I admired this book a lot, but I never quite loved it. It's often affecting and there are sections that are quite beautiful. And it's a kind book, which I really liked. There's a deep-seated optimism and kindness that really permeates throughout. I liked the last 20-30 pages quite a lot.

But it's very distant from its characters: the style throughout is biblical, which gives the prose a solid sternness that's interesting and sometimes impressive but also pretty distancing. The characters - with fleeting exceptions - are impenetrable, almost ciphers. With the exception of Stephen Kumalo, our protagonist, they often feel more like Statements or Messages than people. This is especially true of the women in the book, who are moral messages or remain largely out of focus.

It is certainly worth a read, and there are a lot of things to love about this book. I can fully understand when people would give it 4 to 5 stars. The style was not my cup of tea, though.

A beautiful, rich, amazing book that somehow turns struggle, suffering, betrayal, kindness, honor, and dishonor into poetry.

A modern classic not only of Christian literature but of literature period. Paton captures the messiness, beauty, and sorrow of living in the already not yet. We are ambassadors of the Kingdom not fully here, but pray that it comes. All in all it's possibly the best piece of Anglican propaganda we have ever produced since the Book of Common Prayer itself.