Waiting for the Rain is a novel of South Africa by writer Sheila Gordon. In this novel, the main character is Tengo, a young black boy who grows up on a farm owned by a white family. Tengo is friends with the young nephew of the farmer, but as the two boys grow older Tengo becomes aware of differences in the way he and the nephew are treated. Tengo begins to read and to become educated, causing these differences to become more and more evident. Finally, Tengo finds himself embroiled in the student revolution taking place against the white government and face to face with his old friend. Waiting for the Rain is a story of the terrible toll the struggles in South Africa had on its youngest victims, the children.