Not all whites in South Africa are outright racists. Some, like Bam and Maureen Smales in Nadine Gordimer's thrilling and powerful novel July's People, are sensitive to the plights of blacks during the apartheid state. So imagine their quandary when the blacks stage a full-scale revolution that sends the Smaleses scampering into isolation. The premise of the book is expertly crafted; it speaks much about the confusing state of affairs of South Africa and serves as the backbone for a terrific adventure.


The New York Times Book Review, Anne Tyler
July's People demonstrates with breathtaking clarity the tensions and complex interdependencies between whites and blacks in South Africa. It is so flawlessly written that every one of its events seems chillingly, ominously possible.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

For years, it had been what is called a "deteriorating situation." Now all over South Africa the cities are battlegrounds. The members of the Smales family - liberal whites - are rescued from the terror by their servant, July, who leads them to refuge in his village. What happens to the Smaleses and to July - the shifts in character and relationships - gives us an unforgettable look into the terrifying, tacit understandings and misunderstandings between blacks and whites.

FROM THE CRITICS

Anne Tyler - The New York Times Books of the Century, reviewed June 7, 1981

On a superficial level, this is a wonderful adventure story. . . .On a deeper level. . .[the book] is much more than another survival story. . . .July's People . . .is so flawlessly written that every one of its events seems chillingly, ominously possible.

Anne Tyler