F YOU WANT TO MAKE GOD LAUGH by Bianca Marais deserves a spot in your "to be read" pile. The story takes place in South Africa in the mid-1990s as Mandela is elected president. There are three narrators: Delilah, a former nun and aid worker; Ruth, her flamboyant, alcoholic sister who is about to get a divorce; and Zodwa, a young Zulu girl struggling with her sexual orientation and an unexpected pregnancy. Originally from South Africa, Marais intertwines the characters' stories with the changes in that country, its racial conflicts and attitudes, and the growing AIDS epidemic. The middle-aged white sisters, who had been estranged for decades, reunite at their family home and are forced by economics to learn to live together. Delilah carries guilt and regret for past actions, saying "the past wasn't a place you could just walk away from; it was something you carried with you your entire life, and year upon year as your arms got weaker, the burden just got heavier and harder to bear." Ruth sees signs in everything and alludes to her "belief that I've been having a lifelong conversation with the universe just as profound as the one she's [Delilah's] been having with God." One of those signs is a pair of knitted blue booties and the subsequent abandonment of a newborn baby on their porch. The decision to foster this black child is not an easy one and the story is full of loss and hardship mingled with love and courage. There's a thread of feminism, too, with comments on "it was a girl's duty to grin and bear it. No matter what any man did, she absolutely wasn't to make a fuss. ... a dysfunctional way to be raised." Yet, the sisters and Zodwa persevere and find their way in this well-written second novel. As Ruth says, "Maybe we're all born with that piece of us missing and our life's journey is about finding it. Finding the one thing that makes us whole."

If You Want to Make God Laugh by Bianca Marais was a heart-ripper. I kept putting off reading this ARC because I loved the author's previous novel, Hum if You Don't Know the Words, so much and I was worried that this would fall short. Hardly the case! Marais has delivered another masterpiece. My heart did a steady melt through the book, then I started tearing up a bit, but the ending had me sobbing so much I couldn't read the words. I had to put down the book and walk around to catch my breath...but then I'd dive right back in.

What a beautiful, heartbreaking book, of three very different women, brought together because of need and the love of a little black baby. Two of those women are white sisters and the other woman is his mother, who had her baby snatched from her at birth, because her mother loved her so much and wanted the best for her daughter's baby.

The book takes place in the 1990s Johannesburg, in post-Apartheid South Africa, during the raging and misunderstood AIDs epidemic, and as Nelson Mandela begins his presidency. Each woman has hit rock bottom, with black Zodwa searching mortuaries and then orphanages for her missing baby, white Ruth having destroyed her relationship with probably the only man who really loved her, and Ruth's sister, Delilah finding out her lost to her forever son has been shot in the head. Delilah and Ruth could not be more different and after a forty year estrangement face healing an impossible to mend relationship.

So much happens during this book and we get to learn about each woman with chapters from each of their viewpoints. Much of the book concerns little Mandla, who each woman loves in different and similar ways. But there is so much more here and in so many ways each very different woman has had similar experiences. All three women have secrets in their past that eventually get revealed to the others and those revelations bring understanding and compassion for what each woman has endured.

I'm not even coming close to touching all the trials of these women's lives, what they have endured and continue to endure along with the people of this time and country. If you read this book, be sure to read the afterward, which gives even more meaning to this touching story. So much of this is a love story...a story of so many different kinds of love.

Thank you to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and NetGalley for this ARC.

After some kinks with my Kindle app, I stayed up late finishing this book on my new Kindle Fire from Prime Day. This was not an easy book, but it was very well done. The book follows the lives of three women in South Africa on the eve and after the election of Nelson Mandela. This is a compelling time period for me because I lived through it at a young age so shadows of memories hover at the periphery every time I encounter it, causing me to thirst for more knowledge. The book offered a candid view with parallel story lines of two white sisters as well as a black teenager. I struggled to keep track of the characters and timelines initially but after the first fifty pages their stories started to line up and the pages flew by for me as I was caught up in their stories.

I generally can't handle books with sexual assault because it's huge trigger to me. While it was central to the themes of this novel, it was handled in an authentic way without being even more offensive than the topic is by nature.

This is a difficult book but I think an important one that will leave the reader thinking about its narrative for some time.

Trigger warnings include sexual assault (central to the story line and something that cannot be bypassed if this is a sensitive theme for you), some crude language, suicide, mental illness, grief, abandonment, adoption

This was a slow burn for me. Though I wasn't immediately won over, by about a third of the way into the novel, I was fully immersed in the story and invested in the characters. I love that it features three strong females with unique stories. It definitely doesn't shy away from tough topics, including but not limited to: sexual assault, racism, AIDS and economic inequality. It's a worthwhile read that I think will be amazing for book club discussion. (3.5 stars rounded up)

3.5-4: Marais has written another beautiful book! It takes a little while to get invested in the story, and at first I had a hard time keeping track between the two white protagonists Ruth and Delilah. About 30-40 pages in, I was hooked, and I couldn’t put it down. I was fully invested in everyone, and I was not surprised to find out other readers cried throughout parts. It is a touching story of courage, family, and growth.

Marais covers a lot of territory in this book: HIV/AIDS, sexual assault, sexism, homophobia, racism, colorism, and classism. You can tell that Marais has done her research, and she does a great job bringing post-apartheid South Africa to life. If you enjoy historical fiction, found families, and engaging stories with lots of heart, you’ll certainly want to read this!

If You Want to Make God Laugh was a beautiful story. It wasn’t always rainbows and unicorns but it was real- real struggles, real love, real people. Zodwa, Delilah and Ruth were such strong women although they did not always realize how strong they were. Zodwa was the youngest of the group but I think her tough life made her wise beyond her years. She thought her brother was the hero of her family but really she was! Ruth and Delilah thought they hated each other. But when they really needed someone they had each other. Wonderful people dealing with Apartheid, AIDS, miscarriages, rape,, death and forbidden love. Somehow, still a beautiful book. I will be thinking about these characters for a long time.

Title: If You Want to Make God Laugh
Author: Bianca Marais
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

In the 1990s, Zodwa is a 17-year-old girl living in a squatter’s camp on the outskirts of Johannesburg with her mother. The constant threat of civil war and the disappearance of her brother years ago haunts their every step. Overwhelming poverty casts its shadow over their lives—as does the growing AIDS epidemic. And Zodwa, once the hope of her mother, is pregnant.

Ruth might be wealthy, but she’s far from happy. She knows her husband wants a divorce, and when her drinking leads her places she never intended, she ends up living on the empty family farm outside Johannesburg…where the sister she hasn’t seen for decades arrives unannounced. Delilah is a disgraced former nun haunted by a past she’s never spoken of, a past her sister knows nothing about. When they find an abandoned baby on their porch, they are confronted with their own beliefs about motherhood, race, and the secrets of the past.

If You Want to Make God Laugh is not a book meant for light reading. There are some very heavy topics here, and these three women have experienced truly terrible things. They might be broken, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t strong. Poverty and violence shadow their lives and the life of their community. The setting, on the cusp of Nelson Mandela’s presidency in South Africa, is torn by conflict, war, and disease. However, this is a wonderful, wonderful read.

Bianca Marais is from South Africa but now lives in Toronto. If You Want to Make God Laugh is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of G.P. Putnam's Sons via Netgalley in exchange for an honest

This novel provides an excellent window into the lives of three women in South Africa in the mid-1990's. This is a critical historical time in South Africa- apartheid was ending, HIV/AIDS was becoming a pandemic, and women's roles and expectations were shifting. The chapters alternate from the perspectives of Ruth, Delilah, and Zodwa, three women whose stories come together as the novel progresses. I don't want to give too much away. I went into the this book with little background and enjoyed the unfolding of the stories and learning how these three lives intersect. There are some difficult themes, including grief, regret, abuse, addiction, racism, and poverty; the topics are handled with care and compassion. This is one of the best books I have read this year. It will sit with me.

This book is unlike anything I've ever read before. I did not read the author's first book so this is my first experience with this author. It isn't in my usual genres and it's evidentially far enough out of those genres that I'm not able to appreciate this book at this time. I enjoyed the short chapters for Delilah, Ruth and Zodwa and I enjoyed that they were first person. At times I was enjoying the narrative of all the issues that drove this novel, however, I found myself daydreaming while reading it and that tells me that either the book is not good or it's not for me. I can see the book is good, it just isn't for me. Maybe at some point in the future, once I've read enough books out of my norm, I might try to read this again. Because I can see the book is good and just not for me at this time, I am giving it 4 stars.

I have not read the author’s first book....yet! I quickly fell in love with this story of 3 very different women living in So. Africa at the time Nelson Mandela is elected. There are so many difficult topics and facts woven into the fabric of history that so many lived....squatters, rape, white privilege, racism, anti-apartheid , violence, the hypocrisy of the Church, HIV and the encroaching AIDS epidemic. These 3 women, all victims come together by chance and form an unlikely alliance in the name of justice and love.
I was really moved by the depth of the characters.

A beautifully written insightful, witty book that touches on so many topics yet always returns to its central theme of race. At times racism is blatant and at others it is more subtle but it is always present. There is a bit of history, a touch of intrigue and moments of humor tied together in a story of post-apartheid Africa. In the beginning it feels like a large number of disparate characters yet over time they will all connect and you will exhale gently as you recognize the connection, as if you have met an old friend. Enjoy it - I definitely did!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an early release in exchange for an honest and fair review.

I read Marais’s debut Hum if You Don’t Know the Words last year and truly enjoyed it. So I was excited to get an ARC of her next book, If You Want to Make God Laugh.

The story follows three women through post-apartheid South Africa in the 1990’s. It is told in alternating POV from those women: Delilah is an excommunicated nun turned aid worker, Ruth is a former stripper struggling with alcoholism, and Zodwa is an impoverished pregnant teenager. Ruth’s and Delilah’s sections are told in first person, but Zodwa’s was written in third person. And the reader is not given much of an introduction. So things were a little confusing at first. Jumping between characters without much background made it hard to orient. And I didn’t care for Ruth or Delilah much in the beginning. They were both extremely selfish in their own ways. And until I knew more about their backgrounds, I didn’t empathize with them much.

This is not a direct sequel to Hum if You Don’t Know the Words, but it does involve some of the characters from the first book. I was actually disappointed in their involvement though. They are barely in the story. I would have rather had this be an entirely separate story than one where the previous characters were mentioned but in a brief and unsatisfactory way. That wasn’t a deal-breaker by any means, just a little disappointing. But even though this isn’t strictly a sequel, I would still recommend reading these books in order of publication.

Through most of the story, I was engaged but not as emotionally impacted as I was with the first book. I did get choked up at the end, but it took a while to get to that point. Part of the issue was that the story was spread out in many different directions. From the story itself and from the author’s note, it seems that the author had many different issues she wanted to bring to light. Which she did, but the story might have been more impactful if it had been a bit more focused rather than trying to highlight every injustice. And although the first book was rough around the edges, it also had far more beautiful quotes that I wanted to highlight. Versus If You Want to Make God Laugh which was more solid overall, but didn’t have as many of those shining moments.

The predominant theme of the story is the love mothers have for their children. This is mainly a story about women, but it should appeal to anyone. It also explores how people react to things out of their control and that bad things happen to good people. As the title indicates, the story revolves around the adage, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.” I enjoyed that each of the main characters showed different ways of reacting to the same situation. There were a couple of things that were too convenient or glossed over (view spoiler). Nevertheless, it was a moving story.

This is a story that deals with a lot of tough subjects. I’ll include a Content Warning for racism, hate crimes, rape, homophobia, addiction, abuse, and AIDS-related trauma. If You Want to Make God Laugh doesn’t sugarcoat things, but I felt Marais did a good job of handling tough subjects in a sensitive way. Although there is a lot of bleakness in the story, it is also a tale that offers hope, love, and compassion.

It’s sad to think about how the first book dealt with the hate crimes happening in the 1970’s, the second book dealt with hate crimes in the 1990’s, and worst of all, that these are still issues relevant to today’s world. That is why stories like this are so important. So although this was not a perfect book, I would still highly recommend it both for its emotional impact and the important discussion points. And I look forward to reading more from Marais in the future.

Ultimately, this book is about female empowerment and love. Everything in the book supports those two ideals. Now, the details aren't so simple and altruistic, but this is what make the story so compelling! Ms. Marais's writing is a beautiful gift that we get to read. Her characters are surprising and I love reading as they grow and change throughout the course of a story. I also enjoy how she effortlessly folds in the history of South Africa, reminding the reader that there is another world out there. I do wonder, however, why Zodwa's point of view was in the third person while Ruth and Delilah's were in first person. Anyone know?

I had to read this one after the authors first book.
I was not disappointed. This book delves into post Apartheid South Africa and it
emotional and powerful.
Bianca Marais is becoming one of my new favorite authors.

So Bianca Marais, I put the blame squarely on you! Your book has kept me reading way too late at night, caused me to be late for or miss entirely appointments because I had to read 'just one more chapter'. Friends and family are waiting for me to return calls, texts, and emails, because I couldn't\wouldn't out the book down. Finally, I hold you responsible for all the crying, heartbreak, laughter, and joy I experienced reading your book.
Okay, I really thank you for the lives of three woman that remain in my head and heart long after I finished.
This is a wonderful story of race, family, forgiveness, and change as told in the lives of three women, and how they find each other and find themselves. Loved it - read it now please.

I have to say that Marais' book truly touched my heart. The story of a pregnant teen, a former showgirl, and an ex-nun all living in South Africa in the early 90s intertwines to perfectly capture the resilience and unending strength of these powerful female characters. I loved the switches in POV, which created suspense and a varying, often unique look at some of the same events. Marais did a fantastic job authentically capturing the voices of these three women - no matter how different their personalities may seem, their inner thoughts and actions felt realistic and directly related to their personal histories. Just one warning though: this book is heartbreaking. Of course, South Africa was in a perilous era during this time - with the AIDS virus running rampant and racism still affecting many people. So, it only seems natural that these elements would be incorporated into the narrative. As much heartbreak as I felt reading this tale of unlucky women shaped by trauma, I still fell in love with the characters and was captivated until the very last page.

“Sometimes all we need is to be seen in order to blossom. Just be seen, nothing more.”
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PREORDER THIS BOOK NOW (available July 16th)…and trust me, you want it in your mailbox so you can start reading this one asap! (I just did…S/O @bookshelftville!) With well-developed characters who have powerful and transformative stories to share, I could not put this one down. Following three separate ladies with very different stories, their lives become intertwined in the most beautiful and compassionate way. Set in the 1990s in post-apartaid South Africa, this book explores themes of racism, motherhood, the AIDS epidemic, and family.
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While I enjoyed Marais’ debut novel, Hum If You Don’t Know The Words, @biancamarais_author knocked it out of the park with this one! It’s incredible in so many ways and I know it will make my Top 10 List at the end of the year (speaking of which - I may have to change it to the Top 100 of the year if I keep going at this rate with all these 5-star books! 🤷🏼‍♀️☺️)

I first became aware of Bianca Marais's writing from the novel, Hum If You Don't Know The Words. It was our month's book club selection. I liked the characters and finding out more about South Africa. But I must say, I enjoyed the story of If You Want To Make God Laugh, even more. It was full of unique settings, unforgettable characters, and heart-breaking plots. I loved it!
What I Liked:

Setting:

This book is set in South Africa in the 1990's. With the ending of Apartheid, the country is rapidly changing. Blacks are votingfor the first time, and the population is coming to grips with the atrocities of the oppressive regime of the past. Nelson Mandela is elected, and the AIDS epidemic is lurking in the background.

I appreciated the contrasts between the various communities of Blacks and Whites. Zodwa lived in a squatters camp, while just a few miles away sisters Ruth and Delilah basked in relative ease in their gated home. And later in the book, the differences between health care that Blacks and Whites received became a major plot point. These kinds of details created a sense of how the people of South Africa really lived during this tumultuous time.

Characters:

The sisters, Delilah and Ruth, couldn't be more different. Delilah, a former nun, has just retired from a life as an aid worker. She's led a seemingly saintly life, but she carries huge secrets from her past. Delilah, is wild! She's an infamous former stripper who has gone through husbands like tissue paper. Her addictive personality makes her sister highly skeptical when she suddenly wants to adopt a black baby.

I loved these characters. Both sisters have hidden scars that are slowly revealed over the course of the novel. I grew to truly care about these women, and rooted for them to repair their broken relationship.

Zodwa, the pregnant black teen, represents the untapped potential of the new South Africa, and the heart-breaking tragedy of how the AIDS epidemic will soon ravage that country. She works so hard to do all the right things, but is still a captive of traditional prejudices and thinking. Her fierce determination to find her baby is inspirational.

Story:

The story follows the sisters, Ruth and Delilah, as they find a black baby literally on their doorstep. This forces them to confront the jealousy, loss, and prejudices that haunt them. Can Ruth fully appreciate the implications of adopting a black baby when Apartheid has so recently been abolished? Will Delilah open her heart and support Ruth's journey?

Throughout the novel, Zodwa is on a journey to look for her baby. Along the way she must make hard choices in order to survive. This includes hiding her feelings for women by dating men, and taking menial jobs. She dreams of finishing high school and going to college. But her primary goal is searching for those she's lost, her brother, and her son. One thing I did not know previously about South Africa is that thousands of people went missing during Apartheid. Her search for answers was something that many families were doing.

Trigger Warning for Sexual Violence

This book takes place around 20 years after the events in “Hum if You Don’t Know the Words” and it shares some of the same characters. However, it is a standalone story about 3 women, each of whom has had a difficult experience with motherhood. Coincidentally, this is the second book I finished today in which a mother can not claim her relationship to her child.

This book was sometimes moving (although it also sometimes felt manipulative and sentimental and got sort of tear jerky at the end) and introduced a lot of issues including AIDS, rape, homosexuality, canned lion hunts and white supremacist Afrikaners. One of the most touching moments to me was only tangentially related to the main story. A 94 year old woman, after standing in line all day to vote for the first time after the end of Apartheid, is turned away because she has no birth certificate and was therefore unable to get an identity card. Ultimately, I preferred the author’s prior book which seemed much more focused and taught me more about the political situation in South Africa, but I’ve rounded 3.5 stars up to 4.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.