I happened to read this book recently and very much enjoyed the story, the style and the complexity of South Africa as a nation. Later learnt that the author won a Nobel prize for literature.
Description by Amazon: After years teaching Romantic poetry at the Technical University of Cape Town, David Lurie, middle-aged and twice divorced, has an impulsive affair with a student. The affair sours; he is denounced and summoned before a committee of inquiry. Willing to admit his guilt, but refusing to yield to pressure to repent publicly, he resigns and retreats to his daughter Lucy’s isolated smallholding.
For a time, his daughter’s influence and the natural rhythms of the farm promise to harmonise his discordant life. But the balance of power in the country is shifting. He and Lucy become victims of a savage and disturbing attack which brings into relief all the faultlines in their relationship.
First suggested: May 2013 (Richie)
Supporter(s): Richie, Nela, Adrian, Nicole, Patty, Ruby