‘Born a Crime’ by Trevor Noah

Born a Crime

Trevor Noah’s childhood began with a crime – born of a black Xhosa mother and a white Swiss father, the young lad risked being taken away by the Government simply for being the wrong colour. Growing up in South Africa in the latter days of apartheid and the unrestrained freedom that followed its repeal in 1991, Noah tells the story of the poverty, violence and abuse that plagued him and his family for years and almost ended with the murder of his mother.

I wasn’t as familiar with his comedy background, but I’ve long admired the Trevor Noah we see presenting The Daily Show on TV. The honesty and openness that is clearly a big part of his personality is wonderfully appealing and this book reflects that honesty with an engaging and thought-provoking collection of episodes and adventures that are by turns touching, heart-breaking and utterly hilarious. Noah is an extremely talented storyteller and in the audio version of the book his use of languages is nothing short of captivating.

A highly entertaining and thoroughly absorbing book.

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