Together Apart: The Story of Living In Apartheid

While Apartheid ended 30 years ago, its impact still resonates today. Together Apart teaches children about this dark time in our history and the sacrifices made.  It is vital for our ongoing journey toward a truly inclusive and just society.

The life of everyday South Africans and their struggle against one of the world’s most notorious systems of racial segregation is told with facts and stories and a graphic comic featuring four young children who pose the questions that get Makhulu – an elder who lived through Apartheid – talking.  This style invites young readers to dive into the complex and heartbreaking history of apartheid, a time when courage and resilience shone brightly in the face of oppression.

Stories of hope and triumph are also shared, through the brave individuals and organisations that fought tirelessly for equality and justice. Their stories of strength, love and revolution are woven together showing the triumph of the human spirit against overwhelming odds.

Asking Questions

It is more important than ever to understand the past in order to make sense of where we are as a nation today.  When children ask questions like:

“What was life like under apartheid?

What is colonialism?

Why are schools in cities and rural areas so different?

Why is there this idea of inherited poverty and privilege?

How did apartheid affect the sports in South Africa?

This book gives answers and prompts discussions.

I remember the time when South African school history books only began with the arrival of Jan van Riebeck to the Cape in 1652.  Now we are shown the story of South Africa, from the beginning point of the Stone and Iron Ages to today. What a wealth of knowledge, rich culture and history was left out!

The book shows how everything – from the denial of voting rights to the harsh segregation laws that controlled people’s daily lives − where they lived, worked, and even who they could marry − spread through every aspect of life.

Graphic comic

The graphic comic sections, which are woven throughout the book, allow the four children, Jessica, Aiden, Xiluva and Priya, who are representative of Whites, Coloureds, Blacks and Indians, to explore all questions with honesty and compassion.

This is a lesson for all ages and countries, as we face the rising threat of fascism in the world.

Together Apart: The Story of Living in Apartheid, is intended for young people but speaks to readers of all ages. It is more than just a history book − it’s a call to action for a new generation to understand the past and shape a better future.

Listen to the podcast interview with Xolisa Guzula here.

Xolisa Guzulua and Athambile Masola are also authors of Imbokodo: Women Who Shape Us, a series of books about the powerful stories of South African women who have all made their mark and cleared a path for women and girls. 

Buy the book here. 

Meet the Authors

Xolisa Guzula

Xolisa is a senior lecturer in Applied Language and Literacy Studies at the University of Cape Town. She specialises in multilingual and multiliteracies education, teaching children to speak, read and write in two or more languages. She is one of the founders of a network of reading clubs – Vulindlela Reading Club, Nal’ibali Reading Clubs and the Stars of Today Literacy Club. She has written several children’s books, including co-authoring the Imbokodo: Women who shape us series with Dr Athambile Masola.

She has translated many children’s books from English to isiXhosa including books by award-winning authors Astrid Lindgren, Niky Daly, Sihle-isipho Nontshokweni, Refiloe Moahloli and Nicholas Maritz. She won an IBBY/Exclusive Books Award for best translation of The Elders at the Door to Iinkonde eMnyango by Shayle and Maryanne Bester. Her translation of Wendy Hartmann’s book, The Singing Stone/Ilitye Eliculayo made the international honour list of IBBY 100 recommended books. Recently, she released her translation of Sello Duiker’s book The Hidden Star into Inkwenkwezi efihlakeleyo. Xolisa is a member of Bua-lit Language and Literacy Collective (bua-lit.org.za), focusing on social justice in language and literacy education. She is Chair of the Western Cape Committee of the Literacy Association of South Africa (LITASA).

Athambile Masola 

Dr Athambile Masola is a respected historian who received her PhD from Rhodes University. Her dissertation was an exploration of black women’s life writing with a particular focus on Noni Jabavu and Sisonke Msimang’s memoirs. Her primary research focuses on black women’s life writing and historiography. Her research is also informed by the early 20^th century newspaper archive in South Africa (particularly written in isiXhosa). She is primarily concerned with the nature of erasure and the ways in which multiple forms of reading a variety of texts can inform archival research.

Her debut poetry collection, Ilifa, was published in 2021. Together with Makhosazana Xaba, she introduces Noni Jabavu: A Stranger At Home (published through Tafelberg in 2023), and co-authored the Imbokodo: Women Who Shape Us series with Xolisa Guzula.