Born a Crime

Title: Born a Crime

Author: Trevor Noah

Published:  November 15th 2016

Length: 224

Source: Received from Netgalley in exchange for honest review.

 

So I don’t usually read non-fiction (unless it discusses a compelling enough topic) but I’m a HUGE fan of Trevor Noah! When I found that this was available to request on Netgalley I almost lost my mind!

It follows Trevor Noah’s childhood, growing up during the apartheid in South Africa and what it was like to be born a crime!

His perspective was so interesting to read about. We all sympathise, as outsiders, reading about the apartheid and the struggles the black communities went through at that time. The injustice, the discrimination, limitation of opportunities, the list is LONG. The interesting thing was that he was retelling his story almost as if it were normal. Being born into that environment, as sad as it is, kind of normalises it for
him. He didn’t know any other way.Probably one of the strongest quotes from his book was this:

“We tell people to follow their dreams, but you can only dream of what you can imagine, and, depending on where you come from, your imagination can be quite limited.”

The topics he discusses are so varied and he really has an engaging way of telling his story! The most beautiful thing about this was his relationship with his mum. She is s
uch a strong and determined woman, he describes their relationship more as friends than mother and son.

He also emphasises that the end of the apartheid didn’t have this fairytale ending. Where society was absolutely perfect after. He describes the lengthy process of a country trying to overcome the oppression it had experienced for so long…
I highly recommend this, to basically anyone! Its funny yet sobering and definitely provides a unique insight.