Adams and Archetype Press recently launched Durban: Once Upon a Time by Franco Frescura from the UKZN School of
Architecture in association with Barbara Maude-Stone (co-author with Yvonne
Miller of Dear Old Durban published
1998).
Durban: Once Upon a Time is an exploration, on a number of levels, of Durban during the
post-colonial era. It is a collection of romantic images from a time gone by
which, together with the memories of a number of Durban’s early residents,
paints a picture of when life was conducted at a more leisurely pace. A life
populated by shopping trips to West Street, milkshakes taken at the Model Dairy
on Ocean Beach, dressing up for the July and sailing to England on a stately
mail ship.
Or, if you choose,
it begins to explain why early Durban developed close to The Point, how the
lower part of West and Pine Streets remained, for many years “the preferred
habitat of several species of waterfowl” or why the Borough of Durban, in its
pioneering years, was perpetually bankrupt.
Readers can
discover the fables, myths and social perceptions that colour that history of
Durban and give context to the memories of its old residents. The book seeks
out the silences inherent in the town’s early days, most particularly during
the first years of the 20th century, and gives them voice. In the process, it
reveals the presence of a very large, very real elephant that still inhabits
Durban’s living room.
NB: Watch this space for a review early in
the New Year.
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