Written in 1965 under the title: Sol T. Plaatje; published in 2012 under the title: Lover of his people. Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje - morata baabo (loosely translated: Solomon Tshekisho Plaatje - a lover of his people) is the only biography of Sol Plaatje written in his mother tongue (Setswana) and by a person who knew him personally and lived with him. Modiri Molema, the son of Silas Molema (the founder of Mahikeng), first met Sol Plaatje when he was seven years old in 1898. At the time Plaatje was 22 years old and had just arrived in Mahikeng from Kimberley to work as a court interpreter and typist at the magistrates court.
Summary:
In this book, the author tells the story of Sol Plaatje's growth from an unknown but brilliant court interpreter with a gift of languages to a pioneering journalist, a linguist, a giant of South African literature and politics. Molema also tells about the Sol Plaatje the reader has never met before - Plaatje the avid reader, the village storyteller, the lover of performing arts, the one who liked sharing jokes, who congratulated school children who did well at school, who was respected by old and young members of the community, the one who could get angry and laugh heartily in a short space of time. Molema also tells of Plaatje who worked so hard for the South Africans, in literature, African languages and politics, that his family only spent time with him at home when he was unwell and was confined to bed. The author tells the story of Plaatje who so committed to his work that he even died working.
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