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1973 novel by Andre Brink From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Looking on Darkness (Afrikaans: Kennis van die aand) is a 1973 novel by prominent Afrikaans novelist Andre Brink. The novel was the first Afrikaans book to be banned by the South African government.[1] One of the story lines in the novel which caused controversy was that of a tragic relationship between a Coloured man and a white English woman, a type of relationship that was illegal under Apartheid, and the inclusion of such a storyline was harmful to the relations of different ethnicities in South Africa according to the Publications Control Board. [2]
Seeking a readership abroad after being banned in South Africa,[3] André Brink translated Kennis van die aand into English and published it abroad as Looking on Darkness. This was his first self-translation.[4]
Kirkus review had mixed reception of the novel, writing, "All of this has more validity as thesis than as fiction."[5] But the author reportedly said in September 1973, before the book was banned, that an initial run of 30,000 copies was selling well enough that a second printing would probably be needed in January of the following year.[6]
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