Customer Reviews

Empire Settings: A Novel

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Empire Settings is a moving and poignant account of forbidden love in a copuntry torn apart by aparthied in the 1970s. It is also a story of a jewish family and the main charachter, Danny Divin's, struggle to find peace with him self and his history. I love that this author was able to write so sensitively and brilliantly about women, in particular women of color in South Africa. The characters in the novel each tell thier story from their own point of view about their experiences of living under apartheid and their own powerlessness to change the political situation. The book is so beautifully written that I instantly became involved with the characters to a point that I did not want the book to end. I look forward to reading more work by this first time author.

I bought this book on a whim, mainly because I have an abiding interest in South Africa. What I found was an exquisitiely written, deeply felt, and historically accurate account of a forbidden relationship in apartheid-era South Africa -- and of adult reconciliation with lost love. I would recommend this novel highly to any aficionado of things South African -- or of beautiful novels. I look forward to his sequel.

I also met David at a book reading for his new book, Nibble and Kuhn. I found both books to be wonderful, but where Nibble and Kuhn was a light-hearted, satiric jab at the legal profession, I sense this book was amazingly personal. It has a lot of emotion in it - not only the romantic story, but about growing up with apartheid, of losing one's country and the longing for that loss. It's well worth reading. Nelson Mandela reviewed it and thought it worthwhile as well.

I am eager to see if future fiction from Mr. Schmahmann has the same very personal voice as this first novel. Although the voices of each narrator is done well, the main character's voice was especially convincing and moving. Definitely high in my ranking of books by emigres, and at least as much about growing up and being dislocated over time as it is about the love story. If you are feeling jaded and bored with the same topical material being used by every book, radio interview, movie and magazine, check this book out.

I know the author from having opposed him in court (I'm a lawyer, too). I'm also a writer who doesn't like to see authors trashed by people who make false assumptions, as one reviewer made. As anyone who has ever held a conversation with him would know, David is from South Africa, and his voice is authentic.

This is a wonderfully moving, bittersweet story, told with an authentic and honest voice. All the characters became absolutely real in the telling of the story. The author captures the complexity of emotions felt by South African emigres as well as anyone I've read. (He also captures the feel of Durban so exactly that I got a slight shock when I looked up from the book and saw my own back yard.) The main character's coming to terms with himself and his past brought tears to my eyes. I can't wait for Schmahmann's next book!

Five narrators give their spin on Durban, South Africa, during apartheid and after, when they have all gone their separate ways. Three of the narrators are members of the Divin family--mother Helga and her two children, Danny and Bridget. The other two are Baptie, the Divins' servant, and Santi, the daughter of a neighbor's servant. I liked this format and found each new perspective enlightening. Danny has 2 segments, and in the second one, the story lagged a bit as it sank into the cliché of a forbidden love story (with Santi). However, the exuberant finale brought me back to a solid thumbs-up. Another character whose story could/should have been included was that of Tesseba, who meets Danny on a bus after his U.S. visa has expired and volunteers to marry him so that he can avoid deportation. Also noteworthy is the fact that the Divins, particularly Helga, are well-known proponents of social reform. Paradoxically, their servants' quarters are in serious disrepair and among the least inhabitable in the neighborhood, while Silas Divin struggles financially as an exporter during the U.S. embargo. After his death, Helga marries the wealthy, arrogant Arnold, who makes frequent generous offers with no intention of actually making good on them. At least we can rely on him for a little comic relief, until he enlists Danny's help in the dangerous and illegal mission of getting Helga's inheritance out of South Africa.

I know the author from having opposed him in court (I'm a lawyer, too). I'm also a writer who doesn't like to see authors trashed by people who make false assumptions, as one reviewer made. s anyone who has evr held a conversation with him would know, David is from South Africa, and his voice is authentic.

Empire Setting is one those very rare books that makes you feel "warm inside". It is simply magical!

It capture the emotions of humanity in a South African Setting.
It is written by an author who is gifted with an extremely fluid and natural style.

I feel lucky to have stumbled on this book. It definitely rates in the "cannot put it down" category and It goes right to the TOP of my list for gift giving this holiday season

David's voice of his characters are true, his voice is true and this nobel is incredibly honest. For all you out there who havent read empire settings, do so now.