Born a Crime: A Review

Adetan Opemipo

Title: Born a Crime: stories from a South African childhood

Author: Trevor Noah

Publisher: Spiegel and Grau
ISBN: 9780399588174

Trevor Noah’s ‘Born a Crime’ takes the reader on a journey of rather funny stories of the childhood living of the South African comedian. Each story serving the reader with varying degree of humour and jest. The book, divided into three parts with several chapters tells stories at different stages of Trevor Noah’s childhood and teenage years. Living with his single, adventurous and extremely religious mother in township Soweto. At a very tender age, Trevor already knew what it felt like to be segregated racially even amongst the races who were segregated at the height of apartheid in mid-70’s South Africa. Incidentally young Trevor was filled with innocent mischief that would leave both the readers and characters wondering what was marauding his juvenile mind while he wrecked the havoc he became renowned for. He gives the reader a well-nigh feeling of defying authorities with his liberal and rational ideals, but he never really called them out. The author let the reader espy the humorous side of his childhood doused with apparent but esoteric phrases of wry witticism. A reader who fancies the many other comic works of the author would accept the hilarity. However, a reader with less sentiment towards the author and the book would most definitely be left in an enigma when it comes to deciding if the whole book was meant to be a mirthsome autobiography or a work of fiction.

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