num_pages: 432
description: From the author of the beloved Hum If You Don't Know the Words comes a rich unforgettable story of three unique women in post-Apartheid South Africa who are brought together in their darkest time and discover the ways that love can transcend the strictest of boundaries.In a squatter camp on the outskirts of Johannesburg seventeen-year-old Zodwa lives in desperate poverty under the shadowy threat of a civil war and a growing AIDS epidemic. Eight months pregnant Zodwa carefully guards secrets that jeopardize her life.Across the country wealthy socialite Ruth appears to have everything her heart desires but it's what she can't have that leads to her breakdown. Meanwhile in Zaire a disgraced former nun Delilah grapples with a past that refuses to stay buried. When these personal crises send both middle-aged women back to their rural hometown to lick their wounds the discovery of an abandoned newborn baby upends everything challenging their lifelong beliefs about race motherhood and the power of the past.As the mystery surrounding the infant grows the complicated lives of Zodwa Ruth and Delilah become inextricably linked. What follows is a mesmerizing look at family and identity that asks: How far will the human heart go to protect itself and the ones it loves?
language: English
title: If You Want to Make God Laugh
publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons