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Jo Robinson

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African Me & Satellite TV Kindle Edition

by Jo Robinson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.4 64 ratings

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For many years Suzette has managed very well to live her life without actually taking part in it, avoiding any possibility of pain by very carefully ignoring reality. Until something happens. Something so terrible that she has no choice but to abandon her cocoon of safety.
After the brutal beating of an elderly domestic worker, Suzette takes her in, and sets off a chain of events that leads to devastating heartbreak. And an unexpected hero changes everything. Finally finding her voice, she speaks out, and her world explodes, culminating in the death of a very special man.
On her path to make amends, she discovers the story of his life, connects with the people of his past, and finds the chance to fully live her life once again if that’s what she chooses to.

Print length

308 pages
Language

English
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On Kindle Scribe
Publication date

September 11, 2013
File size

769 KB
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00F5640UK
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Weaverback Press (September 11, 2013)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 11, 2013
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 769 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 308 pages

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4.4 64 ratings

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4.4 out of 5

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Alex Jones

A Book About Love, Hate, and the Inherent Goodness of Humanity

Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2014

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African Me and Satellite TV, by Jo Robinson, is the story of Suzette Hertzog, a middle-age white woman who lives with her husband, Herman, her black cook, Princess, and her simple black gardener, Christopher. The Hertzogs live on a large agricultural estate, near a small mixed-racial community that is struggling to find its identity in the years after Zimbabwe won its independence. The black population has been struggling to adjust to the responsibility of being the majority in power, while whites are now having to adjust to having the roles reversed, and being a minority.

Suzette, a former artist, is a caring, compassionate person who has witnessed rampant poverty and injustice in the aftermath of independence, but has kept her all of her emotions hidden inside. She spends much of her time watching favourite shows on satellite TV. Her withdrawal has confused her husband and caused strain in their marriage. All Suzette wants to do is live a quiet, reclusive life in her small community, which is slowly evolving and providing its residents with a peaceful place to live.

However, the town’s tranquility and Suzette’s quiet life are turned upside down with the arrival of Pete and Alison Sherman, a bitter, hateful white couple with racist attitudes and huge chips on their shoulders. When the Shermans start taking out their anger on their new community, Suzette is no longer able to live in her closed-off little world. A chain reaction of events occur that draws her out of her shell, and Suzette finds the inspiration to start living again from an unlikely source within her own household.

African Me and Satellite TV is a beautiful, touching book about love, hate, and the natural inherent goodness and potential of humanity, that can often tend to go astray. The book is full of strong characters in an interesting setting, and does an excellent job of asking readers to put themselves in the shoes of the people in Zimbabwe. The author challenges us to ask ourselves what we would do if our world was turned upside down, and if our values were put to the test, but she does so in a way that is believable and enjoyable. I highly recommend downloading this book onto your eReader, or buying the paperback version of African Me and Satellite TV.

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Mary Clark

Times of transformation for one woman and her country

Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2014

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This book tells the strikingly poignant story of a young white woman in modern-day Zimbabwe. Suzette is a descendant of the white colonizers, who called the country Rhodesia. Suzette, though, is one of a new generation. She has seen the country go through rough times of transformation.

Suzette is angry. She is not angry with the native Africans. She is angry at her ancestors who exploited them. She is angry at the white (is there no better word to describe people of European descent?) people who still believe they were right and continue to treat the Zimbabwe people as inferior. She is angry at those who say colonial repression is past, the dust of history, and no special concern should be shown the people who were oppressed. The country has been independent for about 30 years and critics point out that they have elected their own repressive government. She is angry at the racial alienation, the human separation that keeps people from healing. She is angry at those who show no remorse.

As bad as things have been, with white families thrown off their farms, sometimes beaten or killed, and years without adequate food for black and white alike, Suzette supports the change from white to black rule. Her husband and many other white men and women now work for the people they once enslaved.

The problem is that Suzette does not recognize any of this, not yet and not clearly. After a time of near-starvation, Zimbabwe is recovering and finding its balance, forming a new identity. Suzette herself is doing the same. She is depressed. There is an ethical and spiritual malaise that underlies the psychological illness.

As her new identity emerges, she begins to be aware of her outrage and her need to express her love for her country and its people. What brings her out of her funk, in a form of rebirth or new awareness, is the arrival of a white couple whose racism pours fuel on the fire. They beat an old woman who works for them, and toss her out with all of her meagre belongings. Suzette and her husband take in the woman, and soon become the focus of this couple’s hatred and violence.

Suzette wakes up. Her rage breaks free its bonds. She sees the people around her clearly, and begins to bridge the gap between herself and others, both black and white.

With the death of an aging black man she was just beginning to know, her life takes a spiritual turn. Her story, and Africa’s story, is no longer only about history and politics. It is about learning the sweeping power of self-critique, ethical courage, of forgiveness, and reconciliation.

(Transparency: I purchased this book.)

Mary Clark
author of Tally: An Intuitive Life and Covenant

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Top reviews from other countries

eppingstrider

a thriller, a tragedy, and then a history lesson in the most beautifully unfolded way

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 7, 2021

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When the first 20% or so reaffirmed my disgust at the white settler mentality, although not quite understanding the role of the staff, who were not really servants in the old-fashioned sense, I was uncertain whether to continue.

Then I became intrigued with Suzette’s situation, and her discovery of some of her old paintings, half-finished, in her old study. Realising that the face she was painting triggered her profound depression, she tries to come to terms with her situation. And then one of the local organisers asks her to do a talk about careers in art. She can’t do it. She hates public speaking… but the arrival of two absolute apologies for human beings arrive, full of hate for the blacks and what they perceive the freedom fighters have done to wreck their comfortable, rich lives.

The whole book explodes into life. The writing is rich and glorious. The characters are beautifully drawn, and pictures flood my mind. Then it becomes a thriller, and a tragedy, and then a history lesson in the most beautifully unfolded way. And they don’t all live happily ever after. But they live in hope, as we should too.

It’s a simple book with a complicated message, which it has to be to help a reader make sense of African history and current affairs. In short, it’s vibrant, brilliant, and heart-wrenching, and really helps you understand, if you don’t already, what Africa is all about. I couldn’t easily classify African Me, but I gave it 5 stars.

Marianne Stamm

Couldn't put it down

Reviewed in Germany on September 29, 2015

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"African Me & Satellite TV" grabbed me from the first page. As someone who spends a part of every year in Zambia, I have a particular interest in books about that area of Africa, from different viewpoints. Jo Robinson lived in Zimbabwe, and writes authentically. Her characters and plot are real and compelling. She shows us that there can be warm relationships between the white and African cultures, but also disturbingly ugly ones. This is a great read on its own, but especially so for anyone interested in all things African.

Stephanie Jane (Literary Flits)

Interesting insights

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 2, 2017

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I noticed African Me And Satellite TV reviewed on a few other book blogs a year or so ago and thought the novel looked interesting. With Zimbabwe in the news again at the moment I was reminded of the book and bought myself a copy. This is a good story with a strong moral message and I enjoyed reading it. At one point our protagonist, Suzette, comments on her enjoyment of the Alexander McCall Smith Number One Ladies Detective Agency series which I had been thinking African Me reminded me of in style. Although African Me is not crime fiction as such, I think readers who like the McCall Smith books would also appreciate this one.

Robinson's cast of black and white Zimbabweans span a wide spectrum of the country's people allowing her to show varied attitudes. Suzette herself becomes a more rewarding character as the story progresses. At first she struck me as just another irritatingly spoilt white woman, but there is more depth to her. Suzette discovers this along with her readers! Robinson weaves powerful themes into this novel. The hardships in Zimbabwe's recent past, racism and violence, and who has rights to the land, all play a strong part in directing the characters' actions. The harsh racism of newcomers Alison and Peter Sherman is especially shocking. It depressed me to remember that many white people are still so ignorant.

However, this is not a depressing novel, but ultimately an uplifting story of the power of love and friendship. For me Princess, Suzette's accomplished cook, is as much the centre of the tale as Suzette. Expressing her love through the incredible meals she creates, Princess embodies reconciliation and the way forward.

Leisl Kaberry

Thought provoking and emotional

Reviewed in Canada on March 24, 2014

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Robinson's African Me & Satellite TV was both thought provoking and emotional.
As seen through the eyes of white Afrikaan women Suzette, who had for so long suffered the injustice brought upon the black people of her country, trying hard to turn a blind eye to a problem and attitude she was personally incapable of fixing.
After a series of disturbing incidences brought upon Suzette and her friends by white newcomers, Alison and Pete Sherman, Suzette is propelled to finally make a stand discovering that even small voices like hers can make a difference.
Robinson has painted a good picture of life being mended after the apartheid and has a good grasp of both (black and white) sides of the coin. She writes with tact and poignant reality expressing strong views of her country's political struggles taking the reader on an emotional journey that was heartfelt and honest.
For me the story peaked a little early and so lagged a bit at the end but otherwise it was an enjoyable story.

FeedMyReads

4.5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 11, 2021

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African Me & Satellite TV is a book which is set in Zimbabwe after white people have been forced to hand back the farms to the black people and how much this impacts on life in Zimbabwe for all. A white lady named Suzette has lived in Zimbabwe for years and been comfortable in her life but not really been present in what is going on but when a new couple come to the area and things begin to change we see Suzette awoken from her sleepwalking way of having lived her life but what will this mean for those around Suzette?

This book is an absolute gem and for someone like myself who has never visited Zimbabwe or any African nations (other than Tunisia on holiday so in a hotel) the author manages to bring a feel for how life is and gives this book a truly African feel. I found the characterisation throughout this book really well delivered and the author has really shown a true talent for weaving a narrative that works beautifully.

I slightly mark the book down but this is due to long chapters and a few small editing issues (very few for a book of this length) but I would highly recommend this to readers.

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African Me & Satellite TV Kindle Edition

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