DEATH OF THE MANTIS
by Michael Stanley
(Headline, R180)
Death of the Mantis is a novel written by someone who knows the lifestyle of the Kalahari bushmen extremely well.
The authors, Michael Sears and Stanley Trollip, who write under the name Michael Stanley, have such fertile imaginations that although the story is based on scenes taking place in a mostly barren land comprising sand dunes and little vegetation, they create a place of mystery, where animals and the Bushmen survive with very little water.
The story is centred on two characters, Botswana police detective Kubu Bengu and Khumanego, an individual one could term a modern Bushman. Khumanego was one of the lucky few to have had the rare oppor-tunity among his kind to go to school.
He attends the same school as Kubu and their circumstances force them to become friends.
They are both ridiculed at school. Kubu is nicknamed Hippo for being fat, while Khumanego is despised for being short.
When Khumanego finishes school, he becomes an advocate for Bushman rights, fighting for their recognition and for them to be left to lead their lives as they please in the Kalahari desert. However, the reality of the situation is that their natural habitat is being encroached on as modern settle-ments expand, leading to conflict between the Batswana and the Bushmen.
Khumanego feels his people are being forced to lead a life alien to their culture of hunting and gathering, and uses his education and contacts to fight for the rights of his kith and kin.
Kubu, now a detective, and Khumanego are reunited years after last seeing each other at school. This follows the arrest of some Bushmen as murder suspects after a game ranger is found unconscious in the Kalahari and dies of his injuries.
Police order an immediate manhunt for the killer or killers, and send teams of detectives into the Kalahari.
However, one of the leading detectives seems to have some-thing against Bushmen and is convinced they are responsible for the murder. Kubu, however, is sympathetic to the Bushmen, especially after getting to understand them better through his friend Khumanego.
The conflict between these two detectives is a story in its own right and is portrayed in a very humorous way.
Before the ranger’s death is resolved, a Namibian tourist is found murdered, not so far from where the ranger was discovered. This sets into motion a cross-border investigation which takes Botswana detectives to the Namibian capital, Windhoek.
What happens on this manhunt keeps the reader glued to this novel. Although the story is a sad one in that involves the killing of innocent people, the authors have such a great sense of humour one could mistakenly be declared insane for laughing all by yourself – continuously.
I honestly never thought the near-barren Kalahari could be the scene for such a thrilling story. This is a hysterical and gripping read.