Song of the Slave Girl, the new novel from Ashraf Kagee, is out now from Jacana Media.

Kagee is a psychologist, academic and writer. His first novel, Khalil’s Journey, won the European Union Literary Award and the South African Literary Award. His second novel, By the Fading Light, was nominated for the SA Literary Award for Youth Literature. He lives in Cape Town and is Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Stellenbosch University.

About the book

‘What’s your favourite food?’ he asked.
‘Carrot and pea bredie,’ was the answer. But the answer was as irrelevant as the question. What each really wanted to know was, could you be loved? Could you be loved by me? If I opened my heart to you, would you fill it with wondrous things? If I gave my soul to you, would you make it soar to the heavens?

Set during the years of slavery in the Cape Colony, Song of the Slave Girl is a spellbinding tale of love and resistance.

Meraj and Djameela, two young slaves, are bound by a powerful love and when Djameela is sold to a farmer, Meraj is consumed by grief. Djameela fends off the advances of her new master’s son and plots her escape. Desperate to reunite, the lovers take bold steps to find each other.

Song of the Slave Girl explores the boundaries of love and freedom. Will love triumph, or will the lovers’ fight for freedom come at too great a cost?