Bloodlines (65 page)

I glanced back up at the summit to see the two women sitting together, heads bent, talking as they looked down the hill at me. Before going up to join them, I took one last look at the pond. A wattled crane emerged from behind a tall screen of marsh grasses, as if it had been hiding in the wings waiting to make an appearance. The bird saw me, turned its head so that one eye was facing me, slowly raised a stick leg up into its belly, and froze. All that moved was the wattle beneath its beak. I took pleasure in its white neck and shoulders, and in the black cloak fading to grey that seemed draped over its back. We stared at each other for a long moment as it decided whether to take flight. But it was a crane, a wattled crane, relentless hunter of frogs, and its downside was that it could do nothing else. The bird elegantly fluttered its feathers, refocused on the hunt, and turned away, to high-step in delicate and precise slow motion along the edge of the water.

I could have taken the path that wound smoothly around to the summit where Dariya and my mother waited, but instead I jogged up the hill in a straight line, leaped up inclines, vaulted over jagged rocks, and scrambled straight through patches of knee-high thorns. There was nothing easy about being my mother, and I knew, now, that I had always been my mother’s son.

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acknowledgments

My deepest gratitude to Maurice Mackenzie, a wise and most gracious man whose ability to transcend the limits of race and birth is remarkable, and to Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, whose willingness to share erudition and life experience was beyond expectation. Michael Langa, whose life in South Africa makes him a particularly cogent judge of cultural and historical authenticity, validated the story with an enthusiasm and emotion that was deeply satisfying.

Mouse and Richard Poynton, for sharing hospitality and history, for many contacts, and for providing Wally and Starburst; Nick and Anne Nicolson, for an eye-opening view of KwaZulu in the 21
^st
century; Ken Gillings, who guided us around KwaZulu and led us to Cetshwayo’s tomb; Major General Chris le Roux, who shared his perspective and his sandwiches with us. Errol Cunnama went beyond the call of duty and introduced us to Moses Mhlwazini and Hlengiwe and others who taught us and filled our hearts. And our gratitude to Mr. Mbambelela Zimba, venerable historian and conservationist, with whom we sat in a cow pasture, and who hoped we had come to provide the same protection to his beloved Drakensberg mountains as John Muir brought to the national parks in the United States.

Alfred and Jocelyn Emdon, willing listeners, provided a home away from home; Victoria and Michael Turovsky, and Tibor and Helen Vais provided first-hand research early on; Ann Buxbaum shared with us years of contacts in South Africa.

Heartfelt thanks to those—too many to name—who grappled with the story, made suggestions along the way, and offered unending encouragement. To the many wonderful friends and colleagues whose encouragement and wisdom have proven invaluable: Peter McKenzie, who read an early version; Lucie Prinz, for her editorial wisdom and publishing know-how; David Sloan Rossiter, Leslie Elfant, Jane Leavy and Fred Sperounis; Ginger Chappell; Leon Blum; Simone Kaplan; Linda Kraus; Larry Sagen and Carol Remz, Jill and David Adler, Martha McFadden. And to Carol Osterer Bellman, Gail Chapman Close, Ellen Greenfeld, Kitty Howard, Cindy Lavoie and Caroline Spear—who give new meaning to the term Book Group. Thanks to Janet Silver and Alan Rinzler, for structural advice and editing, and to Marian Brown and Louise Crawford, who calmly and surely shepherded me through the publishing morass and made sure that
Bloodlines
has an audience.

To Jill Greenberg, for years of friendship, partnership and patience, and for allowing me time to write; to my sister Isabel and brother Allan for bedrock support and lifelong validation. To my parents, Betty and Fred, whose example and constant encouragement are gifts to be treasured for a lifetime, and whose prescience in 1960 made possible the life we now live. To my three children: Dani and Mat, whose responses to this story alone made it worth writing, and whose love and devotion, sense of wonder and adventure are a constant source of renewal; and to Jessica, for love and encouragement, for incisive editing, creative brainstorming, for reading more versions of the manuscript than I can count, and for untold good ideas.

Marlene, as inspiration and muse, you brought this tale to life with me. As travelling companion and as first and final editor, your hand is as present on each page as mine, and your love and encouragement are a driving force in my life.

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Book Club and Study Guide Questions

1. Was Lenny’s decision to leave South Africa a good one? Why?
   
2. Michaela was given several opportunities to join Lenny and Steven in the United States. Do you think her decision to stay in South Africa was the right choice? Why?
   
3. In what way is Steven’s family life as an adult a reaction to his experiences as a young boy?
   
4. Of the secrets Lenny keeps from Steven, which one is he most ashamed of? How does Lenny’s secrecy shape Steven’s responses to the world?
   
5. How do the relationships with the men in Michaela’s life (her father, Lenny, Mandla, Andrew) affect her development as a character?
   
6. In what ways are Michaela and Steven’s wife, Dariya, kindred spirits?
   
7. How does the loss of Thulani and Simon change the dynamics of the interaction among Miriam, Mandla and Michaela?
   
8. In order to get through life, we are sometimes lucky enough to benefit from the wisdom of a mentor. Who are the key mentors in the book, and how do they shape the lives of the characters?
   
9. Can you point to events that trigger changes in Michaela’s character as the story progresses? Are there aspects of her personality that never change? How is this manifested in the book?
   
10. Bloodlines
    is told from the perspectives of four characters—Steven, Lenny, Michaela and Mandla. What is the impact of telling the story from these diverse viewpoints?
    
11. In your view, what are the major character strengths in Michaela, Lenny, Steven and Mandla? What are their major flaws?
    
12. In their choice to be together, Mandla and Michaela signal a desire to transcend the limitations of the regimented world they live in—the South Africa of black versus white; African versus Western culture; Zulu versus Jewish traditions. What actions by these characters show that they were unable to completely achieve this goal?
    
13. Is Steven a main character in the book? What role does he play in the story?
    
14. What can you say about the nature of redemption in this book? Does Steven eventually find redemption? Would you have ended the story differently?
    
15. Bloodlines
    centers around loss, the impossibility of reconciliation and the dangers of family secrets. It also contains themes of love, forgiveness and family values. How do these disparate themes coexist?
    
16. How does the landscape of South Africa take on a character of its own in the novel?
    
17. In what ways does
    Bloodlines
    change your perception of South Africa’s history?
    
18. As Michaela and Lenny look back on their lives from the perspective of old age, what do you think each of them would consider their greatest loss or regret?
    

.

bibliography

The following books and articles provided background for the story:

After the Party
,
by Andrew Feinstein, Jonathan Ball Publishers, (PTY) LTD, 2007

Barrier of Spears
,
by R.O. Pearse, Howard Timmins Publishers, 1982

Buthelezi, A Biography
,
by Ben Tempkin, JB Publishers, South Africa, 2003

Father Huddleston’s Picture Book
,
Kliptown Books Ltd, 1990

Inkatha versus the Rest: Black Opposition to Inkatha in Durban’s African Townships,
Michael Sutcliffe and Paul Wellings,
African Affairs
, Vol 87, No 348, July 1988, pp. 325-360

Long Walk To Freedom
,
by Nelson Mandela, Little, Brown and Company, 1995

Rivonia’s Children
,
by Glenn Frankel, Farrar Straus and Giroux, 1999

The Destruction of the Zulu Kingdom (The Civil War in Zululand, 1879-1884)
,
by Jeff Guy, University of Natal Press, 1994

The Limits of Manipulation Theory: The Apartheid Third Force and the ANC-Inkatha Conflict in South Africa,
Eric Melander
,
Peace Economics, Peace Science and Public Policy,
Volume 8, Issue 4, Fall 2002

The Washing of the Spears
by Donald R. Morris, Random House, 1994

Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa Report

Zulu Botanical Knowledge: An Introduction
,
by Mkhipheni A. Ngwenya, Adrian Koopman and Rosemary Williams, National Botanical Institute, Durban 2003

Zulu Shaman: Dreams, Prophecies and Mysteries
,
Vusasmazulu Credo Mutwa, Destiny Books, Division of Inner Traditions International, Rochester, VT, 2003

Zulu Thought-Patterns and Symbolism
,
by Axel-Ivar Berglund, Indiana University Press Edition, 1989

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about the author

Neville Frankel immigrated to Boston from Johannesburg with his family when he was 14. After graduating from Dartmouth College, he pursued doctoral work in English literature at the University of Toronto. While in Canada, he wrote
The Third Power
, a well-reviewed political thriller about the transformation of Rhodesia to Zimbabwe. Frankel also received an Emmy for his work on a BBC documentary,
The Hillside Strangler: Mind of a Murderer
. In 2002 he returned to South Africa for the first time in 38 years. Over the next decade he went back several more times, researching what would become
Bloodlines
. Frankel has three grown children and lives outside Boston with his wife Marlene.

.

Notes

*
The Truth & Reconciliation Commission was a court-like body assembled after the end of Apartheid. It’s mission was to offer healing and hope to those who felt victimized by violence, allowing them to come forward and be heard by the Commission. Perpetrators of violence could also give testimony and request amnesty from prosecution.