The story of an African Farm by Olive Schreiner
The tale begins with three childhood playmates growing up on a sheep farm: Waldo, son of the farm's kindly and pious German overseer; Em, the stolid but kind English stepdaughter of Tant' Sannie, the farm's Boer owner; and Lyndall, Em's spirited orphan cousin. As the story follows the friends to adulthood, basic conflicts are enacted both internally and externally. Em's ardnet fiance falls in love with the beautiful but troubled Lyndall, who flouts social pressure to marry. Waldo struggles with his boundless yearning for spiritual fulfillment and for the stimulation that knowledge brings, as well as his need for warm human companionship.
Lyndall's fierce efforts to wrest from the world a life for herself, and the effects her insight and courage have on others, make a gripping tale. This eloquent portrayal of lives damaged by societal repression retains its power more than a century after its publication. Today's readers will welcome this inexpensive edition of a literary landmark.