For this I owe her everything. She – and Baba who found her because he left South Africa in search of freedom – bequeathed to me everything in me that is restless and questing and that wants to go further than someone like me ought to want to go. They were, perhaps, the wisest cartographers who ever lived: they managed to circumnavigate the globe without once losing sight of home.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to all those who read various drafts, especially Richard Lee who got me believing I could make a go of writing. Thank you to Zeng, Panashe, Richard Pithouse, Gabi and Eusebius for your generous and extensive comments. Thank you to Bibi and Zukiswa for giving me inspiration and courage. Thank you to Howard Willis, without whom this version of the book would not have been possible, and to Tim for being a steady voice when I was feeling shaky. Thanks to Caroline and John Wood for giving me a (flexible) space and place where I feel welcome and valued at the Centre for Stories. To Ester, thank you for believing in this book before there was even a manuscript. Isobel, your demure badassness constitutes a life goal for me. Thank you for everything. Thank you Branko and Styli for giving me a start. Thanks Gen for accompanying me, for making me think harder and be smarter.
Thank you Gael for your strength and wisdom and accompaniment. Thank you to everyone who animates these pages – the friends and cousins and aunties and uncles and colleagues without whom there would be no stories at all.
A special thank you to Mummy and Daddy. Your contribution to my life and my values is immeasurable. I could not do it justice here and perhaps I will have to write another book about your lives and your wonderful journey. Lindi and Dumi, my big sister and brother who taught me to see the world through bigger eyes, you are in me and with me all the time and your presence through everything has been everything.
Mandla and Zeng, you are my world. You inspire me and make me work harder to impress you. This book is also for you and for your brood of girls and their father Siya.
A special thank you to Baba for instilling in me the discipline and rigour required not simply to write, but to revise and to edit. And whose belief in and respect for me has allowed me to soar. This book is for you too.
Lastly, and most importantly, I owe my biggest debt to you, Simon. This book would not exist were it not for you; were it not for your faith, your love and your determination. You make me a better version of myself than I would have been had we not met. You are the best and daggiest mate I could ever want. Most of all, thank you for bringing me Gabi and Nick and S and E, whom I love with all my heart.
Photo credits
All photographs except those listed below are from
the author’s personal collection and are used by permission.
The photographs on pages 1, 113 and 195 were taken by Max Bastard.
The photograph on page 135 is from “Macalester Today” Paper 33 http://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/macalestertoday/33 © Jean Pieri/Pioneer Press.
The photograph on page 171 © Peter Turnley/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images.
The photograph on page 229 © Kerry Cullinan/Health-e.
Lyrics on page 116 from the song ‘Mona Lisa’ by Ray Evans and Jay Livingston reprinted with the permission of Sony/ATV Music Publishing.
The chapter ‘Amakwerekwere’ in part draws on an essay titled ‘Belonging –
Why South Africans refuse to let Africa in’, originally published by
Africa is a Country, http://africasacountry.com/2014/04/belonging-why-south-africans-refuse-to-let-africa-in.
Excerpts on pages 301 and 307 from A Field Guide to Getting Lost
copyright © 2010 by Rebecca Solnit reprinted with
the permission of Cannongate Books.
About the Book
In Always Another Country, Sisonke Msimang writes about her exile childhood in Zambia, Kenya and Canada, her college years in the USA, and returning to South Africa in the 1990s. She reflects candidly on present-day South Africa, but this is a book about family, romance and motherhood; of childhood jealousies and adult passions, and what it means to be born into a life scored by history. Her memoir is a chronicle of a coming of age, for both a woman and a young democracy.
About the Author
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted,in any form or by any means, without prior permission from the publisher or copyright holder.
This book is memoir. Some names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals. Some events have been compressed and of course the dialogue I quote as verbatim could not possibly have transpired exactly as I have committed it to the page. Still, I have done my best to ensure this book represents the truth as I know it.
© Text Sisonke Msimang, 2017
© Published edition Jonathan Ball Publishers, 2017
© Author photograph Nick White, 2017
Originally published in paperback in South Africa in 2017 by
JONATHAN BALL PUBLISHERS
A division of Media24 (Pty) Ltd
PO Box 33977
Jeppestown
2043
ebook ISBN 9781868428496
Every effort has been made to trace the copyright holders and to obtain their permission for the use of copyright material. The publishers apologise for any errors or omissions and would be grateful to be notified of any corrections that should be incorporated in future editions of this book.
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