Dangerous, decaying megalopolis where abandoned cemeteries and a brothel provide refuge: South Africa's gritty, apartheid-scarred city of Johannesburg is the star of Niq Mhlongo's latest novel written from the fresh perspective of his new home in Europe.
The award-winning writer was born in Johannesburg's sprawling Soweto township 51 years ago and the dilapidated city still holds his heart, even though he has lived in Berlin for the past five years.
The City is Mine is a story of passion and desperation in South Africa's rough-and-tumble economic capital, disfigured by the policies of racial segregation in place until democracy in 1994.
"I write nostalgically about my city of Joburg," Mhlongo told AFP during a visit to South Africa for the release of the book. "Living abroad has made me look at Joburg with a different kind of an eye."
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