num_pages: 384
description: On the surface On the Contrary is a picaresque historical novel in which 18th century adventurer Estienne Barbier graduates from seducing French wives to South African widows via a long and bruising association with the Dutch East India Company. Underneath [it] is about today's South Africa and the dilemmas facing people challenging the status quo. - Sunday Telegraph
language: English
title: On the Contrary: Being the Life of a Famous Rebel, Soldier, Traveller, Explorer, Reader, Builder, Scribe, Latinist, Lover and Liar
publisher: Minerva