Book Summary and Reviews of Casualties of Truth by Lauren Francis-Sharma

Book Summary

From the author of Book of the Little Axe, nominated for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, and the critically acclaimed 'Til the Well Runs Dry, a riveting literary novel with the sharp edges of a thriller about the abuses of history and the costs of revenge, set between Washington, D.C., and Johannesburg, South Africa.

Prudence Wright seems to have it all: a loving husband, Davis; a spacious home in Washington, D.C.; and the former glories of a successful career at McKinsey, which now enables her to dedicate her days to her autistic son, Roland. When she and Davis head out for dinner with one of Davis's new colleagues on a stormy summer evening filled with startling and unwelcome interruptions, Prudence has little reason to think that certain details of her history might arise sometime between cocktails and the appetizer course.

Yet when Davis's colleague turns out to be Matshediso, a man from Prudence's past, she is transported back to the formative months she spent as a law student in South Africa in 1996. As an intern at a Johannesburg law firm, Prudence attended sessions of the Truth and Reconciliation hearings that uncovered the many horrors and human rights abuses of the Apartheid state, and which fundamentally shaped her sense of righteousness and justice. Prudence experienced personal horrors in South Africa as well, long hidden and now at risk of coming to light. When Matshediso finally reveals the real reason behind his sudden reappearance, he will force Prudence to examine her most deeply held beliefs and to excavate inner reserves of resilience and strength.

Lauren Francis-Sharma's previous two novels have established her as a deft chronicler of history and its intersections with flawed humans struggling to find peace in unjust circumstances. With keen insight and gripping tension, Casualties of Truth explosively mines questions of whether we are ever truly able to remove the stains of our past and how we may attempt to reconcile with unquestionable wrongs.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. The novel begins with Ida B. Wells's quote, "The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them." What wrongs are confronted, and what truths come to light? Who exposes them? How do the chapter-opening quotes from notable South Africans and Black Americans emphasize the book's themes? In the context of the title, Casualties of Truth, which characters become victims of the truth? Discuss what the title means to you?
2. When we first meet Prudence, she is a young, eager law clerk in post-Apartheid South Africa. On page 71, Prudence describes herself as feeling "starved much of the time, like there wasn't enough food in the world to fill her" and wonders what this hunger says about her. How does this view compare to the ...