Bokkie

by Toeckey Jones

Sam is eighteen when he meets Pixie and instantly falls head-over-heels in love. She is an artist and a free spirit in her twenties. Their relationship is passionate and deep, although Sam finds it hard to understand Pixie - especially her unwillingness to talk about the portrait of a young boy that hangs on the wall of her bedroom and the haunted look in her eyes whenever Sam mentions it. It is only when Sam discovers the tragic story of Pixie's childhood that he is able to appreciate what the portrait means to her. But their love for each other now faces a major new challenge and threat as Pixie refuses to conform to the racist laws of Apartheid. This is a new edition of the award-winning love story, that also provides fascinating insights into life in South Africa at two different stages of its racist history, and includes a post-Apartheid Epilogue. AWARDS: TSB Best Book Award South East Arts Award Nominated for a Writers' Guild of Great Britain Best Book Awar

238 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1995

About the author

Todd Kingsley-Jones was born and grew up in South Africa.

After graduating from university, he worked as a journalist. In 1971 he left South Africa. Having settled in London, he held down various jobs; in race relations, magazine production and book editing, before writing his first novel.

Under the pen-name 'Toeckey Jones',he has written award-winning novels and plays. His other published work includes short stories and poetry, as well as non-fiction.

Reviews

[David Gee]

Bokkie is set in 1960s Johannesburg where 19-year-old Sam Mane lives in some style with his mother, a celebrated star of stage and screen. In the summer before he starts university Sam falls in love with Pixie, a ‘Bohemian’ painter five years older than him, and they begin a passionate affair. Pride of place in Pixie’s flat is given to her portrait of Bokkie, a black boy from her childhood whose story she is reluctant to share.

Toeckey Jones vividly evokes the heartless savagery of the Apartheid regime which casts a shadow over Pixie’s life, past and present. The sounds and smells of Africa emerge strongly from the author’s fluid prose. The era of Apartheid may be over but South Africa is not yet a safe or a happy place for all its citizens and even less so for its wildlife.

This is a poignant and timeless love story, beautifully told. A prize-winning novel in the 1990s targeting Young Adults, now reissued, Bokkie will capture the heart of readers of all ages.

[Amy]

Weird memories of this book. Read it on holiday in Norway once and have never been able to find it since.