Shades is a historical novel written by Marguerite Poland

Marguerite Poland

Marguerite Poland is a South African novelist.When she was two years old, the Poland family relocated to the Eastern Cape where she spent most of her formative years...

. The book was first published in 1993 by Penguin books. The novel is supposedly based upon the ancestors of Marguerite Poland and their struggle to survive and cope in the harsh South African environment.

Plot

The plot revolves around a family, the Farboroughs who lived in the Eastern Cape of South Africa in the early 1900s, in a small community known as St Matthias. The story follows Walter Brownley, explaining what life was like in South Africa just before the first Boer War. African exploitation, as seen in the mining on the Highveld, is a major theme of the story.

Characters

• Charles Farborough - Head priest at St Matthias
• Emily Farborough - Wife of Father Charles
• Crispin Farborough - Son of Emily and Charles Farborough
• Frances Farborough - Daughter of Emily and Charles Farborough
• Benedict Matiwane - Black worker at St Matthias
• Walter Brownley - Protagonist of Story
• Victor Farborough - "Cousin" of Crispin and Frances
• Nowasha - The maid

Locations

The entire story takes place in South Africa.

• St Matthias (Eastern Cape)
• Mbokothwe (Eastern Cape)
• King Williams Town (Eastern Cape)
• Grahamstown (Eastern Cape)
• Johannesburg (Transvaal now Gauteng)
• Wyebank Secondary (Beast Book)