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The novel, Tsotsi, is set in the 1950s in Sophiatown (also known as Saf’town or Kafifi), a location near Johannesburg. Life is very hard for people living there. It is difficult to find work because of the apartheid legislation (by the National Party from 1948 to 1994) that severely restricts the jobs black people are allowed to do and where they are allowed to live. The majority of those who manage to find work do menial jobs. They have to travel long distances to work and are at the mercy of the gangsters, especially in the early evening on Fridays, when people who are paid weekly receive their pay packet. The gangsters do not hesitate to kill their victims.

The chief protagonist in the novel is a ruthless gangster known as Tsotsi. At the age of ten, his life is traumatically disrupted when his mother is arrested and his dog dies a horrible death. He joins a band of homeless boys. From that point, he lives only in the present. He and his gang use violence, sometimes for its own sake, but usually to rob people of their pay packets. Butcher, one of the members of Tsotsi’s gang, is an expert killer with a bicycle spoke.

One night, Boston, one of the members of the gang, asks probing personal questions after the gang’s latest murder, and Tsotsi viciously attacks him, causing severe, near-fatal injuries.

When Tsotsi threatens to sexually assault a young woman, she thrusts a shoebox into his hands. There is a baby inside. It begins to cry, distracting Tsotsi for long enough for the mother to escape. This marks a turning point for Tsotsi. Long-suppressed feelings are awakened by the baby. Instead of killing the child, he starts to care for it. He has absolutely no experience of caring for a baby, and his attempts to feed it are not very successful. He finds himself increasingly confused by the changes in himself. He is no longer able to take ruthless criminal action because he has begun to “feel” for his victims and is dedicated to keeping the baby alive. He finds a woman to suckle the child. He finds himself increasingly able to express his thoughts and to explore the questions that he longs to have answered.

He seeks out Boston, whom he thinks has the education and knowledge to help him understand the changes in him brought on by his returning memory. Boston tells him he is “asking about God”.

The novel explores complex issues. One of the insights is that living a life of crime or not is a choice. The novel also explores the way in which the poor and defenceless are exploited and crushed.

The film, Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood, won the 2006 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.