“Gem Squash Tokoloshe” by
Rachel Zadok has been nominated for the Whitbread First Novel Award. It tells the
story of 6-year-old Faith, who lives on a farm threatened by drought in the
Northern Transvaal of South Africa. Faith’s father is a travelling salesman,
who mysteriously does not come home one weekend. The health of Bella, Faith’s
mother, begins to decline after this. The Tokoloshe is a supernatural entity
that lives in the cellar. Faith is told by her servant Mary that “a witch
doctor had sent a Tokoloshe to live with us, to steal our souls as we slept.
She said the land we lived on didn't belong to us, and unless we moved and gave
the land back, the Tokoloshe would stay.” The Tokoloshe has been described by
Rachel Zadok as “very short, with a big belly
and one buttock… no split. And a very long penis, so long that he can easily
chuck it behind his neck.” Bella also starts to espouse belief in the fairies
Dead Rex, Tit Tit Tay and Sillstream.
When Faith’s beloved black servant
Nomsa is found shot dead, Bella is incarcerated in the Sterkfontein lunatic
asylum. Bella dies 10 years later, during which time Faith has never talked to
her. Faith now inherits the farm, where she confronts the ghosts of the past...
To find out more about the author, you must visit our Rachel Zadok page.
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