The Star Child

Longlisted for The Sunday Times SA Fiction Prize 2017
Longlisted for the Etisalat Prize for Literature 2016

'With the patterns of a praise singer, and the lyricism of a born poet, debut novelist Unathi Magubeni catches you in the rhythm of his story and doesn't let you go until it is spent' Jacqui L'Ange

Nwelezelanga is born with albinism. Convinced by the midwife that an albino child is a curse, her mother places her in a river to drown.

However, fate has other plans and the baby is rescued and raised by a traditional healer. She grows into an old soul with mystic abilities and her story unfolds as she lives a rural life, connected to the earth and ancient rituals.

The Star Child is magical and poetic with an assured voice and eloquent prose, Magubeni invites us into the life of this extraordinary being, Nwelezelanga, the child who should not have been.

'Lyrical… Nuggets of wisdom glisten throughout the story' Sarah Key