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Just started reading this book for new class in the fall. Thoughts on its placement in today's list of must reads for 12th graders.

How old are 12th graders?
It is not a difficult book to understand and there are quite a few things to discuss in it, so it is a good book to have on the list from that point of view. I don't see much reason for putting it on the list now though, it should have been there from 1948 to 1994.

Val wrote: "How old are 12th graders?
It is not a difficult book to understand and there are quite a few things to discuss in it, so it is a good book to have on the list from that point of view. I don't see m..."

My 12th graders are 17 or 18 years old and are identified with a learning disability. I agree with you that it is not too challenging and does work as a spring board to more difficult texts.

Ailleen, This is a very interesting discussion. Your first comment was made when you had "just started reading this book." I'll assume that six hours later you had already finish reading it and found it was "not too challenging" and it didn't "work as a spring board to more difficult texts." Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Given the long history of slavery (up to 1865 and 1870 in Alaska), discrimination and outright apartheid (Civil Rights Act of 1964) I would highly recommend that book to be placed in today's list of must reads for USA 12th graders. "Society cleverly and subtly maintains its separate views of the races. Ancient barriers, though invisible, still exist owing to the unhappy truth that it is still impossible to legislate the hearts of men. There will always be those who will fight for change while others resist, seeking to maintain the status quo. These are issues of economy, power, and control not easily relinquished. Inasmuch as racism is an institutional ideology, there can still be no improvement unless many individuals work towards it." Cry, the Beloved Country is "the most influential South African novel ever written."

You mention the "learning disability" of your 12th graders. Giving that they are discriminated and separated from the other children of the same grade and age, this novel might be a great raiser of awareness among your students. "Unforgettable for character and incident, it is a novel of love and hope, courage and endurance, born of the dignity of man." That is challenge enough and a superb spring board to more "difficult texts" like some that explain that learning disabilities are complex disorders, that vary in their expression and in the way they impact individuals. Another, would be texts that explain that there are three federal laws that prohibit discrimination against children with disabilities: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

To help Val see some compelling reasons for putting this book on the list now, one needs only to revisit the England riots of less than one year ago, between August 6 and 10, 2011. An independent report concluded that "a lack of support and opportunity for young people contributed to the outbreak of rioting in England last year." The most famous and important novel in South Africa's history, and an immediate worldwide bestseller when it was published in 1948, Alan Paton's impassioned novel set against the background of South Africa and a people driven by racial injustice is a work of searing beauty.

Aileen, I hope this will be of some help.

In fact I wrote that I thought Cry, the Beloved Country WAS an excellent spring board to more difficult texts. I appreciated your insights to the novel and are almost completed with the novel.
My students with learnings disabilities are placed in a smaller class setting to more appropriately serve their academic needs in smaller group as they require specifically designed curriculum and read at least 2-4 grades level below their peers.
thank you for your insights. I welcome further discussion on this valuable piece of literature.

Aileen, Thanks for correcting me. I was having real trouble with your sentence "it is not too challenging and does work as a spring board to more difficult texts." I got what you meant all wrong. I'm glad I asked. It's unforgivable to still have these kind of problems with English. I guess one is not immune to this sort of misinterpretations in our own mother tongue (and that's the best excuse I could come up with :-) ). My apologies. Also, thank you so much for your attention to my other comments.

I'm actually a special education teacher in the states, having taught students with special needs for over 12 years. I have not though read this book before and want to be sure to put it in the correct perspective for my students. Having almost finished it and being very familiar with other examples of apartheid from recent history, I believe I will be able to respect Mr. Paton's original intent for writing this eloquent and expressively written novel.

I do not disagree with your assessment of the book Virgilio, but South Africa is one of the few countries to have seriously addressed the problem of racial injustice and perhaps a book set in a country where it is still rife would be a more pertinent choice at this time.

Because Cry, the Beloved Country was written in 1948 it represents the first novel that told the story of South Africa's racial struggles. That being said it makes sense to me to use it as a spring board to other modern works on the same topic. For example, Kaffir Boy by Mark Mathabane.
My focus will be to make these connections and more for my students so that they are able to apply their understanding of these topics to their 21st century experiences.

Thank you for explaining the context Aileen.

Thank you for your eloquently stated comments too! I am starting at a new school in a new county and have over 12 novels to cruise through this summer-so I'm looking for some different perspectives on some of my reads! This strand has been interesting and helpful to see different points of view.

I read this book more that 15 years ago. It was truly an eye-opener into how damaging apartheid is.

I have just completed reading this book. I liked it very much. There's just one thing I didn't understand.

In the end of the book Jarvis says to Kumalo, "One thing is about to be finished and here is something that has only begun. And while I live it will continue?"

Was does he mean by this and what is he actually referring to?

Just a note to all that this book was written BEFORE apartheid actually began. The Afrikaans decided the way to handle the "race" issue was to implement apartheid. This occurred one to two years after the publication of this book. That is what makes reading this book so sad; a decision was made to do the opposite of what Paton thought was necessary.