Alan Paton's Beloved Country

Alan Paton began writing Cry the Beloved Country, his moving novel about racial injustice in South Africa, in Norway, continued it in Sweden and England, and finished the book in San Francisco in 1948, a fitting itinerary for a work that has been translated into at least 20 languages and has been reinterpreted many times over the years in film and on the stage. Catherine Meyburgh's documentary profile begins with Nobel prize winner Paton reading as the camera pans across a soft-toned panorama of South African countryside, and concludes with Paton reading from the final chapter, thus framing an absorbing and well-balanced biographical profile. Early in his career, Paton became disillusioned with the elitist white establishment and left his position as a science teacher to become involved with the youth reformatory system both in South Africa and Scandinavia, remaining a political activist until his death in 1988. The story of how this civil servant became a famous author and champion of human rights is recounted here through archival photos and comments from the author, and contemporary interviews with family and friends. Nicely photographed and smoothly edited, this is highly recommended both for general public and academic collections. Aud: H, C, P. (J. Reed)