Book Review- Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime

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(I had written this book review a couple of months ago, on someone's request. I edited it a bit before posting it here.)

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, a memoir by Trevor Noah, published in November, 2016.

Trevor Noah is a South African comedian and former host of 'The Daily Show'. He has also acted in films, soap operas, TV shows and won a number of awards.

     Noah was born in South Africa, during apartheid, to a black Xhosa mother and white Swiss-German father. Born at a time when interracial coupling was illegal and his birth would have invited jail time for his mother, she took advantage of loopholes in the law and managed to evade arrest. Although his mother had him out of wedlock by choice, she was an extremely religious person and took Noah and his brother to many church services on Sunday whether they had a car or had to travel by minivan or walk. She didn’t even let roadblocks due to riots deter her. Noah provides a first person’s account about the atrocities and brutalities committed against the blacks during apartheid and it is admirable that he chose not to be a victim. His lighthearted approach on the subject eases the effect it has on the readers also. He first realized racial discrimination at the age of 11, in school, when, he had the option of being with the whites but identified himself as black and chose to be with them instead.

     Through various incidents that he narrates, it is evident that his mother, having raised him as a single parent, had a very strong influence on his growing up years. He admires her values, stubbornness, humour and fearlessness which made him the man that he is today. Hence, he has dedicated the book to her. He doesn’t hesitate to admit his mother ran away from home at a young age, lived on the streets, associated with prostitutes or was in an abusive relationship. She lived her life with courage, and he learnt to live that way as well. Once, when he was nine years old, she threw him out of a moving vehicle and then jumped out with his baby brother, to prevent them from being kidnapped. Noah says it felt nothing like what “the big Hollywood movies” show, where you “roll for a bit, pop up and then dust yourself off” - they were bruised, bloodied, no time to dust off but had to get up and run from the gangsters! He was a naughty child who got into a lot of trouble and narrates all those incidents which sound unbelievable but hilarious as well.

     The book is candid and interesting and feels as though Noah is talking to the reader. Besides, the language is simple. Noah uses a lot of trending terms/ references such as ‘photobomb’, ‘Game of Thrones’, few cuss words, which will make it appealing to even young readers. It is easy to get engrossed in the book and difficult to put it down until one is done reading it from cover to cover.