This courageous and eloquent book recounts the personal trauma of a young Xhosa initiate after a traditional circumcision gone wrong. It details the pain and lifelong shame that he experiences as a result of not just the physical trauma, but the social ostracism of being labelled ‘a failed man’. Challenging definitions of masculinity, Thando Mgqolozana decodes the values and mysteries of this deep-seated cultural tradition. With its forthright engagement of a controversial topic, the English version, A Man Who is Not A Man, has stirred much debate, praise and also censure