Confessions of a Gambler

A toxic mix of addiction and loss undoes the staid life of a South African Muslim woman in novelist and filmmaker Jacobs's American debut. Abeeda "Beeda" Ariefdien is a 49-year-old single mother who, having raised her four sons after her husband left the family, is now supported by them. But her pious, quiet Cape Town life unravels after her friend Garaatie suggests they take a trip to the local casino—a place Beeda hadn't known existed. Beeda wins a slot machine jackpot and becomes hooked, even though her Muslim religion forbids gambling. Beeda's addiction begins slowly, but after her youngest son tells her he is dying of AIDS, "going to see auntie" (her euphemism for gambling) is her only solace. As rumors circulate about Beeda's son's illness and the amount of time she spends at the casino, Beeda defends her son and forsakes her robes in favor of jeans when gambling (to distinguish her separate lifestyles from each other). She eventually tries to conquer her addiction, but it may be too late. Jacobs realistically portrays the psychology of an addict, though Beeda can come across as something of a sympathetic if didactic straw woman. Beeda may lose big, but readers will be enriched. (July)