A stand-alone sequel to Journey to Jo’burg

They say we all have to go. They say lorries are coming soon.

When Naledi and Tiro discover a number painted on the door of their house, they know there will be trouble. This is South Africa under apartheid, and the government is forcibly removing black people from their villages to so-called ‘homelands’.

Protestors are arrested and beaten. Naledi and Tiro are injured in a student protest march. But still people fight on. In this sequel to Journey to Jo’burg, young lives are caught in South Africa’s struggle for freedom.

…a compelling read.
– The Observer UK

…an outstanding novel.
– School Librarian UK

…like the slow-motion closing of a trap.
– Times Educational Supplement UK

It has the capacity to stir the emotions and remain in the memory long after other stories have been read and forgotten.
– Junior Bookshelf UK

…tackles tough issues head-on and presents them with superb dramatic tension.
– Publishers Weekly USA

Chain of Fire flows effortlessly, with power and grace, as it succeeds in making a foreign culture immediate and real.
– School Library Journal USA

This extraordinarily powerful and gripping novel should be compulsory reading in South Africa’s white high schools. It won’t be.
– South African Weekly Mail 1989

Best Books for Young Adults list American Library Association 1991

'Vlag en Wimpel' Award, Netherlands 1991

Carnegie Medal, UK shortlist 1990

Notable Children's Trade Book in the Field of Social Studies,
USA 1990

Smarties Prize for Children's Books, UK shortlist 1989

They say we all have to go. They say lorries are coming soon.

Some contrasting covers