Review of This September Sun by Melinda Travis
This September Sun by Bryony Rheam Recent years have seen a great proliferation of books about Africa, especially Zimbabwe. It seems that just about every ex-farmer, ex-Rhodesian soldier and ‘Whenwe’ Zimbabwean has written their life story. News of yet another book about this troubled nation might not then be greeted with much enthusiasm. However, what sets This September Sun apart from your standard Zimbabwean novel, is that firstly it is a work of fiction, and secondly, it focuses mainly on the relationship between a young girl growing up in Zimbabwe post-Independence and her grandmother, the incorrigible Evelyn, who moved to Rhodesia in the late forties. Evelyn is no ordinary grandmother. She leaves her husband and moves into a flat by herself after years of being a housewife and stuck in an unhappy marriage. She finds a job and a boyfriend and gains a new lease on life, but it is one ...