Cape of Storms: The First Life of Adamastor, a Story

By André Brink

Book Overview

He is the chieftain leader of the Khoikhoi, a nomadic people derogatorily called "Hottentot"' by European colonists. She is a white woman left behind by Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama's crew when they rounded Africa's southern tip in 1498. Their romance is the core of this powerful novella. According to Portuguese myth, Zeus turned Adamastor into the rocky cape of the South African peninsula. Andr Brink's parable suggests that white Europeans have punished native Africans in the same way. With this novel, Brink takes us to the heart of the relationships that define South Africa's modern history. "Peter Carey, Garcia Marquez, Solzhenitsyn: Andr Brink must be considered with that class of writer." -Guardian

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1402208642
• ISBN13: 9781402208645
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
• Length: 131 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.5" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

Easy story about South Africa's beginning

This book is a fast and easy read but I think it gives a nice perspective into how the KhoiKhoi people reacted when they first saw the white Europeans on their beaches, coming out of eggs. In this novella a white woman is captured but ends up with a KhoiKhoi leader while they are on a trek through the country. It is a nice story about the two different cultures. Sometimes sad, sometimes funny but a nice read.

Bigbird that never came to rest

The first life of Adamastor is a fable mostly set in the late 15th century about the first meeting between the native people of Southern Africa and the explorers from Europe. It is a tale clothed in the myth of Adamastor, which first appeared in European literature in the 16th century. It is a tale about the main character T'Kamais (bigbird "that never came to rest"), and his relationship with s lost Portuguese woman.What makes this tale different from many other accounts is that the tale is told from the viewpoint of the African Khoikhoin, and not the Portuguese. This makes an interesting contrast to "Verkenning" of Karel Schoeman (see my review). Verkenning describes (in historical detail) the exploration of Southern Africa from a Dutch explorer's point of view (set a couple of centuries after Adamastor).This book is written with Brink's subtle sense of humour never far from the surface. However, the story has a very sad undertone - the misunderstanding between different peoples with different cultures and their different belief systems and mythologies.Easy to read and enjoyable, Adamastor is highly recommended.