On his return he quickly befriends two people who will direct not only his actions but his emotions concerning contemporary South Africa. Despite the fact that there seems a great deal of negative sentiment in the country Jake seems to be on a path to disprove at least some of what he has been told will happen to him ‘out there’. He soon befriends an old photography acquaintance, who is now a well-known artist. As their friendship grows, the two decide to set up a photography school in Gugulethu.
They work together with two men who have close government connections and although there are a few hitches along the way, both romantically and financially, the school seems to be only months away from becoming a reality. But then disaster strikes.
This deceptively simple novel is an extraordinarily bleak and troubling account of life in present-day South Africa, not least because it is hard to doubt its accuracy or veracity. It is especially prescient for the troubled twentieth anniversary of democracy.