BOOK REVIEWSNdebele Proverbs and Other Sayings By J. N. Pelling. Gwelo, Mambo Press,1977, 133pp., Z$l.00.As I am not an author myself, every time that I am asked to review a book,or to comment on some other people's works, I am reminded of the wordsfrom Bernard Shaw's Man and Superman: 'He who can, does. He who cannotteaches'. It is with this caution in mind that I proceed to write a review on theRevd James Pelling's book Ndebele Proverbs and Other Sayings.Any work on proverbs or popular sayings can never be original, incontent at least. As. R. Ridout and C. Witting (English Proverbs Explained(London, Heinemann, 1967), p.3) put it: 'To become a proverb, a saying hasto be taken up and assimilated by the common people. In the process, itsorigin is forgotten. Once it has become proverbial, the saying is used as partof popular wisdom.' A book on proverbs is essentially a compilation orcollation in one form or another. Proverbs in almost any language have theirsource in the collective wisdom of the people. In Ndebele, we now have twopublished works Š that of Pelling, and an earlier book compiled by A.Nyamambi and P. Mpofu, Izaga (Gwelo, Mambo Press, 1975). MessrsNyamambi and Mpofu's book is written entirely in Ndebele, and containsmore proverbs and sayings than Pelling's collection. It is not unusual to havetwo or more books Š even several books Š covering the same topic. Thequestion arises as to why an author would choose to write on a topic on whichthere is something already published, unless he has some point which he thinksthe earlier writer overlooked, and he would like to bring this out.Both Izaga and Ndebele Proverbs are described as being suitable for useby mature readers, especially those above the primary school level, and up touniversity level. The basic material which they contain is identical, save thatthe one published earlier, Izaga, contains more proverbs than Ndebele Proverbs.There are, however, some differences between the two books. Onedifference is to be found in the arrangement of the proverbs in the two books.The proverbs in Izaga are arranged alphabetically, starting from A to Z. InPelling's book, on the other hand, the proverbs are classified 'according totheir meaning, the function they perform' (Pelling, p.5). To some extent,this is similar to the classification used by C. L. Sibusiso Nyembezd in ZuluProverbs (Johannesburg, Witwatersrand Univ. Press, 1963) to whom ack-nowledgement is made by Pelling in his introductory remarks. M. A. Hamu-tyinei and A. B. Plangger in Tsumo-Shumo (Gwelo, Mambo Press, 1974)also adopt a similar type of classification. There are merits in this type ofclassification, vis-a-vis the alphabetical arrangement. One could say that thiswas an improvement on Izaga. Cross-reference is more easily handled underthis type of classification. Also, the non-Ndebele speaker, looking for anappropriate proverb in a given situation, can refer to such lead headings as'Good advice'; 'Gratitude'; 'Exhortation', etc.Perhaps Pelling's real contribution to the subject lies in the fact that hisbook explains the proverbs in English, while Izaga is in Ndebele throughout.This makes the book useful to the non-Ndebele speaking public. The bookcould even have been much more valuable if it had been a straightforwardtransfation of Izaga, with its improved arrangement, so that it could havecontained as many proverbs as are found in Nyamambi and Mpofu's book.This way, those who are non-speakers of Ndebele could have had access to abigger collection of Ndebele proverbs. And in several places, Nyamambi andMpofu's explanations are better handled, and hence give a clearer meaning,than Pelling's.Pelling's explanation tries to follow, to some extent, the pattern inNyembezi's book. This consists of stating the proverb in the vernacular,101102 BOOK REVIEWSfollowed by a literal translation in English, and then some background in-formation on the proverb where possible, and, lastly, the meaning of theproverb.It is a pity that Pelling does not go as far as Nyembezi or Hamutyineiand Plangger do, to give the 'application' of the proverb, i.e. where andwhen it should be used, in what sort of situation. In some way, the use of aproverb can be inferred from its meaning. But for second-language users, forwhom I presume Pelling's book was primarily written, the application part is,in my view, very necessary. Both Nyembezi and Hamutyinei and Planggerexplicitly incorporate this feature of 'application' in their works. In Nyamambiand Mpofu it is somewhat embodied in their explanation of the proverbs, ina clearer form than in Pelling's book.Having extensively used Nyembezi's book for over fifteen years, I amleft with the feeling that Pelling's book is a potted version, in Ndebele form,of Nyembezi's book. Anyone familiar with Nyamambi and Mpofu's Izagacould view Pelling's Ndeble Proverbs as a shorter version of these authors'work, with English explanations. But the arrangement is different in Pelling'sbook, and perhaps better than that of Izaga.University of Zimbabwe C. M. SILEYAA New Testament Wordbook English by R. A. B. Ewbank, Shona by M.Mutyandasvika, Ndebele by L. Dube. Gwelo, Mambo Press, 1979, 64pp.,ZS1.00.The purpose of the booklet is clearly set out in the preface. It is intended toassist Shona and Ndebele readers of the New Testament by providing trans-lations of some thirty common New Testament words. Among the translatedwords are such well known terms as Regeneration, Faith and Covenant.Bible references are given to help the readers understand the words in context.Nevertheless, the technique of translation is not one of nature's gifts to every-one, especially when it comes to translating words from English that havethemselves been translated from the Greek or Hebrew.As I have only a smattering of Ndebele, I can only comment on the Shona.1. BIRTHNew or SecondRegenerationKuzvarwaKutsva kana kwechipiriKusikwa patsvaIt is only with careful explanation and in context that such terms can conveythe intended meaning. To say, 'Anobva aita mwana mucheche zvakare' meansthat he becomes a baby again, which is not what the Scripture says.2. CONSCIENCE : Moyo wokuziva zvakanaka nezva-kaipaMoyo is concerned with the will and emotions and not with judgement or 'knowledge. For example, 'Ane moyo wakashinga' means he has a strongwill; 'Moyo wangu hauzvide' means I dislike it. '3. MEDIATOR : MupupuriThis word is a derivative noun from the verb pupura (to witness) and meansa witness to the truth of someone's statement. The mupupuri need not bewitnessing in one's favour or be mediating at all.i!