Editor Reviews:

Book Description:
Cry, the Beloved Country is a beautifully told and profoundly compassionate story of the Zulu pastor Stephen Kumalo and his son Absalom, set in the troubled and changing South Africa of the 1940s. The book is written with such keen empathy and understanding that to read it is to share fully in the gravity of the characters' situations. It both touches your heart deeply and inspires a renewed faith in the dignity of mankind. Cry, the Beloved Country is a classic tale, passionately African, timeless and universal, and beyond all, selfless.

Rating : - Eloquently written; exudes sacredness
Cry, the Beloved Country is a rare book that presents a superbly written story that creates a sense of sacredness that is palpable. The characters in the book demonstrate the struggle of humanity to overcome pain and suffering through forgiveness, redemption and love. The main character Stephen Kumalo, an Anglican Parson in S. Africa, illustrates the gentleness, love and unselfishness that characterize the fruits of a life lived in God's presence. In the sorrows that occur during the story however he experiences darkness described by Paton, "There are times, no doubt, when God seems no more to be about the world." He refuses to lose faith in God or in the people around him. The relationship that buds between him and the father of a man murdered by Kumalo's son represents the fruit of forgiveness and redemption. What comes from it is healing for a valley and a people.

Paton paints the picture of S. Africa that included a beautiful country with beautiful people that had fallen victim to the vices of the modern world and the negative outcomes of a class/race-based society.

This is a book that no doubt contributed to the healing and reconciliation among the people of S. Africa.

In addition to its moral and spiritual qualities, the story is compelling and enjoyable to read.

The plea of the book stands out as the cry for all humanity:
"God save Africa, the beloved country. God save us from the deep depths of our sins. God save us from the fear that is afraid of justice. God save us from the fear that is afraid of men. God save us all."