenk from Durban, South Africa and independent writer Vernice Shostal from British Columbia for their thoughtful feedback.

“Landscapes and characters come to life in the detailed descriptions and fast-paced story of The Afrikaner. For me, the greatest achievement of this novel is Arianna Dagnino’s excellent grasp of the complex relationship between the South African cultures. A memorable and moving book” (Tracy Buenk, Fiction Editing | Reader’s Reports, )

“I found The Afrikaner an amazing work of fiction and perhaps some non-fiction, which took a look at contemporary issues in the new South Africa. The personal life of the character, Zoey, and the people she is associated with, leave the reader with a feeling of hope toward a humanitarian consciousness and resolving past issues, including her own past superstitions; however, perhaps, like First Nation people in Canada, who were also betrayed by colonialism, the novel showed that not all black South Africans are able to quickly forgive the past. The imagery in the novel presents the country of South Africa as a living, breathing soul, albeit a parched and harried one” (Vernice Shostal, independent writer)

The Afrikaner: https://blogs.ubc.ca/afrikaner/
https://www.guernicaeditions.com/title/9781771833578

It is always a special honour to receive the appreciation of a fellow writer for one’s work.

The Canadian writer Chantal Garand, author of the novel Natalia Z. (Annika Parance Editeur, Montréal, 2018), which will also appear in Norwegian translation in 2020, has agreed to let me publish the letter she sent me after having read my novel The Afrikaner.

Two words stand out in Chantal’s comments: “discomfort” and “trust”. In my view, these two words encapsulate what writing is all about.

Chantal has written her letter in French, the language in which she creatively writes, although her English is as good. I have provided an English translation of the text (original French text follows).

Dear Arianna,

I have just finished reading “The Afrikaner” and I want to express the pleasure I had in reading your novel. The characters’ stories are captivating and skillfully express the torments and dilemmas experienced by South Africans in the post-apartheid period. I lived 4 years in South Africa, always with the impression of living in a cocoon, totally excluded from what the different layers/cultures of this troubled society are going through. I’ve never been able to penetrate people’s souls like you have.

Your novel shows admirable sensitivity and evocative power. Having so finely described the discomfort that is palpable among South Africans, I can tell you did not waste your time during your stay in this country. You have certainly succeeded in connecting with people who have trusted you enough to let you explore what they are trying to understand themselves. Congratulations, your novel is a great success and has the merit of not making easy judgments.

Chantal Garand

Chère Arianna,

Je viens de terminer la lecture de The Afrikaner et je veux vous exprimer le plaisir que j’ai eu à lire votre roman. L’histoire des personnages est captivante et est habilement intégrée aux tourments et dilemmes ressentis par les sud-aficains en période post-apartheid. J’ai vécu 4 ans en Afrique du Sud, toujours avec l’impression de vivre dans un cocon, totalement exclue de ce que vivent les différentes couches/cultures de cette population troublée. Je n’ai jamais réussi à pénétrer l’âme des gens comme vous l’avez fait.

Votre roman démontre une sensibilité et une force d’évocation admirables. Pour avoir si finement décrit l’inconfort qui est palpable chez les sud-aficains, je constate que vous n’avez pas perdu votre temps pendant votre séjour dans ce pays. Vous avez certainement réussi à vous lier avec des gens qui vous ont fait suffisamment confiance pour vous laisser explorer ce qu’ils tentent eux-même de comprendre. Bravo, votre roman est une belle réussite et a le mérite de ne pas porter de jugement facile.

Chantal Garand

Arianna Dagnino, “The Afrikaner” (Guernica Editions, Toronto, 2019): https://www.amazon.com/Afrikaner-Essential-Prose-Arianna-Dagnino/dp/1771833572

Chantal Garand, “Natalia Z.” (Annika Parance, Montréal, 2018): https://www.apediteur.com/litterature/livre/natalia-z

How much science can there be in fiction and, at the same time, how much fiction (that is, creative imagination) can there be in science?

A new – rather controversial – study conducted by Australian scientists on mitochondrial DNA claims that the birthplace of modern humans might be in Botswana. This would confirm recent theories that the cradle of modern humanity lies in Southern Africa rather than in Eastern Africa.

This is also what paleoanthropologist Zoe du Plessis, the main character of my novel “The Afrikaner” (Guernica, Toronto, 2019), tries to prove with her fieldwork in the Desert of the Kalahari at the border between northern Namibia and southern Botswana.

References:

“The birthplace of modern humans might be in Botswana” (Australia Science)

“Ancestral home of modern humans is in Botswana, study finds” (The Guardian)

“Controversial new study pinpoints where all modern humans arose” (National Geographic)

“Humanity’s birthplace: why everyone alive today can call northern Botswana home” (Phys.org)

“The Afrikaner. A Novel” (Guernica Editions, Toronto, 2019)

Interesting podcast interview with leadership coach Sabina Nawaz about storytelling able to make things “memorable.”
Nawaz aptly remarks that “A story can engage a thousand neurons” and can get us “at the emotional level”: That’s what creates “retention.”
So, let’s hope that creative writing people and storytellers out there (mostly struggling to make a living) have a new role to play in the future of corporate world executives.
The problem is: do “leaders” have a “true” story to tell? And are people smart enough to understand when something is “made up” in order to be liked, coat the pill or sell what one has to sell?
Now more than ever it’s fundamental to include in the picture, as Sabina does in the final part of her interview, the moral stance of “telling the truth,” even when this is just the one-sided, partial truth an individual can be accountable for.

I have just added to my ever longer reading list the book by Gene Bétit “Collective Amnesia: American Apartheid — African American’s 400 Years in North America, 1619-2019.”

Collective Amnesia: American Apartheid is a comprehensive study of the treatment African Americans have encountered since their arrival in Virginia in 1619, a saga of racism and white supremacy. It is actual history, not the popular mythology about the Civil War and its aftermath taught in our schools. Numerous tables, photographs, maps, and charts make the study easy to read. The topic is extremely pertinent due to the four hundredth anniversary of African Americans’ presence in North America in 2019 and encouragement of racism from the White House.

Chapters cover white supremacy and racism, slavery, the service of US Colored Troops in the Civil War, devastation of the South, evolution of emancipation, and Reconstruction and the Freedman’s Bureau. Other chapters address “redemption” and the “lost cause,” Jim Crow, blacks’ significant military contributions in the two world wars, the Great Migration, the civil rights movement, and the backlash that continues today.

The book also addresses contemporary issues, including white supremacy, Confederate statuary, and evaluates the status of blacks compared to other groups in society. Note is taken of Professor James Whitman’s observation that Hitler admired Jim Crow and antimiscegenation laws, as well as Richard Rothstein’s study of federal and local housing law, documenting whites’ responsibility for creating inner-city ghettos.

“The Hubris of Public and Personal History in The Afrikaner by Arianna Dagnino” – A Review by Hollay Ghadery

“Zoe’s stagnancy is a fascinating reflection of the seeming impossibility of finding closure amidst the disparate beliefs and attitudes in post-colonial West Africa. It’s hard to forgive. It’s hard to forget. It can feel impossible to move forward,” writes Hollay Ghadery in her thoughtful and thought-provoking review of “The Afrikaner”, which she finds “as surprising as any contemporary post-colonial novel I could imagine.” You can read the whole review here: http://www.riverstreetwriting.com/blog/review-the-afrikaner

I absolutely loved doing this interview with Allan Hudson @ South Branch Scribbler. The 4Q format he developed allows to dig into what leads a writer to write the way s/he does. I am grateful for Allan’s attention towards and appreciation of my work. Find the whole interview here.

With Los Angeles-based, South African-born actor Dennis Kleinman (www.aworldvoice.com) we have started working on an audiobook version of my novel “The Afrikaner”.