Description
The Bavino Sermons is a bold and uncompromising poetry collection that delivers a series of powerful, satirical, and politically charged “sermons” from one of South Africa’s most distinctive literary voices. Originally published in 1999 and reissued two decades later, it features standout pieces such as Lines for Vincent, Riding the Victim Train, To Gil Scott-Heron, Crab Attack, Rap Ranting, and The Fela Sermon, alongside longer works and prose fragments. With searing imagery and biting commentary, these poems speak to the chaos, contradictions, and injustices of both past and present, offering a panoramic view of societal fracture and human resilience.
Lesego Rampolokeng’s trademark radical style pulses through The Bavino Sermons, blending moral outrage with dark humour and cultural critique. The work moves between the deeply personal and the politically explosive, unflinching in its witness to violence, inequality, and the absurdities of power. In its raw energy and fearless voice, the collection embodies the spirit of resistance and the urgency of truth-telling that defines Rampolokeng’s body of work.
The Bavino Sermons is essential reading for lovers of contemporary poetry who value bold, socially engaged writing that challenges convention and refuses silence.
