Review: "Considered Endangered."
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 14, 2013
Forbes tells us that:"Aloe Polyphylla, or Spiral Aloe, grows in the wild above 2000 meters (6600 feet) in the mountains of Lesotho in southern Africa. Spiral arrangements of leaves can becounter- or clockwise. It's often covered in snow in winter. Considered endangered."L.A. Forbes uses the Spiral Aloe as a metaphor for the endangered way of life of the residents of Malikeng. One can wander through Lesotho clockwise or counter clockwise as life goes on, but the message is that as one gets farther and farther from the core, one loses one's bearings.  Chief Motala and his daughter Jina help to anchor what is left of traditional life in the village.I agree with the other reviewers that the inclusion of the Sesotho words and phrases provided additional insight to the culture of Lesotho, which is land-locked and completely surrounded by the country of South Africa. Its capital is Maseru and Lesotho means: "the land of the people who speak Sesotho."  The country has endured a number of wars, including the Boer Wars, and only recently became an independent "Kingdom" in 1966, a Constitutional Monarchy. The population is Basotho, a Bantu people, predominantly Christian and literate. I learned a great deal from this novella.The surrounding mountains help to shape the culture and the narrative written by L.A. Forbes.I also agree with the other reviewers who thought that the novella ended abruptly and/or prematurely.The first few chapters cover Sarah, the Peace Corps worker, and her adjustment to the change in culture from the dry environs of New Mexico."Sarah noticed remains of failed aid projects scattered around: half-finished bridges, piles of unused water pipes, rusted tractors never repaired, abandoned buildings. She realized that the projects either weren't followed through or weren't appropriate to Lesotho. Most people tended their fields by hand or used an ox or two at the beginning of the planting season."  So Forbes gives us some geopolitical insights, too.About 25% of the residents of Lesotho suffer from AIDS, the third-highest affliction rate in the world, according to an USAIDS study in 2005.Then, we meet Lucy Makalo and Nona, the teachers, along with Mr. Lekota, the principal. Soon after we meet Grace and Sello Chaka, Lucy's more traditional sister and brother-in-law.  Grace teaches the language, collects traditional herbs and makes joala, a local alcoholic drink flavored with herbs. We learn that papa, a corn-meal mush, is a food staple there. Quthing, the capital, is the nearest city, where the school procures its supplies. Everyone has a relative infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. To her credit, Sarah learns the local language well enough to converse fluently. Toby Sekiri, Nurse Miriam and Thabo, Lucy's brother who lives with AIDS make their appearances soon.Amidst the dead and dying, the mountains bloom:"The Peace Corps driver had a passion for local flora and pointed out what was blooming on the mountainsides: pink or white proteas, small, red bottle brush trees, red hot pokers, swaths of pink ericas, yellow and orange gazanias, white calla lilies, and orange-flowered "wild dagga" bushes.""Sarah found work and projects that suited her. With Lucy's help, she wrote to the Ministry of Health to ask for more money for school meals. She'd checked out what the kids were fed each day and could see some definite deficiencies. They would need more protein-rich foods and milk, if possible. She submitted reports and plans, plus an increased budget request for the Ministry's rural school initiative for Malikeng. It was right up her New Mexico alley." Sarah also makes periodic trips around the villages to survey health and demographics.Eventually Sarah climbs one of the Drakensberg Mountains with Grace and Lily (two of the main characters), sees an endangered Spiral Aloe and some of the prehistoric cave paintings, depicting a way of life no longer found in Lesotho. Then Forbes tells us: that after viewing the paintings "They all agreed that their valley had been lived in for a long time." This is, of course, an understatement.The prose is plain and direct, with lovely descriptive sections, but the prose describing how people think and feel is considerably less descriptive, and the dialogue is a bit stilted occasionally. The characters are well-developed and believable. I enjoyed the anthropological emphasis in this book and would recommend it.Leila Smith for The Kindle Book Review. The Kindle Book Review received a free copy of this book for an independent, fair and honest review. We are not associated with the author nor with Amazon.