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Summary: Kaffir Boy
Review: Kaffir BoyThe book, "Kaffir Boy" was not a good book. I did not like the book. I did not like the book because of the word choice and plot. The word choice and plot in this book are not the best in quality. This book has a great amount of word choice. The writing is very descriptive. For an example, "I coughed and spit, and the spittle was all red with blood." Plus, It talks about "poop and urine" being dumped on his body. The word choice made me want to throw up. The plot in the story was ok. The story was about kid who grows up in a world of hate, so he wants to go to America. All Mark does is go to school, play tennis, deal with his dad, and run from the peri-urben. The peri-urben are what we call police. All the peri-urbin do is try to bust people for not having there passbook in order. The passbook is a little black book that the black people must have. It tells the peri-urbin if you are married, have a job, if you pay your taxes, and if you have any kids. The peri-urben gave Mark the most trouble besides his dad, who kept nagging him to become a man. My opinion and recommendation about this book are very poor. My opinion about the book is two thumbs down. I did not have a favorite part in the book. The whole book was poor. I really did not like the book. If I could change one part in the story, It would be the word choice. I would not recommend this book because I found this book to be very boring and nauseating. I felt like I was going to throw up at times. You would have to really like to read Autobiographies to read this book. I don't think people under the 7th grade should read this book. As you can see, the book Kaffir boy is not a very good book unless you like Autobiographies. This book is a really bad book and should not even be taken off of the shelves. This book is the kind of book that will put people to sleep.
Rating: 
Summary: Kaffir Boy
Review: I have never in my life felt so unaware of the world that I live in. The book intitled "Kaffir Boy" gave me an inside look to a world that I never even knew had existed. From the very first scriptures I was already being revealed to the unreal truths of life in S. Africa as a black boy. The boy in this book lets you know all about how it was growing up in the ghetto of Alexandrea. With the police brutality that was going on in his cummunity, he and his family had become acustumed to living as a 4th class citizen in their own homeland. The Aparthied government in South Africa prohibited any non-white person from leaving the ghetto without having a pass in order. If you were black and you were stopped in the city by a police officer without your pass in order, you would be arrested. His father was in the city one day looking for a new job when he got arrested for being outside of the ghetto and his pass said he was unemployed. In the eyes of the law it was a major offense if a black man was unemployed.
From nothing, he was forced to make something. His mother was the biggest motivation he ever needed to get by. It was his mother who first put him into school even thought his father didn't beleive education was important. But with an education he was able to take his life and turn it around for the good. He became more aware as he grew older that without this education his mother was trying so hard to feed to him, he would never be able to realize his biggest dreams and goals. His grandmother worked for a white lady who had a son of her own. When his grndmother came home with more and more books for him to read, he began to love the Enlgish language.
As more time passed on and the more knowledge he gained he was also getting closer and closer to his dream. His dream was to one day be set free from the Apartheid laws but he knew now that if he ever wanted to be free it would most likely not be in his home country of S. Africa. With a full scholarship granted to him because of his outstanding work through out his first years of school, he was able to go placed he had never imagined of going to. Now that he had seen passed his short horizon, he set his goals to an even bigger dream. He was preparing himself for the most unexpected pilgrimage his kind had ever taken before.
Rating: 
Summary: was he a hero, or did he leave his fmaily behind
Review: I had to read kaffir boy for school. after reading the back i was very intriged. i liked the beginning. the second section was good and the last disappointed me. at first i thought of him as a deprived boy who wanted a better life. then when he started to befriend whites and used them to his advantage i no longer liked him. the book oopened my eyes to apartheid. he did i very good job at descirbing life for him. but he was not a nice person. that made me sad for the human race. i think it is a good book to read for the sake of reading it but please do not base your desicions agauint his.
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Summary: A Revelation
Review: Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane was definitely a revelation to all the injustices that occurs in South Africa. It is hard for one to imagine that events such as police raids and people dying from poverty occur on daily basis. Even more shocking for me was realizing that the basic amenities I take for granted, are things they depend on for survival. This story for some may be depressing, yet we have to remember this is real life. To me this story was inspiring. It reminded me that if you work hard enough for your dreams and you do not let anyone dissuade you from them, you could accomplish them. Marks strength and will power is admirable. Through him, we relearn that education is the key to a better life. Overall, this book touched me deeply. With it's controversial issues and life experiences. This book is one that everyone should read and it should definitely be at the top of everyone's reading list.
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Summary: Heart wrenching story that unlocks the secrets of Apartheid!
Review: Mark Mathabane writes with such feeling that it is impossible for a human being to not be engaged in his life story. Praise to his will, struggle, never ending ambition, and sharing his gift with us by writing this wonderful book. South Africa comes alive in this book, so does the horrors of Apartheid. People should know about the endless struggle that our brothers and sister endure. This book will lead the way to that journey.
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Summary: Growing Up
Review: Growing Up The book Kaffir Boy, by Mark Mathabane is without a doubt a worthwhile read. Its unique detail and harsh reality is unparalleled by any other novel. It is the story of Johannes Mathabane, growing up in the racially unequal apartheid of South Africa. Throughout the book, he is treated under awful conditions, yet learns to persevere and comes out on top in a most heroic manner. It tells of overcoming all of the obstacles in his life - including his father, the government, and his tribal heritage. This book is not only enjoyable to read, but it is also an important book as it opens America's eyes to those less fortunate living under impossible odds. The book takes place in South Africa, where whites predominately rule. Johannes, who later changes his name to Mark, is a young boy just beginning to experience the hatred and racism in apartheid, a ghetto in Alexandra. The book starts out immediately showing the daily terror that he had to live. With constant raids, by the black police (headed by whites), Johannes soon develops a hate for all white people, as his parents have to constantly flee because their "passbooks are not in order". Things begin to go bad after his father is taken away to jail for a year. Poverty and hunger consumes their ever-increasing family. When his father returns, he is never the same. An internal struggle begins to develop within Johannes. He is torn between his father's tribal beliefs and the new changing era of schooling and Christianity. As he grows older his metamorphosis begins and a hatred starts to brew inside for his father. His mother turns his life around by enrolling him in school. He prospers greatly and begins to think differently of some whites as his exposure grows. Poverty is constant throughout the book, as is the disputes between him and his father. He makes it through school graduating the top of his class. It is after a few years of schooling that he is introduced to the sport tennis. This would be the changing moment in his life. Tennis opens his views to whites as he encounters those who want to help him succeed. He meets friends such as Andre and Stan who promise to help in fulfill his dreams. When everything seems to be going well in his life, revolts begin against the government which he quickly joins in. This disrupts his life and brings back his hate memories of whites. Although his life is chaotic during this period, he still manages to quench his thirst for knowledge and manages to excel in school and tennis. He begins winning tournaments as his metamorphosis slows almost to an end. He rebels against his fathers wishes, only to pursue his dream of going to America. Eventually he proves that he could overcome hate with his mothers love and embarks to an American college. Throughout this book, Johannes demonstrates tremendous heroic qualities in his quest for success. From the moment he is brought into the world, he is constantly defending himself and his family. He shows courage constantly during the entire story. This is demonstrated when he rebels against his father's tribal wishes, continues schooling even when it is unbearable, and when he refuses to quit playing tennis with whites even though its against the law. Another quality that Johannes has is his dedication. He refuses to quit school, because he promised his mother, and he practices tennis even when his family and political unrest go against it. He also is ambitious. He comes from a home with nothing, yet he sets high hopes and dreams and never forgets them. Also, Johannes has great resourcefulness. For his learning he was provided with very little yet he made the best of it to try and educate himself. He constantly read comics to try and prove to everyone that he is better than a "kaffir" boy. Lastly, and probably the most important quality he possesses, is that he loved his mother and never wanted to disappoint her. This was the driving force behind most of what he accomplished. All these qualities put together made Mark Mathabane a great, almost unstoppable, hero. He believed when no one else did, a very difficult yet inspiring task. This book is an unquestionable necessity for all to read. One reason is because of the rich detail that Mark was not afraid to write about. He crosses many racial borders and accurately describes the hell that he was forced to live in - such as the unsanitary conditions and constant fear. It is not a pretty book to read, as his truthfulness often leads to disturbing tales. But I emphasize its importance, because of its ability to grasp you and throw you right into this terrible world that most people wouldn't believe exists. This book is also very captivating. He makes you feel as if you are experiencing everything he did, a task which most writers aim for but fall short of. He powerfully conveys all his emotions- his stubbornness of his younger years, his anger at his father and his sadness at his torn family. Plainly spoken, it is a great story to hear. It's amazing that he was able to overcome such odds and hardship, and it inspires you to want to do something to end the racial oppression. The theme of a fallen, but not beaten hero appears throughout the entire book. It also does revert back to the old "good will always prevail over evil theme" as this presents itself in religion and racist disputes. This book is just as intoxicating as it horrific, which provides a sad but good read. When Mark Mathabane wrote "Kaffir Boy", he accomplished a great literary work, comprised of great emotion. This naked view into his life provides us with unbelievable detail. It should be appreciated not only as a book, but as his inspirational life poured onto pages. He proved to everyone that he could triumph over all the evils threatening him even if he didn't have all the necessary tools. This memoir is not to be overlooked, as his success story is like no other. He escaped degradation to accomplish his dreams. He showed heroism when it seemed unbearable and lives to this day to tell his story. This is a powerful and intensely moving story.
Rating: 
Summary: Kaffir Boy
Review: Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane is an inspiring book about a black youth's coming of age in Apartheid South Africa. It is an inspiring story about a young black boy growing up in the rat-infested ghetto of Alexandra struggling to be more than just another "kaffir" like every black man, woman, and child in Alexandra and every other ghetto in South Africa. The only life that he knew was a life of bloody gang wars, midnight police raids, and poverty and sickness. With his mother's help, he had the courage and the strength to peruse his dream of someday escaping South Africa and going to America. The theme that the author is trying to convey throughout the book is no matter how difficult things get, not to give up on the things that you want so badly. No matter how many forces are working against you, you can still accomplish your goal.
Life in Alexandra was difficult because all blacks living there had to have a job and special papers authorizing them to do so. Those who did not have the papers or were unemployed were arrested or shipped back to tribal reserves where conditions were often worse than the ghettos. Like many other families living in Alexandra, the paper's belonging to Mark's parents were not in order. Because of this, they had to flee when police raided houses. Because it was illegal to be employed without them, Mark's father was many times sent to prison. This resulted in Mark's family to be one of the poorest families in the ghetto. His mother spent all her time looking after her children and was forced to be unemployed because she didn't have the proper papers and she was illiterate. They often had to resort to dumpsters to stay alive. At times when the family managed to save money, it went towards Mark's schooling. His mother's one dream in life was that one of her children become educated and lives a "proper" life.
When Mark starts his education, because his family could afford it he learns to enjoy it. He graduates first in his class. But as the family gets deeper and deeper into debt, Mark begins to get beaten everyday in school for late payments. He was often unable to walk. His grades never sliped, but he was worn out from the beatings. Because of his mother, he didn't give up. She convinced him that without him, she would not have a will to live. His mother took a job in Alexandra (one did not need papers to work in the ghetto) to pay for his education because Mark's father proved to be no help towards him. It encouraged him to work harder than ever to prove his father wrong. He wanted Mark to give up all the "nonsense" which he called schooling and learn to accept the tribal ways. Mark was often forced to perform rituals by his father to please the tribal gods. Mark grew to hate his father and often took his mother's side in family quarrels.
Inspired by Arthur Ashe, a black tennis champion from America, Mark desperately wanted to get out of Alexandra and beat white people at their own. Mark takes up tennis as his second hobby next to reading. With the help of Saramouche (a black tennis coach) and many of his white friends, he becomes the best black player in Alexandra even though black tennis facilities were no match for those of whites. He saw tennis as "a way out." Persevering to be the best, Mark worked harder than he ever has before with the danger of people trying to murder him for playing with whites while other black children would never dream of having such a chance, someday hoping to hear from Stan Smith (a white tennis champion who won in Wimbledon with Bob Lutz) about a tennis scholarship to America.
This wonderful tale is very intense story about a boy and his struggles. The reader is deeply touched by the descriptive scenes of ghetto life. It is very inspiring to read about an indiviual, which most people thought had no chance growing up in his world of harsh laws, who never gave up. Mark Mathabane takes the reader through a journey of his life. The reader feels that he or she is sharing with Mark the hardships and the good times. It is an excellent, well written, inspiring, and very descriptive story.
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Summary: BUENO
Review: The autobiography written by Mark Mathabane displays the struggles, fears, hatred, and the constant struggle for freedom in South Africa during apartheid, which separated blacks from whites. During anytime, police raids were apparent and usual in a black ghetto, where Mark lived. Early in his life Mark developed a hatred for whites and the everlasting system of apartheid, because of these raids and how his parents conveyed their image to him. Mark's father made enough money to support a half-starving family, however once Mark's mother received a job, Mark was sent off to school. His love for literature grew, and he wanted to read constantly. The books he obtained were through a white family whom his grandmother worked for; hence Mark's hatred for whites became weaker, while his love of books became stronger. Also, the white family gave him a tennis racquet, once he learned the game, tennis was his favorite hobby, second to reading. While he was growing as an individual and intellectually, problems dealing with apartheid remained, and Mark believed strongly in freedom, his destination: America. I believe everyone who is able to read should get a copy of this because of the insight into another culture, the story of a lasting hope, and a born leader develops. Indulge yourself in the everyday problems in South Africa, where a brave, strong-minded person cries freedom.
Throughout the book in its entirety, a harsh culture like no other is revealed to the imagination of the reader. The fact that police raids were a typical occurrence in the black ghettos, invading the privacy of helpless, starving humans shows the culture as cruel, and unjust. Mark builds up a strong fear toward these police to the point that whenever he would be woken up in the night, he would ask his mother if the police were there in a frightened manner. "Lifebuoy soap, purged me of years and years of grime till I ached and bled" (Page 124). Bathing to Mark was a terrible thing for he practiced it once every few years because his family did not know the pleasures of cleanness, nor did they have the money. Constant starvation faced Mark and his family day after day, week after week. The white people whom his father worked for were cruel and treated his as though he was a slave, just to receive enough to feed an inadequate amount of food to the hungry mouths of his family.
Regardless of every hardship that faced Mark, he still grasped hope. When he was just a boy, he would listen to his mother's tales and would pull from them a meaningful moral as he aged. He learned to love peace instead of hate, honesty instead of deceiving, and hope instead of fear. As Mark was educated, his intelligence devoted his soul to books, and he believed they would carry him out of the hateful country into a better land. News of a "Promise Land" arrived when he heard the equality of people in America, and the fairness. He began tennis, excelled, loved, and mastered the game. High hopes for America had risen at this point when he knew he had the smartness, and the ability to play a sport well, potentially leading his to freedom. The only obstacle was money.
A natural leader Mark was, and this quality proved to be his best throughout the novel. Showing Mark's independence in his decisions, early on in his life he was faced with a grotesque dilemma. His friends sold their bodies sexually, for food and money. However, Mark was strong-willed and declined regardless of how poor his family was, and how much the pain of hunger was pleading. He fled from the scene as an individual while his friends stayed a group. A quote from him says, "I was not prepared to prostitute myself for food or money. I would rather have died than do that" (Page 74). In school Mark became top of his class in grades, he continued to rise as a natural born leader. Hard work was invariably performed, and Mark received top of his class for several more years. His involvement with whites grew as his love for tennis grew, infuriating blacks all around him. Many called him "Uncle Sam" in mockery, and threatened to kill him. Mark did not break the friendships he had made to appease his own race, he didn't understand why blacks and whites could not live as one, so he simply researched America more. The desire to live in America flourished in Mark's mind, and he needed to leave the madness, which infested his native country.
Mark's destination: America, but his problem is learning how to get there. Kaffir Boy is a book intended for those who want to read of a leader, and an individual struggling to win the one aspect of life he wants most...freedom. The novel is meant for serious readers who want a book of a different type of world as well. Learn about the harsh, unpleasant style of living that Mark called his childhood, and read about how he manages to depart from this terrible place.
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Summary: It changed me
Review: History has always been my most hated subject. Text book after text book informing me with important dates and facts which always seem so cold and heartless. The year we studided the Civil war I wanted to understand and feel what it had been like for the young men sent to fight on the front lines. However with a sentence like "the men ranged in age from eighteen to thirty" it was difficult. Kaffir Boy changed the way i felt about history. This book not only made the history of Apartheid come to life in my eyes but it ignited feeling and passion inside of me as i read each page. Discriptions like "With almost three years of constant police terror behind me i had now become, at seven years old, so conditioned to expecting predawn police raids that each time my mother awakened me in the middle of the night, i would spring up and ask, Are they here?" painted a vivid picture of this young boy, Mark's horror and confusion at the age of seven. I could not have put it down even if i wanted to. To this day Kaffir Boy is a part of me. I fell in love with this little boy who made the phase "never give up" come to life. This book has a soul and you will feel it when you read it. I have told all my friends and family that this is a must read, and i feel that now i should tell you. If you dont read this book you will truly miss out on somthing amazing.
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Summary: The One That Got Away.........
Review: Mark Mathabane's book Kaffir Boy is deeply harsh and emotional. We see this firsthand in the name. Kaffir is an infidel, a derrogatory remark, much in the same context as words derived from slavery in America. From the preface to the last injustice, this novel has more shock value than even the most twisted erotica. If we were reading an account from post-civil war America this story would fit perfectly, however, the book is a true account that occured in the 1970s in South Africa. Mathabane describes the incredible strength and wisdom of his mother and her determination for her children to get an education. The injustices that the families face are heartbreaking. Mark Mathabane is one of millions that broke out of the system and the story is not finished. Kaffir Boy in America is the sequel, and another must-read. To read this book and not feel impacted by how much we take for granted is to be inhuman.
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