Five women gather every Friday night to discuss their writing lives. Isabel, returning home, where the writing circle are to meet, is attacked in her car at gunpoint and raped. But she manages to turn the gun on her attacker and shoot him. In coping with the killing, the disposal of the body, and the breakdown and recovery of Isabel, we learn about the intersecting personal lives of the women--Isabel, Carmen, Jazz, Beauty, and Amina, all successful professionals in today's South Africa. And when the body is discovered, and the identity of the attacker revealed, all their stereotypes fall away. The novel is narrated by all five women in their individual styles.

Rozena Maart is s professor of Gender Studies and Director at the Centre for Critical Research on Race and Identity at the University of Kwa Zulua Natal, in Durban, South Africa. Born in District Six, Cape Town, she was nominated for the "Woman of the Year" award at age 24 for her work in the area of violence against women, and for co-founding, the first Black feminist organization in South Africa, Women Against Repression [W.A.R.]. Rozena has published several journal articles and essays and three books including the award-winning Rosa's District Six, and The Writing Circle.

Rozena Maart's profile page

"The Writing Circle is a beautifully written, heartbreaking piece. If your book club is looking for a book to spark meaningful conversation and bring awareness to the group, no matter where you live, The Writing Circle will deliver that and more." --carp(e) libris

"Maart challenges our deepest preconceptions about everything South African-and manages to convey a remarkable resilience." --Herizons

". . . gripping, entertaining and informative." --Wasafiri