Cry, The Beloved Country

Cry, The Beloved Country is Alan Paton's timeless and deeply moving novel set in the South Africa of the 1940s, on the cusp of the Apartheid era. It tells the story of the Zulu pastor Stephen Kumalo who travels from his rural village to the city of Johannesburg to find his troubled son, Absalom. Kumalo's journey is one of immense heartbreak, confronting the breakdown of the tribal system, the decay of the land, and the devastating consequences of racial injustice and urban crime. Written with powerful lyricism and profound compassion, it remains an essential classic of hope, courage, and the enduring dignity of man.