The Pickup
Author: Nadine Gordimer
Amazon info
I really should get someone else to ghostwrite my fiction reviews and I have so little to say. Pick Up is the story of a white woman in South Africa who meets a black mechanic and pursues a relationship with him. However, he is in South Africa illegally and is deported. She follows him back to his country (unnamed) where he lives in a very small settlement on the outskirts of the desert and where Islam is the way of life. While he focuses on getting a visa to America (among other places), she learns the language and the culture. In the end (spoiler alert), he gets his visa, but she stays behind with his family.
This book was very reminiscent of "The White Masai" and I found both to have memorable and engaging characters. As for the subtexts, Julie (the heroine) is a daughter of privilege, but she has rejected that - although she has an uncle who helps her out when needed. As an aside, the uncle (a doctor) is unjustly accused of sexual harassment (and is cleared) - and I am sure that has something to do with the deeper meanings of the book (that are, alas, impenetrable to me). What I can see is how Julie matures through the book and finds a deeper purpose in the simple village life (even if I believe that life has no purpose, I guess people still seek for one).
Recommended: To all.