The story is told by Mandisa, mother of Mxolisi, who has killed an (unnamed) daughter of the addressee, another (unnamed) mother. It is switched between several layers of time - Mandisa's youth around 1968, Mxolisi's youth and the present. The twelve numbered chapters feature occasional subheadings, usually consisting of times or place names and dates, all set around Gugulethu in August 1993. Among them are Mowbray and Gungululu. Only the first chapter is written as an obvious letter, in which Mandisa, the first-person speaker, directly talks to the addressee. This narrative situation is kept up again at the end, when the addressee is spoken to directly.
This content is from Wikipedia. GradeSaver is providing this content as a courtesy until we can offer a professionally written study guide by one of our staff editors. We do not consider this content professional or citable. Please use your discretion when relying on it.
