An Autobiographical Novel
By Antjie Krog
Poet Antjie Krog returns to the landscape of her childhood. The Free State plains enchant her. It is her home, and also the home of her mother, the writer Dot Serfontein.
Now in her nineties, Dot is frail and needs full-time care. However, her intellect and sense of humour remain razor-sharp. Her writing is also comparable to that of her daughter.
Relationships across racial boundaries
I came to know the country. I have enacted my life not better or worse than others. The harvest was not richer or poorer than that of others, though full of good shoots. But I knew that I was coming to die here next to the river. I came to look for it, like the elephants do.
In Blood’s Inner Rhyme, Antjie Krog breaks the boundaries between genres. She writes about this relationship that continues to fascinate and torment her. Using letters, diary entries and care-home records, the book explores creative influence, ideological disagreements and the realities of ageing.
Krog exposes the insurmountable differences between generations. At the same time, she shows the love and mutual admiration between two highly skilled writers. Beautifully and poignantly written, Blood’s Inner Rhyme delves into cultural heritage, the country’s Anglo-Boer War history, issues of land ownership and race, as well as romantic relationships across racial boundaries.
This is the story of the relationship between mother and daughter. It is Krog’s most personal book, and at the same time, her most universal.
About the author
Antjie Krog was born and grew up in the Free State. She became editor of the Afrikaans current-affairs magazine Die Suid-Afrikaan. Later, she worked as a radio journalist covering the Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings. During that time, she also wrote extensively for newspapers and journals.
She and her radio colleagues received the Pringle Award for excellence in journalism. Their award-winning coverage of the Commission hearings inspired the best-known of her three non-fiction books, Country of My Skull.
Krog has won major awards in almost all the genres and media in which she has worked. These include poetry, non-fiction, and translation. But, mainly, she has lived as a poet. Her first volume of poetry was published when she was seventeen years old. Since then, she has released thirteen volumes of poetry.
- PUBLISHER | Penguin Random House SA |
- ISBN | 9781776391813 |
- Recommended Retail Price | R360.00 |
- Classification | Novel |
