“Who would have every imagined that any of this could happen so fast, and all at once? I forgive myself if  enjoy it, because there is too much danger and oppression in my country to think that any of it will last.”  (57)

Makeba My story, by Miriam Makeba with James Hall (1988, nonfiction, 249 pages).  Reading this book, I kept coming back to the obvious question “How come I never heard of her?” Miriam Makeba’s life began in poverty in South Africa, amid the cruelties of the apartheid system. From here she rose to become an internationally known singer, first introduced to an international audience by Harry Belafonte in 1959 and admired by figures such as John F. Kennedy and Nelson Mandela.  Makeba’s story is captivating. It is a story of a woman who proudly and consistently defended her country, South Africa, while discovering herself and what it means to become a celebrity, mother, and overshadowed by her husband (Black Panther‘s Stokely Carmichael) and exiled. I found myself on a beautiful emotional roller coaster and engulfed in a beautiful necessary history lesson. My only disappointment is that this book was published in 1988, and she lived until 2008.  I would have loved to hear her thoughts and reactions to apartheid ending and her eventual return to South Africa. Wanting to know more about her, I found myself listening to her record The Unforgettable Miriam Makeba (remastered 2024). Her voice is uniquely beautiful. The book and record left me thinking of the question “If you can invite anyone to dinner who would you invite?” and Ms. Makeba has been added to that list.