Brook ZR Mthethwa’s sincere but underpowered book aims to inspire people in his South African country to take charge in order to improve the nation’s future.
Born into a highly disadvantaged family background, the author nevertheless found a way to complete his higher education in the field of engineering. That accomplishment against the odds, along with the teachings of his religious leaders, led to his decision to pen this slim volume.
Mthethwa references biblical passages and stories to illustrate God’s plan for us to have a life’s purpose. The author says the next generation needs to learn the importance of “how to pray, how to operate in gifts” from the Holy Spirit in order to grow and expand wisdom. Such wisdom, he believes, will improve everyone’s ability to recognize shortcomings (such as lack of education) and learn to avoid bad outside influences. Focusing on and achieving goals not only can improve lives, but also help people rise to the leadership roles greatly needed to boost South Africa’s economic future for the benefit of all.
Mthethwa’s book touches on many important points. However, he tends to speak in broad brushstrokes rather than offering concrete details on how to make improvements. For example, he acknowledges a need for the handful of successful black men running internationally recognized businesses to mentor township kids, but offers no ideas about how to achieve this.
In addition, the book suffers from poor organization, as evidenced by two similar chapter titles (“Foundation of life” and “Foundations of life and goals to achieve in life”). The author also references “President Bush” at one point as if Bush is still in office. And sentence structure and word use are often problematic (“varnish” for “vanish,” “dint” for “didn’t,” and “button” for “baton.”)
Overall, while there is a strong inspirational message here, the ideas are hampered by an undisciplined writing approach. Revision with an eye to correcting the abovementioned issues would greatly enhance this offering.
Also available as an ebook.
