Zenzele: A Letter for My Daughter

There are one or two points when Nozipo Maraire's use of rhetoric is a little overblown for my tastes, and I still wonder if this would have been better framed as a monologue or a fictional memoir than as an epistolary novel. But those are relatively minor quibbles with what is otherwise a beautifully-written novella. It's an incisive look at what it means to be a woman in Africa; what it means to be an African in the midst of Western colonialism, cultural hegemony and racism; what it is to be an immigrant caught between two cultures. Nozipo Maraire's prose is rich and persuasive, drawing on the vibrant African oral tradition to give extra power to her tale; and there is, I think, an extra poignancy to the story knowing that the show more emerging Zimbabwe of which the narrator is so proud would soon be brought into such decline by Mugabe. Well worth the read. show less

Such a calm strength in the narrator. I feel as if she is sharing thoughts she has stored up for years, carefully pondering and seeking clarity on what it's like to be herself, a woman, a mother, a Zimbabwean. Although the format is a series of letters she writes, sitting at the kitchen table, to her daughter who has just gone to the US for university, we have no response from the daughter, just this one woman's perspective. It is plenty.

All the love a mother has for her daughter is contained in this thin novel. It is written by a woman in Zimbabwe as a letter to her daughter who is about to embark on a trip abroad to continue her studies. The mother shares the history of her family and her Shona culture, going back to stories of the struggle for independence during the time that her country was controlled by white men and known by the name of Rhodesia.

What warmth this book contains! The story helped define for me exactly what the country of Zimbabwe is and how its people have come to believe in themselves. Its discussion of empowerment through education is a universal theme relevant to any group of people. I also loved the feeling I had from the mother as she described show more pride in her people and in her roots, most importantly her land. I didn’t realize how important what the mom had to tell her daughter was until the end of the book. There it all fit together. show less

Zenzele is a series of letters from a Zimbabwean mother to her daughter going away to Harvard. The mother has witnessed the village sending off their best and brightest to be educated at European and American schools with the hope of them returning to utilize what they have learned for the betterment of their community. Instead, once the young have finished their education and experienced Western culture, they only return for infrequent visits and express contempt for what they have left behind.

This book really resonated with me as I felt this mother’s concerns are not only unique to Africans but to African-Americans. Through her letters, Zenzele’s mother shares a rich cultural heritage hoping to counteract the lure of a show more materialistic lifestyle. Beautifully written and highly recommended, the book was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year. show less

This is a lovely, absorbing reflection on what it means to be an African woman. This book is written as an open letter from a Zimbabwean mother to her highly spirited, passionate daughter as she travels to America to study at Harvard. She addresses age-old issues of how to embrace modern comforts and opportunities while not abandoning ancient rhythms and traditions. I was fascinated by the descriptions of village life and family bonds, and heartbroken by the struggle for self-determination against the patronizing oppression of colonizing Europeans. All in all an terrific read.

As Zenzele leaves Zimbabwe for four years at Harvard, her mother writes her a letter reminding her of her roots, a “curious distillation of traditional African teaching, social commentary, and maternal concern”. Zenzele's mother's generation lived through the civil war that culminated in Zimbabwe's independence and the end of minority white rule. Zenzele's family history is interwoven with Zimbabwe's history.

At the same time, this is a novel about universal themes – the bond between mother and daughter, between sisters, between women; the sacrifices one generation makes so that the next generation can have better standards of living; predestination versus free will. In a way, this is a mother-daughter version of Marilynne show more Robinson's Gilead. It's a beautiful expression of maternal love. It's not what most people would classify as women's fiction, though. It can be enjoyed equally by both sexes. Recommended. show less

An exquisite book, written as a series of letters by a mother in Zimbabwe to her daughter who is leaving to go to college in America. The book is full of African stories, histories, and cultural values.

J. Nozipo Maraire was born in Rhodesia in 1964, as the violence began that eventually led to the establishment of the independent nation of Zimbabwe. Like Zenzele, she came to the United States for college and has become a neurosurgeon. With precision and beauty, her words express her loyalty to traditional Africa and her effort to sustain her heritage in a very different world.

This book is written, not in Maraire’s voice, but that of her mother, Shiri, known traditionally as “Amai Zenzele” (the mother of Zenzele). Shiri is an show more impressive woman, no flat character naming specific traditions which must be observed. Instead, she is a woman who has lived a full life and is aware of aware of its frequent contradictions. She herself embodies both the old and the new. Growing up in a traditional village, she now lives in a city as the educated, well-traveled wife of a successful lawyer. Regular return visits to her village are part of how she balances her own life. She urges her daughter to work out her own version of living between”the old and new, urban and rural.” Sharing the stories of how she has developed her own balance is part of her responsibility as a mother.

Respecting and being loyal to her African roots is a major value that Shiri seeks to instill in
Zenzele.
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