The John and Ntombi Story - revealed

The photograph is not in my memoir, The Story of John and Ntombi, which will be in South African bookstores by the third week of November. Almost 100 other photos are in the book, illustrating our backgrounds, life together in exile, and after out return in 1993.

Every day, for 12 days, I will post a new extract from the book on various platforms. The idea is to give people a sense of the range issues, themes and writing styles that are woven together to tell our story. I am confident some interesting discussions will emerge. Our story is but a tiny thread in the rich cloth of humanity that covers our little Earth.

Here is the first quote, from the preface. Each new quote will take you deeper into the book.

As we get older and grouchier, we become less tolerant of each other’s perceived and actual faults and notions. Even I find my character annoying, and Ntombi every day confirms that I irritate her. I try to compensate with self-deprecatory humour, which helps me to survive and further annoys Ntombi. My life is often tough because of my many flaws, which Ntombi exposes by stripping away my excuses like a nurse removing sticking plasters. (Preface)