The Story of an African Farm

Marc Notes: Raised as an orphan amid a makeshift family, Lyndall witnesses a world of colonial exploitation. Desiring a formal education, she leaves for boarding school in her early teens, returning four years later. She retires to a house in Bloemfontein, where, delirious with exhaustion, she is tended by an English farmer disguised as her nurse. Biographical Note: Olive Schreiner (1855 1920) was a South African author, anti-war campaigner, and intellectual. She is best remembered today for her novel "The Story of an African Farm" which has been highly acclaimed ever since its first publication in 1883 for the bold manner in which it dealt with some of theissues of the day."Publisher Marketing: Spanning the childhood and burgeoning adulthood of three young people, thisstunning evocation of 19th-century South Africais a coming-of-age classic and an early feminist and modernist novel Lyndall is a feisty young girl with an independent spirit who is frustrated by the limited options open to her as a girl in South African society. She is the polar oppositeof her cheerful, chubby cousin Em, who aspires to get married and settle down. The third child in the trio is Lyndall s best friend, Waldo, a thoughtful little boy who questions everything about the world around him except his affection for Lyndall. The children s bucolic lives on the veld are disrupted by the arrival of Bonaparte Blenkins to the farm, a confidence trickster who is keen to seduce Em s stepmother in order to take over the farm. Only Lyndall has the self-confidence to stand up to Bonaparte s cruelty, but ultimately his actions will echo throughout their lives forever. As the children grow up, they fall in love, move away, move back, and ultimately find meaning in their lives, despite the tragedies they endure. An instant bestseller on its publication in 1883, this book was far ahead of its time in its portrayal of women in society, and itretains its power more than a century later. Tackling themes of religion, philosophy, unrequited love, and fate, it helped transformthe shape and course of the lateVictorian novel andis a classic of South African literature." Contributor Bio:  Schreiner, Olive Olive Schreiner (24 March 1855 - 11 December 1920) was a South African author, anti-war campaigner and intellectual. Best remembered today for her novel The Story of an African Farm which has been highly acclaimed ever since its first publication in 1883 for the bold manner in which it dealt with some of the burning issues of the day, including agnosticism, existential independence, individualism and the professional aspirations of women; as well as its portrayal of the elemental nature of life on the colonial frontier.