'Whereas Don long accepted his menial status, Tumi has never forgiven any of his former comrades for being successful beneficiaries of the government's Black Economic Empowerment policy, while her fiancée has to work for a security company. It is a sore point with her that Don's comrades forgot about him when they reached Paradise, after he sacrificed so much in exile fighting for the overthrow of the apartheid state . . . She vowed to herself that one day Don would show everybody what he was really made of: he was going to be a Black Diamond in his own right.'
Black Diamond is Zakes Mda's latest exuberant novel, full of his characteristic verve, humour and sense of irony. Set in contemporary Johannesburg the story follows an eclectic cast of characters as they work out their roles in a city where BEE rules, old stereotypes are smashed, criminals demand revenge on the justice system and protest is a weapon for anyone to use.
Meet Don, the security consultant and his ambitious fiancée, top model Tumi; the unbending magistrate Kristin Uys who reveals a completely different side to her character when at home alone with her cat; and
