Big Pieces, Little Pieces by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma
Father was very particular about his belongings. Take the time when Mama burnt his Che Guevara shirt, the frayed one with a black and white man who looked like somebody called Bob Marley but without his dreadlocks. You had always thought that shirt was a sweaty-smelly thing because Father wore it only when he went to some place called ‘Jim’ which made him sweaty-smelly. But the way he smashed Mama’s Philips iron against the wall and screamed what kind of nincompoop destroyed something so revolutionary, made that shirt as good as new...
This story has been selected for the StoryTime anthology African Roar, please go to the African Roar site for more info on the anthology.
Big Pieces Little Pieces was written by Novuyo Rosa Tshuma.
Copyright Novuyo Rosa Tshuma 2009.
Novuyo Rosa Tshuma is currently pursuing her studies at the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa. Her short stories have been published in anthologies in Zimbabwe. She also has short stories in forth coming anthologies by Modjaji Books and ‘Story Time African Roar’. She won third prize in the Intwasa Short Story Competition 2008. Her short story ‘You In Paradise’, which won the Intwasa Short Story Competition 2009, was published in the eighth issue of African Writing Online. A young writer of lofty literary ambitions, Novuyo continuously searches for those spaces where colourful minds meet through scribbled thoughts to dissect the many fluid perspectives of the world.
15 comments:
beautiful and devastating. the storyteller's voice itself is amazing, it's just there daring you stop, which of course you can't do coz you just have to get to the end. and the second person is an intelligent choice for the subject; it puts you on the spot; you feel the violence, every madness. the language... elegant, the pacing... perfect. i also admire this piece for its subject matter, and the unsentimental way it's executed. this is some serious stuff. zim lit rising baby!
Very well executed, Novuyo. Mkha was right, second person is a very well chosen style for this grim, unrelenting piece - it makes it seem like a universal experience (which, sadly, it probably is). It also really does capture the banality of domestic violence -- our interest lies with the narrator (as it should) and not with the reasons or lack thereof for the violence itself.
Wow! This was a powerful piece, Novuyto! The hisory of violence charted through the eyes of a child was so chilling, real and devastating. The POV was well executed and the control and pacing of the story was awesome. There were plenty pieces of wonderful writing in here...
Interesting story. Happens everyday. Thanks for this...enjoyed though I hate I did because of the content.
A gripping narrative, and well-knitted. The dialogue is immaculate, reminds me of the rising sun. Let your talent shine.
Responding to comments and compliments is a difficult thing because although you are glowing inside you are also tongue-tied:-) The general tendency is to the brush the compliment aside, for lack of a better way to express your gratitude! Thank you all for taking the time to view this piece and give helpful and encouraging analysis. Putting your work out in the open for people to read and analyse, especially more experienced writers, is a daunting thing. You may think the going is ok only to discover that your writing cupboard needs a lot of dusting! My attention has been brought to many aspects of the build up of a story I have never consciously thought about, pacing, importance of point of view, control, style... so merci!
Wow!
Now I'm tongue-tied. This is (I have typed and deleted twelve superlatives)this is depressing, achy, heart-breaking.
And for me, it hit close to home; too close.
Well done, girl. Well done!
I liked the flashbacks - the way the story danced around time; they seemed so scattered and disordered, but that was your conceit, wasn't it? It was just like the way a child would think. it made it seem so real, so real.
Well done.
Heartrending and haunting...amazing how one voice can narrate the story of millions, how one tear can encapsulate the suffering of multitudes...gripping, tugging at the heartstrings and refusing the reader the option of remaining indifferent and untouched. You have amazing talent; a wordsmith par excellence...delighted to meet you this way for the written word is as good an introduction as any - and if this story to go by: you've made quite an impression!
Daughter
As a mother you have made me proud. As someone who wacted you write stories from the age of nine I'd say you have natural talent. With every story you write its greater than the one before. You touch and challenge the core and values of society. I can see even a wife beater thinking twice after reading this. Women being empowered to protect themselves, kids before they become another statistic.I can see society reading and realising violence is not justifiable despite past generations' excuses, oppression of women. Hope this gets a wide audience, newspaper publications under short stories etc to capture those that need it most, ordinary citizens. " Duties of a mother. " You never seize to make me proud of you.-Za
Brilliant work Novuyo. I wouldn't mind investing my money in publishing (book) something as powerful as this. Well done and keep writing.Zimbabwean literature is growing and also maturing, at an unprecedented rate.
aah what more can l say, you know lm your biggest fan. brilliant love!
Gripping and raw. I like the way you fleshed out the background with that line that every Zimbabwean has heard regarding the issue of domestic violence, "Lo yiwo umendo". No more needs to be said and you leap in to the story. And what a story it is. Coming from a screenwriting background, I tend to gauge stories by their powers to evoke cinematic images-and this one does. Miss Tshuma will go far.
Thanks guys, I figure with support such as yours tomorrow can only be brighter, it's nice to belong to a community of other writers- get to understand one another! That 'writer- gibberish-lingo' that people sometimes find a little...'off'. lol.
Brilliant work Novuyo. I wouldn't mind investing my money in publishing (book) something as powerful as this. Well done and keep writing.Zimbabwean literature is growing and also maturing, at an unprecedented rate.
aah what more can l say, you know lm your biggest fan. brilliant love!
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