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N. N. Light
Jun 5, 20234 min read

Zebra: Friends by Fate. Enemies by Destiny. is a Celebrate Audiobook Month pick #audiobook #histfic



Title: Zebra: Friends by Fate. Enemies by Destiny.


Author: Jill Wallace


Narrator: Peter Noble


Genre: Historical Fiction


Book Blurb:


A young white boy and a Zulu teen grow up together, building an extraordinary friendship as they explore the rugged Drakensberg mountains around a remote South African hotel during the apartheid era.


Jock and Papin forge an indelible bond while learning to love and appreciate each other’s cultures. Despite whispers from intolerant guests, the boys are oblivious to the consequences of their friendship. “There goes the zebra,” guests remark, claiming they can’t tell where the white boy ends and the black boy begins.


But the boys’ friendship is strong enough to conquer all—until society’s impossible expectations wrench them apart, leaving bitter disappointment and soul-deep wounds that will not heal.


A decade later, these long-lost friends converge on opposite sides of a harrowing battlefield, one a reluctant soldier, the other a passionate freedom fighter. Their intimate knowledge of the other’s way of life could be the very tools that save them…or destroy them. And an unimaginable choice will put Jock and Papin’s once-unbreakable bond to the ultimate test.


Jill Wallace, author of the multi-award-winning World War II novel War Serenade, brings together a fascinating coming-of-age story with a compelling tale of human connection in Zebra.


Inspired by the life of Athol Wallace.


Audiobook Clip:



Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):














Do you listen to audiobooks? Do you have a favorite? If you don’t listen to audiobooks, is there a particular reason why not?


I LOVE audio books. I listen to them while driving. The narrator is everything. I have switched off authors I love because of voices I don't love. My latest audio pleasure is "I Will Find You" by Harlan Corbin.


What makes this a must-listen audiobook?


My narrator, Audie Award Winning Peter Noble is a brilliant voice actor and he elevates my books to a performance. Peter Noble and my story makes this an experience more than an audio book.


Giveaway –

One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon US or Canada gift card



Open internationally. You must have a valid Amazon US or Amazon CA account to win.


Runs June 1 – 30, 2023.


Drawing will be held on July 3, 2023.



Author Biography:


I’m Jill Wallace. I was born and bred (though my mother would prefer ‘brought up’) in South Africa, and have lived the second half of my life in America. I often compare myself to the African baobab with roots that look like branches. Like the confused ‘Upside Down Tree’ I no longer know where the South African ends and the American begins. I hope it affords me some degree of complexity. A girl can always hope :o)


In South Africa, I was a contemporary dancer and a PRO for a shopping center conglomerate. I flew as an “international air hostess” for South African Airways, enjoyed 6 continents and hundreds of adventures. I married my dream man, Athol, a rugby player who makes me laugh. We moved to America with the promise of a career that never happened, and I inherited my two heart-children 24/7 in a strange, new country, where together we found compromise, laughter and love.


In the U.S., I’ve been a bad waitress and an excellent (but inconspicuous) movie extra for “Pretty Woman” director Garry Marshall, and a realtor for 28 years. As a screenplay, War Serenade (which was inspired by a true story) was twice optioned for a movie. As my first novel, War Serenade garnered multiple literary awards and a Rone and Reader’s Choice for the audio book version.


My second novel, Amazon Bestseller Zebra, is inspired by Athol’s life. It’s a searing, soaring, heart-breaking, heart-warming coming-of-age story about an unusual friendship between a Zulu and a white boy in South Africa during apartheid.


As immigrants, we’ve been humbled by poverty and blessed by kindness. Proud to be an American, my heart is strongly South African, and my books will always reflect my bicultural inclinations, similar to that of the topsy turvy baobab tree.


Narrator Biography:


I tell stories.


A multi-award-winning narrator, I’ve recorded hundreds of audiobooks and audio dramas — including Audible and New York Times bestsellers.


I’m a brain injury survivor, and I have a unique understanding of the music of language.


I was born in South Africa, in a valley Alan Paton called ‘lovely beyond any singing of it’. I grew up travelling, picking up a range of authentic dialects and languages along the way, eventually studying music and drama at the University of Cape Town. In South Africa, I worked in the theatre, touring the country with a small repertory company, as well as appearing on radio, TV and film.


I moved to the UK to study classical acting at LAMDA, in London, and went on to train as a singer at the Royal Academy of Music. At RAM, I was part of the second graduating cohort of the now legendary musical theatre programme. I also have an MA in creative writing from the University of East Anglia.


I now live just outside of London, in Hertfordshire.


Author Social Media Links:


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