Other Lives - Andre Brink

This book was made up of 3 stories all taking place in South Africa. The first one describes what it would be like to come home from work one day and have an entirely different wife and, oh ya, two kids you didn't have before. Weird. He didn't try very hard to go back to the original life - the new one was pretty sweet. All the inhibitions he had collected along the way down maturation road seemed to disappear. He was the artist he wanted to be, he had the courage to love a woman of color and he was a father. You can't help but daydream a bit after this story. What sort of life would I walk into? I am pretty boring though - all my roads would lead me to the place I am now - I feel sure of this.

The second story is about a white man waking up as a black man. Every other circumstance of his life is exactly the same, but his change of color leads him to examine all of his interactions through a new filter. He is convinced that his colleagues are trying to undermine him and question his authority. When he is out to dinner with his wife, criminals come in to rob the restaurant and all the diners. His wife urges him to confront the criminals - he feels because he is one of them. Good fun - but I would really like to know how he would behave if he were returned to his original color.

The third story was about a pianist who accompanies a gifted soprano. She can't mix music and love so he has to pine for her for a good long time while wishing he was more talented. They finally cross the line and he knows great happiness, but she kills him. He should have listened to her warnings. Longing, regret and a little madness ends this book.