Blood's Mist, by David Donald

Okay, I’m not really sure where to begin my review of this book, nor am I really sure about my feelings on it. I was bored by most of it, hated parts, and finally enjoyed the very end. I’m not sure if loved the end more because it was good, or if it was because I finally finished the book. Ahem.

Blood’s Mist is a period-piece fiction, centered during the time that South Africa was being colonized by the British and Dutch. It tells the story of a young, white English settler, Richard, and the events of his and his family’s life as they start a farm in South Africa, as well as the story of /Kaunu, an African bushman, and his life story with his family. It tells their stories concurrently, with chapters alternating viewpoints. In the last few chapters, their worlds become intertwined, but they never come face to face.

Now that you have an idea on the book, I feel the need to tell you about the author, David Donald. The following is taken from the backflap of the book: “David Donald is an explorer, father, grandfather, and perhaps not unsurprisingly, a storyteller. Emeritus Professor of Educational Philosophy at the University of Cape Town, his recent venture into fiction builds upon neglected aspects of South African history and cultural experience.” Given Mr. Donald’s background, and the obvious academic in him coming through in the painstaking research he did for his work, I feel that the book suffers from his expertise. Instead of reading a work of fiction, I felt that I was reading a history book, with every other line needing to be referenced in the notes section. I appreciate the authenticity this adds to his story, but put altogether, I feel that it seriously detracts from the overall enjoyment.

Instead of enjoying this tale of two young men, you find yourself flipping to the end of the book to see what Khwa’s water snake means here, versus what Kkwa’s water snake meant on page 120. As I said, I appreciate the level of authenticity, but I detested, and even began to ignore, all of these footnotes. He lost me as a reader by making one-third of the book (60 pages) a notes section.

There was so much potential for this story. In the last chapter, it finally got good. As a reader, you shouldn’t have to wait until the last chapter to enjoy a book. I also didn’t really take to his writing style. All of the characters were one-dimensional, and there was nothing fall in love with. The only thing I came away with was a sense that colonization really messed up a lot of things, which I already knew. I tried really hard to enjoy this book, but in the end, I just couldn’t. If anyone wants to read it, I will gladly mail him or her the book, and hope that they enjoy it more than I did.

2.5/5