"Fiela's Child" - Dalene Matthee
"Fiela's child" written by Dalene Matthees is a fictional book about a young white boy who is raised in a family of blacks for over nine years of his life. One day he is taken away to a family of whites which is supposed to be his real family. At first he tries to fight the law's decision of him moving to his real family but in the end he decides that there isn't much to help him about it and stays with the new family.
Lukas, the son of Barta and Elias van Rooyen, goes missing. For weeks everyone living in the African forest searches for the three-year-old boy but there is no sign of him.
In the meantime a white boy of three is found and cared for by a coloured woman in the Kloof. The boy and the woman start to love each other like mother and son and grow up as one big family with the woman's husband and four other children. The boy, Benjamin Komoetie, learns to lead a happy life among black people.
One day two men are sent from the village to count all people living in the country. Having reached the Kloof they come and visit the Komoeties. The two men ask for all the names of the family members and others living on the land of the Komoeties, and of course Fiela has no other choice than to report her hand-child Benjamin. When the gentlemen are about to leave to the next house, none other than Benjamin comes rushing around the corner to his mother, Fiela. At once the men realise that something is wrong and Fiela is forced to tell the story of how she found the boy crying on her doorstep nine years ago. One of the men suddenly remembers about a child going missing around nine years ago and straight away decides to take Benjamin to the village to see the magistrate.
Once Barta van Rooyen recognises Benjamin as her son, the case is cleared and the boy is sent to live with his supposedly real family. At first Benjamin is not quite used to living with his two new brothers, his new sister or his new parents. He also refuses to call his parents ma and pa and is
Lukas, the son of Barta and Elias van Rooyen, goes missing. For weeks everyone living in the African forest searches for the three-year-old boy but there is no sign of him.
In the meantime a white boy of three is found and cared for by a coloured woman in the Kloof. The boy and the woman start to love each other like mother and son and grow up as one big family with the woman's husband and four other children. The boy, Benjamin Komoetie, learns to lead a happy life among black people.
One day two men are sent from the village to count all people living in the country. Having reached the Kloof they come and visit the Komoeties. The two men ask for all the names of the family members and others living on the land of the Komoeties, and of course Fiela has no other choice than to report her hand-child Benjamin. When the gentlemen are about to leave to the next house, none other than Benjamin comes rushing around the corner to his mother, Fiela. At once the men realise that something is wrong and Fiela is forced to tell the story of how she found the boy crying on her doorstep nine years ago. One of the men suddenly remembers about a child going missing around nine years ago and straight away decides to take Benjamin to the village to see the magistrate.
Once Barta van Rooyen recognises Benjamin as her son, the case is cleared and the boy is sent to live with his supposedly real family. At first Benjamin is not quite used to living with his two new brothers, his new sister or his new parents. He also refuses to call his parents ma and pa and is