Title: The Tortoise Cried its Only Tear
Author: ​Carol Campbell
Reviewer: Gail Gilbride
It’s a dark night in the Karoo, and a bloodied young woman is running along a deserted dust road. Siena is determined to reach Seekoegat Primary School, her only safe haven. It’s a three-day ride on a donkey cart and she only has her legs to carry her now.
   Siena's people are dispossessed karretjiemense, travelling by donkey cart and searching for small jobs in order to survive another day. Her wild childhood is shared with the even more neglected Boetie and they become inseparable, until a dramatic incident enrages the farmer’s wife and their lives are changed forever. Siena is packed off to Seekoegat Primary school as a boarder. There, she befriends children of a similar background and takes to her lessons like a true scholar.
    Kriekie, the boy with deformed hands and the son of a sex worker, becomes besotted with the kind new girl, Siena, who takes him under her wing. Sometimes, Siena even dares to dream of a future, which would open up a new world…
    The two boys and Siena, meet up again as adults and their shared history results in an unexpected twist.
   Once again, Carol Campbell has created a highly sensitive story of marginalised people. She takes us right into their lives and offers us insight into a world we are mostly unaware of. In doing so, Campbell affords the karretjiemense dignity and respect.
   The tortoise, an animal that embodies ancient wisdom and which cries only one tear when it dies, is central to this poignant story and an icon in the stark landscape that Siena’s people embrace as their home.
 
Reviewer: Gail Gilbride
 Author of Under the African Sun

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Title: Moss
Author: ​Mary watson
Reviewer: Gail Gilbride
The secret moss garden is where Evie and her father walk after dark. The ‘virgin Jessica’ and the
Warlock girls hang out in the metal scrap yard and play strange games. The Brethren and their
fanatical congregation, force an adulteress to drag a boulder up a hill, while they judge and jeer.
These exquisitely written short stories about good and evil, blur the boundaries at times and
question the definitions of wholesomeness, passion and religious belief.  
Mary Watson’s command of language and attention to detail, results in subtle, lyrical prose which needs to be savoured. This is not a collection to be raced through, but rather read at leisure, in order to absorb the many layers of meaning and intensity, in each inter-related piece.
The mythical, nuanced stories weave into each other and yet stand on their own at the same time, touching on themes of innocence and loss, strength and vulnerability, and the human condition in general.
If you are after a light read, I would say this is not it. But if you are looking for a deeply
meaningful collection, don’t miss Moss.
Reviewer: Gail Gilbride
Author of Under the African Sun