Hoopvol
English
Summaries
Nathalie Chap1 The story plays down in a small town, called Hoopvol. Nathalie
works in the Rose and Crown, the only hotel in town. She works long shifts, but according to
Tannie Lettie, the hotel owner, Nathalie should be grateful for the opportunity to work there, as
work in a small town like Hoopvol is rare.
It's already after six o'clock in the evening and Lettie and her friend Laetitia, the mayor, enjoy
drinks. When Nathalie asks permission to go, Lettie reprimands her and expresses her
disappointment. She thought she offered Nathalie a select position at the hotel and that Nathalie
should be grateful for that. She never regarded Nathalie as a typical 'nine to five worker'.
On her way home, Gielie, a friend of Nathalie, stopped silently with his scooter next to Nathalie
to ask her to go out. He and some friends are playing a pool at the Rose and Crown and he
would like Nathalie to go along with him. He tries to persuade Nathalie to go out with him, but
she does not want to be in a relationship. She has to wash clothes when she comes home and
she is thus showing off the invitation.
It's already dark when Nathalie comes home. The Chalmers are watching TV and a huge batch
of laundry is waiting for Nathalie.
Chap3 Nathalie is at the reception desk where she is bothered by a representative who has
stayed at the hotel. He cares for himself and tries to persuade her to go with him to Cape Town.
However, she ignores his attentions, but he suddenly grabs her wrist. She tries to get angry
while she hits the bell with her other hand.
Tannie Lettie comes out of her office to hear what is happening and the representative walks in
a hurry to get his baggage in his room. Nathalie is very upset about the man's prevalence, but
according to Tannie Lettie she has to look at the bigger picture. She needs to use his flirtation to
,her own advantage. Nathalie still thinks it's unfair to let men get away with it if they make a
nuisance.
A while later it's time for a break and Nathalie and Liefie who work in the kitchen, sit down on the
staircase to drink their coffee. They were together at school. Liefie is very cynical about their life
in Hoopvol. She thinks democracy did not bring relief to the disadvantaged in the town; They still
struggle to keep their head over water. Nathalie points out that progress had been made:
Laetitia September is the first brown mayor of Hoopvol. Liefie is regrettable that she (and
Nathalie) did not climb on the train last year when most of their schoolmates left Hoopvol. Even
if they drove to Beaufort West, it would have been better to stay behind. Nathalie, however,
thinks they have remained because they can make a living in Hoopvol and that they may be
able to make things better. Liefie does not believe it for a moment and says, "Yes, old Nathalie,
we're just too bad and scary."
Chap5 At 07:25 the mayor, Laetitia September arrives in her office car (luukse swart Mercedes)
at the Rose and Crown for her daily breakfast served by Liefie at 07:30. She is attractively
dressed and it is clear that she has expensive taste in clothes and accessories. After fifteen
minutes she is ready to leave
again. Outside the hotel, Lettie and Tannie embrace each other briefly and briefly chat. Tannie
Lettie enters the hotel and sits in one of the King George chairs in the lobby. She closes her
eyes to think. Her feet are very hurt and she finds it hard to move around. Liefie presents her
tea and she tells Liefie and Nathalie that Miss September has many obligations as mayor and
that she sacrifices much for the people of the town. Her personal assistant, Sherelene, has to
attend a funeral during the week, and she wants Nathalie and Liefie to assist at the mayor's
office during Sherelene's absence.
At 12:45, Sakkie Strydom, the local policeman, approaches the hotel for lunch at the Rose and
Crown. Liefie calls him Constable 'Pickup' and ‘007’ because he travels in a pickup truck to keep
offenders and criminals off the streets. Sakkie likes Nathalie, but she does not care about him.
Liefie tells Sakkie that he is no longer in Nathalie's league since she became the hotel's
personal assistant.
Sakkie is a shy man with impeccable ways towards ladies. Liefie thinks he will be a good catch
for any girl. Sakkie asks Nathalie to go to Beaufort West with him for the night, but Nathalie is
not in the mood for it. She does not want Sakkie to come the wrong conclusion when she goes
out with him. Liefie later promises that they will meet Sakkie for drinks at the Rose and Crown
that night. She also invites Olivia, the clerk, to come as well.
After Nathalie washes the dishes that evening, she decides to take Gielie's invitation at the Rose
and Crown. They meet Sakkie, Liefie and Eddie at the pub. Gielie and Eddie play pool while the
other three enjoy drinks. Liefie begins to get drunk and Sakkie offers to take her home. He did
, not drink anything that night. When they come outside, Liefie urges to be put in the back of the
pickup truck; She still wanted to know how it feels to be taken by the police. Nathalie decides to
go together, because Gielie and Eddie do not seem to stop playing pool soon. When Sakkie
wants to help Nathalie get in front of the truck, she briefly replies that she does not need any
help. It annoys her that Sakkie is so decent and well-mannered.
Sakkie drops of Liefie before he takes Nathalie home. He would like to stay for coffee, but
Nathalie is already late and she greets him. Sakkie waits until Nathalie is safe in the house
before he leaves. (Sakkie offers to teach Nathalie how to drive but she declines.)
Chap 7 Nathalie is on her way to the mayor's office to assist in Sherelene's absence. She is
looking forward to being out of Tannie Lettie's eyes. Fiona works at the reception desk. She and
Nathalie were together at school and in the same church. She is painting her nails and listening
to loud music when Nathalie arrives there. She points Nathalie to her desk in the portal just
outside the mayor's office. Nathalie looks at the office and sees piles of documents lying on the
big desk. There is a huge bookshelf against one wall with almost no books on it. The ugly mat
and empty bookshelf gives a depressing atmosphere to the office.
Nathalie goes to her desk and sees the mayor's appointment book there. She calls Fiona to
hear what Sherelene's computer password is, but Fiona does not know. Later she calls back to
see that Sherelene's cat is 'Meisie' and her boyfriend is 'Gilbert'. When Nathalie enters ‘Gilbert’,
the computer unlocks. She scrolls through Sherelene's documents on the computer and also
finds pictures of her and a man, probably Gilbert. On one photo, his head is shaved and he is
wearing an orange overlay, like a prisoner.
Liefie calls from Rose and Crown to warn Nathalie that Miss September is on her way from her
breakfast at the hotel. Liefie is working on reception and Olivia is on kitchen service. When
Laetitia arrives, she quickly nods to Nathalie and then disappears into her office. People think
she's strange and Nathalie agrees. When she arrives for a drink late afternoon, Tannie Lettie
does most of the talking, while Miss September usually just stands out and agrees with
everything Lettie says. People think Laetitia September is not the best mayor.
Nathalie is listening to Miss September's door and wonders why she's so quiet in her office.
Then she hears Miss September crying. She does not know what to do and asks Fiona for
advice. Fiona says that the mayor cries in her office regularly between eight o'clock and ten
o'clock, but she does not know why. It's almost ten past eight and Fiona suggests that Nathalie
takes her a cup of black coffee without sugar. She points out where the kitchen is and Nathalie
goes there. (The Mayor cries because of lost love and how people gossip about her)
When Nathalie knocks at the office door, there is initially no response. Then she hears a soft
shuffle when she says that she brought coffee. A barefoot September opens the door and
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