(reviewed by JD Jung)
“She’s pregnant with a domestic worker’s son, who has matric but whose skill is drug peddling. How did she get herself into this?”
Her parents want to control the situation, but Farhana doesn’t know what she wants.
“Why an Indian girl? He could easily have found a good Zulu girl. Indians are such racists.”
Flora has been Henry Joseph’s maid for years, but little does she know what her son does for a living. She does want him to do the right thing and marry Farhana, a Muslim Indian.
Former teacher Henry Joseph never stopped grieving over the death of his wife and can barely function emotionally. He is ignorant of the goings-on of his drug-addicted daughter Catherine and doesn’t even realize that she is regularly stealing money from him.
When he does discover that money is missing, Catherine accuses Runyararo, the Joseph’s painter. Mr. Joseph believes his daughter and fires him. Runyararo just wants to make enough money to send to his sisters in Zimbabwe. Adding to that, he and Flora are infatuated with each other, but neither is aware of the other’s feelings.
After he loses his job, Runyararo’s partner finds them a new job, working for a powerful drug dealer. Runyararo doesn’t know what their boss does for a living, nor does he want to know.
“The houses they pass look like traps. The promising gates and entrances are bait, drawing in dreams and locking them up behind burglar bars. Earning money in this way won’t provide any sense of calm. He’ll be stuck, either in one of these houses or in jail.”
Everyone’s lives intersect and all comes to a head when Catherine is kidnapped, and Mr. Joseph is barely aware of her absence.
It sounds like there’s a lot going on here, but not really. It’s easy to follow and the reader stays engaged, wondering how it’s all going to come together.
Outside the Lines takes us through the dark streets of Johannesburg as we experience the lives from each character’s perspective. The story explores issues of race, class, culture and immigration. Individually, each character is lost among lies while trying to maintain proper appearances.
This character-driven story doesn’t compromise on plot, which is laid out meticulously. It is well-written with graphic descriptions, while the characters are unforgivable and realistic.
Highly recommended.
