Miyelani Anthonia

The LAST STOP by Thabiso Mofokeng is one of the most interesting fiction, especially to those who really want to know and understand the lifestyle of taxi drivers and taxi owners in the taxi industry. The novel is about a man called Macko, who was born in Mozambique and come to South Africa (SA) at the age of fourteen (14). Since his arrival in SA, he never went back to his country of origin to check his grandfather who raised him since his parents passed away. In SA, he worked as taxi driver under his naughty and corrupt boss, Tabola. Macko was based in Qwaqwa with his untrustworthy girl called Rose. He drives his taxi from Johannesburg to Qwaqwa almost everysay. Macko’s life in South Africa was not amusing because of the way Rose used to treat him, especially when it comes to financial matters. Macko was always depressed both at home and work. There some scary and unwanted voices that used to visit him wherever he goes, demanding him to go back to Mozambibwe. Those voices always demanded him to go back home because his grandfather wanted him to look after his wealth that he was having there. As a result of that, passengers who used to travel by his taxi concluded that he is crazy. Even his was Rose started to be worried about his strange behavior. Macko used to see animals and people that people who sat around him didn’t see! To be honest, this is one of the well written novels I read. It opened my mind when it comes to issues that are troubling the South African Taxi Industry and the country as a whole. I give it 8/10. Creative authors like Thabiso Mofokeng are really needed in the country! Thabiso Mofokeng was born in the Free State. He appears in various anthologies and journals in Sesotho and English. He completed his master’s in Creative Writing with distinctions at Rhodes University in 2015 and has a PhD in English from the University of the Western Cape. He has facilitated various workshops in poetry and prose, he is currently the chairperson of Metjodi Writers and he is the founder of Thabiso Mofokeng Writing Foundation. His magic realism novel is shortlisted for the Dinaane Debut Fiction Award 2016. His poetry appeared in the Sol Plaatje European Union Poetry Award in 2013, 2015 and 2016. Some of his books are prescribed by the South African Department of Education for grade 8 and grade 10.