Book Title: Dream Again
By: Brian Jones
Publishers: Kwela Books (Cape Town)
The title of this novel is curious, because when it captures the madness of the liberation struggle of Africa and the shattered dreams of freedom fighters, it also explores the internal political disputes during the struggle and the violence unleashed by the colonizers. He reveals the hypocrisy of the new leaders and the neglect of those who want to free themselves. An example is the ongoing suppression of democracy in sub-Saharan Africa in Swaziland. A sad reminder that modern rulers can cause more harm to their citizens, worse than the colonialists ever imagined.
The interaction with Jones is intense and the text makes us think about the shortcomings of our own post-apartheid era. You will be forgiven for thinking that Jones is South African, in fact he is Namibian. But his book could be read by anyone in Africa who would still be familiar with it.
Jones takes us through the life of Karem, a former freedom fighter and exile. Karem’s life is set against one of the greatest continental upheavals of the 20th century, a period in which Africa freed itself from colonial rule in order to set off on the slippery road to independence.
In particular, the novel is a sociological analysis of poor subjects of post-independent states in Africa. This may just be indicative of anyone trying to understand modern Africa and South Africa. This is more than just a novel, one of those fictional works that can play a role in restoring our history, not in what is happening, but in kindling fires that are already occurring in parts of South Africa, such as the provinces of the Free State, Mpumalanga, and the North-West, where expectations are ahead of delivery. Upcoming uprisings in Africa, which were condemned as a result of changes to the statute in Tunisia and Egypt, show that Jones is crying for Africa to dream again.
However, the Jones storyline is one reader. The young man was born in the countryside. He is sent to a boarding school, where his political consciousness is tuned. After a spell in prison, he leaves the country for Britain. Later, he returns home (after his release) with a British girlfriend who does not stand the heat in Africa and returns. Suddenly he meets with childish love. At this point, the story fails, they get married and live happily and always.
If you like the TV drama Molo Fish or read Frantz Fanon "Wretched on the Earth", you can find this book boring. Or you could say that the book of Brian Jones is the fictional form of "The Wretched of the Earth."
