Book 19- Streets Paved with Gold

The first formal battle of the Anglo-Boer War of 1899 took place in Natal near the small coal-mining town of Dundee. The Boers were positioned on a hill called Talana, which gave its name to the battle, while the British forces occupied the valley. In this story, the stages of the battle unfold from letters sent home by the troopers and from dispatches sent by the officers. The two points of view are contrasted: the official version versus what actually happened on the ground. Ultimately, the battle proves to be inconclusive with the British forces occupying the hill only to find that the hill is deserted having been abandoned by the Boers. As one of the troopers remarks in his letter home: so many people killed for an empty hill.
The second story follows the attempts by illegal immigrants to cross the border in search of a better life. The crossing is hazardous. There are steel fences, border patrols, police dogs and crocodiles. Anyone caught is sent to repatriation camps which local people ironically call “holiday camps”. We follow the experiences of two unaccompanied minors trying to cross the river and of a wife hoping to be re-united with her husband. The lives of the two unrelated families become entwined.