Somehow Tenderness Survives: Stories of Southern Africa

Rochman, an expatriate South African, selected these 10 stories by eight of her compatriots. As she points out in the introduction, the stories are grim; readers unprepared to confront the harsh realities of apartheid may well be shocked. The book opens with the brutal ``Crackling Day'' by Peter Abrahams, told by a black boy who gets a beating for having defended himself against a violent group of white schoolboys. Following that is ``The Old Chief Mshlanga'' by Doris Lessing, which is more subdued, but just as upsetting. Nadine Gordimer is represented by ``Country Lovers'' and ``A Chip of Glass Ruby.'' Other stories describe a young black boy's father being taken away by police, the unlikely camaraderie between a white soldier and a black guerrilla, the silence of a rainy night in a black township after a firebombing. These thought-provoking tales present a stunning indictment of apartheid, although some contain powerful sexual references that may not be suitable to younger members of the target age group. A Charlotte Zolotow Book. Ages 12-up. (September)