This Blinding Absence of Light - Tahar Ben Jelloun

A group of soldiers were put on a truck and was driven to the palace of the King Hassan II, on the 10th of July 1971 on an attempt to topple the King and seize power. However, the coup failed , leaving around 200 death that included the rebel leaders, but the King survived. Forces loyal to the King, gathered those responsible for the coup and put them to Kentira, where they were subjected to torture. The leaders ( and many others) were executed, and remaining soldiers were sent to a secret prison, hidden underground in the desert, which was called Tazmamart. It took a long time for the world to know about the existence of this hellhole and many more years for the remaining prisoners to be released, but not before the traces of the prison was erased by the authorities. Those survived, opened up to the world ( western world) and the stories of one of the most dreaded prisons are thus known to the rest of the world.

Tahar Ben Jelloun, uses this page from Moroccan history to rebuild the story of human condition at Tazmamart, through this intense and powerful novel  ( loosely based on Aziz Binebine , who was sentenced 20 yrs after participating in the attempted coup). Blindfolded from Kentira, Salim and his friends ( 58 of them in various jails and 20 of them in his prison) were taken to the Tazmamart. In an underground cell, with no light and a small hole to get the air and another for food, they were put in isolated cells of 10ft x 5ft x 5ft. A height of 5ft to prevent the prisoner from standing up.

In a cell, in darkness, where one can not even stand straight, in the company of cockroaches and scorpions, fed just enough to keep them alive, with only possible way to communicate was through the brick walls. The prisoners, resigned to fate, with deranged spirit and bruised body. Though not religious when they were brought in  most of the prisoners turns to faith , calling Allah for help and reciting from Qu'ran, to pass their days through. The only time the prisoners are shown light is when they were asked to dig the grave for one of their fellow prisoner who died. As one after the other perishes within the walls of their solitary cells, the rest have to make the place their home with the hope of freedom. The world do not know about their whereabout as the secret underground prison is away from the eyes of the rest of the world. One after other perish as the years go by  one to gangrene, another to scorpions, to cholera, by refusing to eat and thereby deciding to end it all or by just giving up the hope,  Salim has to keep the rest of them alive. Its his stories, the poems of Moroccan writers and  Karim maintains a clock within himself, Ustad sings verses from Qu'ran, and another the anecdotes from the movies he watched and they play imaginary card games.  It's their collective survival tactic against the omnipresent death.The occasional visitors, the birds, whose language Salim, decoded and started having meaningful conversations, the slimy cockroaches, the rare moments of openness from the guard ( only to help those who are suffering, or to confirm the death of a colleague who stopped responding to the calls and not giving any signals of life).

Very gloomy, very despairing story of hope and survival, yet never loosing the narrative control to make it a melodrama. Tahar Ben Jelloun at no point attempt to glorify the sufferings, nor trying to make a judgement over the affair. The words and sentences are used carefully, which are often poetic. Which is why, despite being a story of such nature, the pages fly smoothly, and the reader never suffers from the premise that the novel is set in. Despite the possible 'triumph of the human spirit against adversity' kind of tab, the writer check the overflow of emotions cleverly.

Herta Muller's Russian Labour Camp story 'Hunger Angel' is still fresh in mind and I generally thought that was a good piece of writing about the times in a labour camp and detention centers. There was comparisons of the same to "One Day in the Life of...". However, this 'prison story' by Tahar Bel Jelloun, stands tall amongst the rest, if not a notch higher. Beautifully composed, yet extremely powerful tale of survival from one of the worst detention cells in the history of human kind.

--------------------------------------
This Blinding Absence of Light  ( 2001 )

Tahar Ben Jelloun ( translated from French by Linda Coverdale 2002 )

Penguin Books

195 Pages
-----------------------------------------
Guardian, Wiki

Under the Frangipani - Mia Couto

Ermelindo Mucanga, is dead for last 200 years, and his physical body is cremated under the frangipani tree in old fort , where he died during the work of restoration of the old slave port. After many many years, with the independence of the country , he is now considered a national hero, and his mortal remains is now unearthed, to give a State Funeral. While he is happy that he is dead now and the current civil war post the independence will not affect him, he isn't happy with the new development of being the national hero,  "A spirit that reoccupies its former body risks mortal dangers". So he consult his pet ant-eater, the mammal lives with the dead.  "You, Ermelindo, you should relive your death"  came the suggestion, and it was the ant-eater who gave the way.

Thus, on advise from the ant-eater, the spirit entered the body of the Police Inspector, arriving at the fort island, to investigate the murder of the Director, of the Refugee Camp. He was also made aware that the detective will have a short life and will be killed in next six days.

Izidine Naita, the detective, Police inspector from the country capital, arrives at the fort island in a helicopter, to investigate the murder of Vastome Excellency, a mulato who was responsible for the old people's refuge at Sao Nicolau". The detective, the ghost, the writer and us follow the investigation in the next six days,  through the testimony of the inhabitants, where each of them claims to have killed the Director. An intersting piece of writing here, which covers many aspects of Mozambique's, rich oral tradition, its folklore and myths, the historical and political aspects with and without the European occupiers, and their own racial and regional issues.

While, the investigation per se, is not revealed the murder mystery, it opened up a lot more, probably the true intend of the investigation, by unearthing a huge treasure of arms, hidden by the Director, saved from the earlier war. Which opens up some of the crazy behaviour of the inhabitants towards him. It is the same danger, that fell upon the Director, awaits him.

This probably is not the best of Mia Couto. However, this gives the indication of the caliber of a writer he is. The fantastic ability to live the African way of story telling, the intermix of myths , history and fiction, the "magical realism" with an African touch, the brilliance in the formation of words and sentences. I am pretty sure that this book would have suffered from translation not suspecting the ability of the translator, but the very African usage of language and few idioms , probably would have lost the same impact on translation.

There is no great literary achievement and the plot, otherwise is pretty weak. The freshness is in the story telling, through rich poetic sentences, and building up the sequences of events. As a reader, I was never really interested in the outcome of the murder mystery, and could sense the deeper issues, which the inhabitants, all elderly people of varied ethnical background, trying to prevent.  There is also a deeper political essence, of both colonialism, and the post independent civil war ( in line with an ethnic conflict) , which emerged in almost all the African nations, who gained independence from their colonial rulers.

My first reading of Mia Couto, and I'm sure many more to come.

--------------------------------------
Under the Frangipani( 1996)

Mia Couto ( translated from Portuguese by David Brookshaw in 2001)

Serpant's Tail

150 Pages
-----------------------------------------
Doe Eyed Critic, News Desk,

A Sunday at the Pool in Kigali - Gil Courtemanche

".. talked without stopping, about AIDS, about corruption and about massacres. He repeated what (he) had said a thousand times before...."

The story of every genocide takes the same often narrated path of violence and massacre. The second World War, the balkan conflict or what the world witnessed in Africa. The story of molestation, violence, rape and massacre repeat itself, by merely changing the country or continent. Canadian journalist and writer, Gil courtemanche, brings the world attention again to the gruesome history of the 1994 Rwandan genocide with a powerful, violent and often angry portrayal of the war time Kigali. The writing is hard hitting, it is upsetting and he uses extreme graphic images be its the effect of AIDS, the massacre or the rape of women.

Hotel des Mille-Collins, at the centre of Kigali is the nerve-centre of the actions in Rwanda. Apart from hosting the UN peace keeping soldiers, it is also the point of action for various Global organisations, working in Rwanda, like the UNICEF, Red Cross, French and Belgian embassies, the rich expatriates and the high class prostitutes. Bernard Valcourt, a Canadian journalist ( an alter ego of the writer), comes to Kigali to set up the television station in Rwanda with the help of Canada. Widowed, and his daughter now married and settled, he accepted the assignment to escape his boring life. The telecast project is perpetually delayed, and he and his crew are now opened to the world of another epidemic that is creating havoc in Africa - AIDS. Focussing his camera and his journalistic intuition, he and his team set about filming some of the victims and their last days. Though he made several friends amongst the victims and was able to film some of the touching scenes of their last breath, his documentary did not receive the attention neither in Rwanda, nor to the rest of the world.

Death and sex are two companions in the street. Scores are dying of AIDS, and the rest are victims of the violence. Machette clad predators on prowl for their victims, so are the prostitutes carrying deadly HIV virus.

The build up for a potential show down between Tutsis and Hutus were already evident. There are sporadic incidents of violence and arson. With most of his friends belongs to the minority Tutsi community, his attempt to bring justice to those affected were received with no enthusiasm from the ruling majority, and he was often warned with dire consequences. His diplomatic immunity , being a Canadian did not help him, and his attempts to get the international attention to the crisis, about to explode had no success, barring a small publication based out of Belgium. As one after other of his friends being killed by a meticulous planned genocide by the Hutu majority ( a plan very similar to what we had seen in the extermination of Jews in the first half of last century), Valcourt continue to work on his capacity.

The crisis blow up with a full scale action of murder and mass migration of Tutsis after a political crisis resulted in the murder of the President, the country goes into chaos. Anarchy rules and the foreigners are rescued to the nearby countries. Valcourt, now in love with a local girl Gentille, a Hutu with the physical features of Tutsi, refuses to leave and plans for his wedding. The Rwandan crisis now turns into a war after the Tutsi rebel regroup (with the help of Uganda) and return the favour. Now the exodus is from the Hutu quarters and no one is safe in the streets any more. In an attempt to flea , Valcourt and his wife was stopped and she was detained for not having the valid identity papers. Few pages of notebook, reveals the fate of her post separation.

"This novel is a novel. But it is also a chronicle and eye witness report." asserts the writer. Most of the characters and places are real and their 'real names' are used confirms the preface. While the theme is the genocide, he turns the mirror to the world community at large. Rwandan history until the second half of 20th century marred by Belgian rule , who spread the seed of hatred among the Tutsis and Hutus. They continue to supply arms to the warring factions ( Machettes from China the granades and firearms from French continue to enter the country by dubious means). Even at the height of the sectarian conflict, the UN peace keepers, the French or the arrogant Belgian soldiers refused to intervene. To the western world it was a news in the inner pages of the newspaper. The cry for help fallen into deaf ears, until late into the conflict. Though the peace was restored after a long time, the scars remain intact, albeit subdued and hidden.

Immediately after reading the book I watched the movie 'Hotel Rwanda' again the same night. Incidentally both claims to be based on real characters. Events in both, the book and the movie are happening at Hotel des Mille - Collins. Both happening at the same time and through two different perspective. While the movie, restricts its focus on the 1994 genocide ( a week to 10 days probably), the book has larger canvas, including the AIDS epidemic and the initial build up of the violence. Movie appealed in the visual sense, but the book seems to have been much more deep into the conflict, through the personal experience.

Very disturbing and haunting tale of violence with some graphic description of the rape, violence and death. It is difficult not to get carried away in such a tale, and he maintain a commendable restrain in his narrative. Anger, frustration, helplessness and cynicism influences the writing, despite his attempt to be im-passionate. The thin line between fiction and non-fiction often smudge. A very important recount of one of the dirtiest events of human history and not necessarily a literary phenomenon.

---------------------------------------------------------------
A Sunday at the Pool in Kigali (2000)

Gil Courtemanche ( translated from French by Patricia Claxton 2003)

Canongate

258 Pages
---------------------------------------------------------------
Guardian Review, Montreal Mirror, Mostly Fiction, Good Reports

Houseboy - Ferdinand Oyono

"Brother, what are we? What are we blackmen who are called French" ? Asks Toundi just before his death. It is the question asked a good number of Africans who worked with and for their colonial masters. They learn French and can converse with their masters, be the interpreter as and when needed, and do their house hold scores working for them. Toundi runs away from home unable to stand his punishing father and take refuge in the church, getting himself baptized to Joseph. Death of the father at church made his life difficult, and it was the new father who recommended him to the house of the Commander. His fluent French and learnt mannerisms and cleanliness ( the transformation of the African identity to the European ) had gone well with the Commander and soon he become the trusted houseboy. His dual life of being a French at the house and an African to his friends is an interesting point of observation.

Arrival of the commandant's wife ( the most beautiful women the country has seen) has made the situation little tense. Initially she charmed everyone who met her and made an impression to the locals ( as the comment on her beauty and her style) and the other Europeans. It was her friendship with the Boss of the Jail , turned the situation worse. Often witness to the infidelities, being forced to be the messenger boy between the lovers, Tuondi's loyalty is now under question. The often touring Commandant, indeed comes to know his wife's improper behavior resulting in a showdown. Toundi is suspected to be spreading the rumours , and the act of vengeance by the lady increased, despite the refusal of the Commandant to replace the houseboy. Eventually , they get him falsely accusing him of theft. Arrested and tortured, he was left to none but himself to defend. Escaping the torture and interrogation, he runs away to the nearby Spanish Colony, where he succumbs to his injuries and dies.

Book is written in the form of diaries, introduced by a nameless narrator who witness Tuondi's last minutes and recover his diaries.

"Father Gilbert says I can read and write fluently. Now I can keep a diary like he does. Keeping a diary is a white man's custom and what pleasure there is in it I do not know. But I shall try it out"

This book is originally published in 1956, four years before the independence of Cameroon from French ( in 1960). I can understand the significance of this book, at the time of publication on the lrger scope of colonial Africa's literature during the days prior to independence. It is also evident that this complex social structure of Whites, the in between and Native live a life that are delicate and often rely on mistrust. Cameroon-born Ferdinand Oyono is trying examine these relationships in this very short and straightforward tale. It might also be one of the important book with reference to the effects of colonial rule in the African Literature.

On the other side, reading it now 55 years after its publication, did not create the strong impression that it would have caused then. It reads like a plain story of a houseboy in European Quarters, caught for theft and dies during ( or as a result of) the interrogation. As it is with every colonial states, they learn the language of their masters, and try to imitate them in their own life. apart from the clever use of form in the way of a diary, it does not have anything unique in the narration. However, I also get a feeling that a lot was left unsaid ( we can understand that as it was published when the French were still in power) and those missing pieces reconstructed by the reader gives this small book a larger perspective. Having said that, I can sense the overall importance of this book in the colonial literature of Africa.

--------------------------------------------------
Houseboy (1956)

Ferdinand Oyono ( translated from French by John Reed 1966)

Heinemann

122 Pages
-------------------------------------------------
Africa Book Club, New Times Ruwanda, Wiki Entry

The Book of Chameleons - José Eduardo Agualusa

Félix Ventura , an Albino, living in Angola, has an interesting profession. He make a living by dealing with memory, by fabricating past for people. His clientele , includes the ministers, the neo-rich, the aristocrats, the diamond smugglers and other prominent personalities.  His business card reads : 'Felix Ventura. Guarantee your children a better past’.  He is a thorough professional. The past of his esteemed clients are created with meticulous details, including photographs, references, the family tree, relevant documents, establishing credentials.

There was a whole class, he explained, a whole new bourgeoisie, who sought him out. They were businessmen, ministers, landowners, diamond smugglers, generals -- people, in other words, whose futures are secure. But what these people lack is a good past, a distinguished ancestry, diplomas. In sum, a name that resonates with nobility and culture. He sells them a brand new past.

But all that is going to get a little complicated, with the arrival of a foreigner seeking his service. " I'm a photojournalist. I collect images of wars, of hunger and its ghosts, of natural disasters and terrible misfortunes. You can think of me as a witness."  He is nameless and need Felix to build his past. "I've had many names, but I mean to forget them all. I'd rather you were the one to baptize me."

The foreigner, now named José Buchmann, managed to convince Felix with a tempting offer of money, half in advance and the rest on completion. The task was done as usual with precise details and made up characters. However, the situation turned a bit creepy, as Jose Buchmann, goes in search of his ancestors and seek convincing evidences of their real existence. He travels across the globe, as described in the document prepared, collecting further details and confirmatory documentation to the surprise ( and  shock) of Felix. The fiction is turning into a reality.

A relatively straight forward story now takes a different turn with the arrival of another young lady photographer ( Angela) and an ex-agent of Ministry of State Security (Edmundo Barata dos Reis - "I'm the very last communist south of the equator" ) comes into the scene. The simple tale is now get into a serious political thriller, a murder mystery and a budding love story. Angola, the war-torn former Portuguese colony has a hidden past of turmoil  beneath the relative recent calm. Centuries old oppression and the recent histories of abduction, cheating and torture have to be re-lived once again through the stories and buried forever with appropriate act of redemption.

Interestingly, the narrator here is a gecko. A lizard, Eulálio, an re-incarnation of a human soul, trying to re-live his past through the co-habitation with human, witnessing and recounting everything he sees. The writer tactically, indicates that the lizard is indeed human, by starting with an epigraph by Borges  " If I were born again, I'd like to be something completely different". In an interview which is given in the last pages, he says this book is in tribute to the great writer.  Gecko , not  a silent spectator in this novel, he lives his own past life through the pages ( including a passage about his death), have dreams and also confide with Felix in his lonely life.

Felix on his part also goes through his past of poverty and humble living,  while creating a past for others. His dreams and childhood memories continue to haunt him.

"The priest talked of angels, and I saw chickens. To this day, in fact, of all the things I've seen, chicken are still the ones that most closely resembles angels. He talked of heavenly joy, and I saw chickens scrabbling away in the sun, digging up little nests in the sand, turning their little glass eyes in pure mystical bliss. I can't imagine Paradise without chickens. I can even imagine the Great God, reclining lazily on a fluffy bed of clouds, without his being surrounded by a gentle host of chickens. You know something -- I've never known a bad chicken -- have you? Chickens, like white ants, like butterflies, are altogether immune against evil."

There are umpteen references to living and past writers of word stage. From Marques , Borges, Kafka, Burton, JM Coertzee, Montaigne and  Eça de Queiroz, comes in his discussion. Felix's father was a second hand book dealer. Eca, he said, was my first crib. Having lived with books in his early life and acquainted with characters of various fiction, have helped Felix in his profession.

 "I think what I do is really an advanced kind of literature," he told me conspiratorially. "I create plots, I invent characters, but rather than keeping them trapped in a book I give them life, launching them out into a reality."

A beautiful narration, fantastic use of style and language. A political thriller, a murder mystery all combined in one beautiful exposition by one very talented writer. 

While the translation is of first class, I am not too convinced about the title used for the English translation. I understand that the Portuguese title is called, O vendedor de passados , and a literal translation ( a seller of past histories ?) would have done more justice.

------------------------------------------------------

The Book of Chameleons (2004)

José Eduardo Agualusa (  translated from Portuguese by Daniel Hahn )

Simon & Schuster

185 Pages

------------------------------------------------------
Other Reviews : Guardian , New Int , Quarterly Conversation, Complete Review , Independent

Links - Nuruddin Farah

"All you can get from me is war.

If you want peace, go away from my Country"
                                              - Sayyid Mohammed Abdulle Hassan

His name has been in prominence in the Nobel discussions for a while, and there had been few rave reviews about his books. While, I could not get the more famous works of him, I did manage to find this book in India. In this recent novel written in 2004 ( knots , written in 2007 is the last novel) , Farah once again look at his country after the US peace keeping forces withdrew from Mogadiscio.

Jeebleh, an exiled Somali man returns to his homeland, to pay homage and make peace with the spirit of his mother ( and with himself). Like every expatriates, he is also haunted by the image of his homeland and cant stay away from his own past linked to this place. An incident which almost brought him near death in NY street ( taxi driven by a Somali driver run over him) could have acted as a catalyst to bring him to his home country. He has also heard of the abduction of the niece of his close friend Bile, and wanted to help him in whatever way possible.

He was welcomed at the makeshift airport by a sight of random killing of a young boy for sport, by three unruly youth. Al-Laafe, an unknown man was sent to pick him up from the airport by someone ( again unknown t him). It was obvious that some one is tracking him in his journey and he can feel their presence through out his stay.

Once you are in Somalia, you cant stay out of what is happening, around you. You get dragged into the quagmire of clan rivalry without you realising it. He offended his own clan elders, acted against the religious belief, by saving a dog from a mad boy. Someone sneaked into his hotel room, only to be killed by the hotel securities, and he always found himself being followed and watched from close quarters.

"Truth was one of the first casualties of the war" says his friend. As he realises that there aren't anyone you can trust, there are no friends, "we don't think of 'friends' anymore. We rely on our clansmen...sharing ancestral blood.".. "Times were when we knew who was bad and who was good. Such distinctions are now blurred. We are at best good badmen or bad badmen".

His pursuit for finding out about his mother and the two kidnapped kids is what the book is all about. He does manage to do what he came here for ( to make peace with the spirit of his mother), and the revenge he schemed secretly.

The book does bring out the bitter truth of the war, the American Soldiers in Mogadiscio, the money in play through UN relief funds, other international agencies and their operatives in Somalia, the misappropriation of the goods shipped in for the Somalis , the stolen cars market , the human organ trafficking ... The business interests of keeping the clan rivalry on.. Farah does some tough talk here. That is what this book all about. Very loosely held incidents and weak plot, unconvincing most of the part.

Many of my friends were talking about the poetic language used in his novels( while talking about secrets and maps), but not this one. It had pretty hard and plain language. It did have few political and social analysis, but far from being poetic. The fact that the book was written originally in English by Farah, could possibly have hampered his free use of language ( and the help of translators).

--------------------------------------

Links (2004)

Nuruddin Farah

Riverhead Books

336 Pages

--------------------------------------

Further Read: Guardian , Penguin

The Rape of Sita - Lindsey Collen

'Once upon a time, there was a woman called Sita'
'When?'
'Now.'
'Where?'
'Here.'
'So why did you say "Once upon a time" then?'
------
First and foremost, this is a feminist novel. Not that it stand against it. The book had caused a controversy and was banned within three days of publication for insulting religious sentiments in Mauritius. Sita is the central character in the Hindu epic, "Ramayana" and a divine goddess to many. Using Sita as a metaphor for the universal struggle of womankind, Lindsay Collen has brought out a brilliant book. Sita, in the epic was abducted while she was in exile, by Ravana , and was rescued by Rama in an epic war. Sita has to suffer the humiliation and have to come clean through 'baptism by fire" at the end of the victory, to prove herself.

While this novel has no direct reference to Sita of the epic, some of the characters have names resembling to the epic. Sita's husband in the novel is Dharma ( for Rama) , his brother is Lutchman ( for Lakshman) and the villain of the story ( the accused, is Rowan - for Ravan) and Dharma's father is 'Dasharatha' as in the case of Ramayana. To me, this novel is as appealing without these references to the Ramayana.

Sita, in this tale is tormented by an incident that occurred 9 years ago. She had buried the memories for all the years after deliberating over it for a while. But, all of a sudden, there are sprouts at the buried land. She recounts the time and events that leads to the eventful day and her internal reaction to the same during and after that incident. Though she was able to bury the bad feelings and been able to continue her life, it come back strongly after all these years. Sita is no common woman. She is a political activist (along with her husband), and the leader of the Women's Movement of Mauritius. So has the moral responsibility to be the spokeperson of all the women in Mauritius , in Africa and for the world. As she construct the article, pertaining to rape and humiliation of women, going through case by case, she looks at the philosophical and psychological and social aspects of rape.

Very interestingly, the narrator here, is a man ( Iqbal, the umpire - Iqbal was a man who thought he was a woman) who re-tell the story for Sita. Towards the end, Iqbal himself, is asking the question..

And I once again, intervene. How did they come to this decision, this group of ordinary men and boys? And how did they perform? Did they stand in a queue beforehand? And what did they do afterwards? These are the questions we all have to answer, dear reader, for what if we were one of those men? Would we be among them? Would we be like them? Would we be them? Are we, by any chance, them?

This book brings the novel of Virginie Despentes to mind ( which was published in 1999, 6 years later). Virginie Despentes book is a porno-fiction to me with no substance. Rape of Sita, on the other hand deal the issue at a higher intellectual level. Though at times, these discussions tends to be monotonous and superficial, which is one of the short coming of the novel.
The initial part of the novel before it gets serious on the aspect of rape, is extremely well written. The tales and legends of the people of Mauritius, the various characters of the novel, the history of their ancestors, the freedom struggle and the story of the narrator himself provides a good build up.

A very well 'constructed' book, with some interesting take from the feminist angle.
--------------------------------------------
The Rape of Sita
Lindsey Collen
The Feminist Press @ the City University of New York
232 Pages
---------------------------------------------
Here is an interview with the author discussing the book : http://www.triplopia.org/inside.cfm?ct=374

Snakepit - Moses Isegawa

" We all have things to regret; it is the human condition, General. Maybe you more than I. I have one rule in life: I don't look back. That is how I have survived to reach this age. Somebody blasts me, I blast back. If I don't, I have myself to blame. If one day you become president, send a whole battalion of your sharpshooters to arrest me. If you send boys, I will kill them all, and you wouldn't want to begin your reign with burials, would you? "

It is the common story of all the countries under military dictatorship. We have heard similar stories in many forms. The actions are the same, only the name and country differ. Military coup, followed by mass murder, exodus, violence, loot, abduction, missing civilians, torture, rebellion, which invariably ends ( or restarts) with yet another coup.

Uganda was in the forefront of the news in the 70's and for the notorious ruler called Idi Amin. Arguably one of the most murderous of the rulers in the second half of the 20th century ( 3,00,000 to 5,00,000 people were afraid to have been killed during his regime).

Moses Isegawa, an Ugandan born writer, takes us through the Uganda during the 8 year old regime. This is not a recollection of historical event, but a novel set at these times. Bat Katanga, newly graduated from Cambridge returns to his homeland in search of job and fortune, to serve the new regime. He believed, that the newly emerging Uganda is more lucrative for his career to the safe havens of west. It took less than a week for him to land in a dream role under the ministry of power controlled by General Bazooka. A government mansion on the lake side, envious sports car, a powerful job , he had all that one looks for early in life. Soon, his name was the talk in the higher circle , for his efficient way of handling the business, his intelligence and dedication. Other ministries was in need of him, permanently or on a short term assignment. The pride of General Bazooka, soon become his worry. Victoria, a close confidante of General Bazooka was soon entrusted with a task of shadowing him and tracking him. Victoria and Bat soon fallen for each others charm, and 'barren' lady become the mother of Bat's child.

But the situation is not all that safe for General Bazooka. Once the second in command, the right hand man of Marshal Amin, is now not in favour of the Marshal. A British mercenary called Robert Ashes, had better access to the Marshal, and was given the all important role of anti- smuggling unit , taken away from General Bazooka. Robert Ashes influence of Amin is increased day by day, so is the power struggle and rivalry between him and General Bazooka. Each fought a proxy war of abducting and torturing, each others men.

Bat's relationship with Victoria soured after the entrance of Babit to the scene. Soon, Victoria was thrown out of the house, replacing her with Babit. In the power struggle between the General Bazooka and Marshal Amin, Bat is taken as prisoner for his alleged involvement in corruption in an equipment deal involving Saudi Royal family. While the detention and torture continued, Bat gets his release after 6 months, after the intervention by his friend, a member of British Parliament, giving a moral victory to Robert Ashes.

"How does it feel to be back?" the Professor asked.
"Feels like f***. I dont have a job to wake up to, no home, no guards. I am a bit afraid of soldiers now. I am a bit afraid of you. I am a bit afraid of myself. It is great, isn't it?"

The situation turns worse in Uganda, after Bat's brother aligned himself with the revolutionaries, and start bombing key locations and blowing up the cars of prominent people, including that of the wife of General Bazooka. Victoria has her revenge by sending people to kill Babit. Though caught and tried under civilian court, she was left free with the intervention of General Bazooka. As the unrest increased in the country, General Bazooka sets the trap for Robert Ashes, partially succeeding. Though he could not finish his rival as planned, Robert Ashes escaped the attempt and flee to South Africa, settling in his farm. General Bazooka too ends his life after he lost his wife and children ( disappeared without trace), while the fearsome Marshal Amin leave the country and new regime takes control.

This is not a story of Amin, not a story of Bat Katanga or about General Bazooka. It is the Uganda in the 70s under Idi Amin, and all these characters are replica of the real events that might have happened there. That is the positive and the short coming of the novel. While the author is able to portray the life of fear and uncertainty, keeping the reader on the edge, the fragmented narration moving from one character to another ( as the centre of action) does loose the continuity or flow in the story. For a while the story was around Bat and his experience, soon taking it on the power struggle between General Bazooka and Robert Ashes , into the fortune teller Dr.Ali and Marshal Amin.

Action packed, horror filled tale told in crisp pace and fluid use of language. Marshal Idi Amin is an omnipresent figure in the story ( rarely appearing himself) but the rest are characters derived/adapted from real life people. Very powerful, dark and intense novel of Uganda portrayed brilliantly.

-----------------------------------------------
Snakepit
Moses Isegawa
Alfred A Knopf, Publisher , NewYork
259 Pages
-----------------------------------------------
Read More : Complete Review, New York Review of Books

African Psycho - Alain Mabanckou

"I have decided to kill Germaine on December 29", declares Gregoire Nakobomayo as the narrator in this "American Psycho" inspired novel from the young Congo-Brazzaville born author. Gregorie, small time car mechanic , a petty criminal and a wanna be killer is trying to emulate what his idol Angoualima a legendary serial killer, to clean the street from the bad elements.

His routine visits to the grave of his idol, and his small attempts of criminal activity does not get him to the league of Angoualima. He has only ideas and plans, but none , barring few petty cases, gets him where he wanted to be , to the displeasure of his idol. Hence the decision to do something big. To kill his girlfriend, who satyed with him during the last couple of months, and he believes, she is one of those girls of the street.

The story also takes us through his troubled childhood, where he had been an adoptive child to various family, each time he runs away. The author also takes us through the criminal records and the end of Angoualima, his idol. He make a fool of himself in every attempt to be a villain, be it an attempted murder, rape , rob or whatever he does. The D Day has arrived and the preparation is at its peak. But the girl does not return home at night, spoiling his party. The next morning report on TV carry the news of the murder of the girl, and who could have done this ?

My first impression of this book was very negative. I do not see any compelling story in it. Every thing is loosely held. The characterisation is not strong and is not convincing. More apt for a short story, dragged to 164 pages with some flash back of Angoualima and the his child hood memories.

The attempted humour and the satirical take on the press etc are interesting, but not seems to be making any impact. The use of the names like , He-Who-Drinks-Water-Is-An-Idiot and sort also making it rather puneasy to read. I am sure he was attempting to write a satire, if not the book is extremely disturbing with the crime scene, the corruption and the other social destruction of values.

I think I have taken this book quite seriously. If I remove the literary pretensions , and look at it again, then it is a simple witty narrative, with a social satire. If you are able to laugh at the protagonist along with the author, this is not a bad work of fiction. Having said that, I am sure he has got potential and as this profile in FranceToday tells us, he has written more acknowledged books.
----------------------------------------------
African Psycho
Alain Mabanckou ( translated by Christine Schwartz Hartley )
Picador
164 Pages
Rs 395
-------------------------------------------------
Further read : Book Slut, Wordswithoutborders , NY timeout

In the country of men - Hisham Matar

Another debut novel, this time by this Anglo- Libyan author, about Suleiman, a nine-year old boy under the Gaddafi's rule . A commendable work for a debut novel and was short listed for Man Booker Prize in 2006.

Suleiman lives with his mother Najwa, and his father Faraj, who is on continuous travel for his business need. He thinks his mother is not well, usually when his father is away on tours, for which she takes medicine ( alcohol disguised as medicine to the child ) sourced through the baker Madji.

This is the summer vacation and Suleiman spends his time with friends, his mother and on the terrace where he has his set up of tools and other accessories. One of these days, his father is on travel as always, he and his mother were followed by another car on their way back from the market. He realised from his mother that they were the secret police from the revolutionary committee. He also suspects of seeing his father , who is supposed to be on business trip , in one of the clandestine apartments in the town, where he was accompanied by another person carrying a type-writer. The events soon take turn as Ustath Rashid, a professor, his neighbour and father of his close friend Kareem, was taken by the revolutionary committee as a traitor for bringing up agitation against the revolution.

Suleiman's father is the next suspect in line and with in few days, the revolutionary committee members, who arrested Kareem's father, appears in his house looking for his father. Moosa , a close associate of his father and an Egyptian by origin, manages to dissuade the team from search, not before they discovered his mothers drinking habit. It is obvious that the family has already earned the distrust of the regime and his father has to escape to safety. Moosa and Najwa burns all the books and other potential proofs before they were confiscated, but Suleiman recover one of the handwritten book which his father used to keep under his pillow, from burning. With the help of the powerful neighbour Ustath Jafer ( a Govt Official) his mother manages to save the father from the imminent death ( as happened to the professor, which was telecasted live to the horror of the family and the curiosity of young Suleiman) but not before being taken as a prisoner and interrogated. His father returns one night after being released from detention, and was kept away from Suleiman's view. For long he refused to believe and accept it as his father, until he was taken to the room and spoken to his father who is unrecognisable in the current state. By now Suleiman has already severed his relationship with all his friends, often fighting with them ( including his close friend Kareem, whom he called a traitor in the height of one argument) and was more and grew desperate with the events at home ( more with the elders who seems to be hiding many things from him).

Moosa has been deported to his home country soon after Suleiman's fathers release, and the family decides to save Suleiman from this mess and manages to send him away to Moosa at Cairo where he completes his study away from his home, parents and friends.

It's a book of growing up under the torture regime, where no one is above suspicion. Secret police, informers, fragile social network and family , the televised trials and execution are all influencing the child. There is also an issue of isolation from the society, and within family itself. The family structure itself is very week. Alcoholic mother, not so smooth relationship between his mother and father, his fathers clandestine ant-establishment activities, the excitement of the young boy in seeing the secret police ( he even befriends him) and the execution ( he notices the wet patch around the groin , the push by the executioners to the rope , the froth in the corner of the mouth).

The hanging inflames the spectators. "He was propped up, slapped a couple of times across the face, then turned toward the camera. We could see now that his trousers were wet. Something yellow appeared from his mouth and seemed to grow. ... The crowd spilled down on to the court now. ... A couple of men hugged and dangled from his ankles, then waved to others to come and do the same. They looked like children satisfied with a swing they had just made."

Mu-Ammar Gaddafi is also a character of the story with his omnipresence. Though his name is not used directly, he is referred as the Guide , his influence in the people are God-like.

It is difficult to write an entire book as told by a nine year old boy. Obvious things to the reader ( adult ) is not so for the young boy and he has a different meaning in each situation. Hisham Matar has done a good job in this part without getting into the adult zone of thinking. However, the main plot of anti-regime movement is not touched, may be because the kid who narrates the story is too ignorant of the fact. And that leaves the entire story a bit incomplete from the reader's point. One never know for what they have plotted ( all we know that it is for "Democracy now") and what is his fathers participation in the same. The last pages after the narrator is grown up and now works and lives in Egypt was also was a bit out of place, and spoils the flow of the narration.

The story is told by the young boy with no premonitions, no judgements, no secrets. But with his perception and associated immaturity, thus leaving many things un answered to the adult reader. Underlying to all these is the love he has for his mother, towards his friends, for Tripoli and his libyan life, which he carries with him in his journey to Cairo, and till date. Equally strong is the feeling of betrayal; of his friend Kareem by calling him traitor in front of others, betrayal of his neighboring boys , betraying of his mother ( parents ) and the betrayal of his homeland.

A fluid, very well written prose , never getting carried away by emotions, Matar has brought out a decent fictional work.

==================================
In the Country of Men
Hisham Matar249 Pages
Rs 295/-
----------------------------------------------------------
More reads : NY Times, Guardian Review, Complete Review

The Attack - Yasmina Khadra

Amin Jaafari, an Israeli-Arab, lives in Tel Aviv with his wife and is leading a happy and content life as a successful surgeon in a hospital. A suicide attack in the nearby Cafe, opens this book, as his hospital and colleagues prepare themselves to save the victims. After an eventful day and trying to get some sleep, Amin is woken by a telephone call by his friend Navid, a detective asking him to come over to the Hospital at once. Little did he know that the devastating explosion, is going to change his life forever. One of the victims, is suspected to be his wife, who had gone to her grand mother's place and expected to return the same day. Worse still, is that they suspect her to be the suicide bomber behind this gruesome attack.

He goes through the rigorous interrogation by the authorities on his wife's involvement and his knowledge about the same and on release confronted by the locals as a traitor. But, these are not the real concern to him. He refuses to believe his wife's involvement and maintain that this is a mistake and she was only a victim. His quest to know the truth about the event in order to prove himself that his wife is innocent, takes him through the painful journey. Amin, confronts the Imams, the commanders, and his relatives to unveil the truth tracing the path of his wife. Instead of relieving from the stress and despair, that envelop him, he gets further dragged into the turmoil, until the point of no return. He does not get any help from the imam , the commander-in chief and multiple leaders he talks to as all of them tell him that they were persuading her against such an attempt. So, who has done the damage , is it the cousin Abdel ? Is it her early life and upbringing, or is it in their blood for generations ? The author does not give the answers. This journey become a personal pilgrimage to Amin, as he goes through the learning.

"Your wife died for your redemption", says the militant leader to Amin. "There are only two extremes moments in human madness, the instance when you become aware of your own impotence and the instance when you become aware of the vulnerability of others. Its the question of accepting one's madness, doctor, or suffering it.". And for them "there is no happiness without dignity, and no dream is possible without freedom".

The difference between the thinking is simple, For him paradise is at the end of a man's life; for me, it's at tips of of your fingers.

This book is very sensitive and have to deal with a subject which is under international discussion. Though it does not tells you any thing new or what we does not know , he is succeed in telling us a story from the human point. This is not a book on terrorism as the author tells in one of the interview " but everywhere you retain only terrorism, terrorism, terrorism. My novels do not speak about terrorism; they talk of human brittleness, anger, humiliation, the fears, sometimes the hopes; and of this burning and fatuous actuality which spoils our life".

A very well written book by this Algerian writer, who writes under a pseudo name Yasmina Khadra ( real name is Mohammed Moulessehoul ) whose other novels also deal on the same subjects , swallows of Kabul, In the name of God , The sirens of Baghdad. A contemporary fiction, but does not demand a second read. More reviews here..

The Attack
Written by : Yasmina Khadra ( Algeria )
Translated from French by John Cullen
257 Pages
---------------------
PS: The real bastard isn't the man who doesn't know his father; it is the man who doesn't know his tradition.

Half of a Yellow Sun - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

"The World was silent when we died" was the name Ogwu gave his book. It was not the name invented by him, it was the name of the book Richards was writing and abandoned after the war ended.

Half of a Yellow sun ( the Official Flag of Biafra), is based on the times before and during the troublesome period in Nigeria's existence during the 60s. A Novel by this young writer, is looking at the time and life of two sisters ( twins) of a rich business family. Olanna , who is more educated and having an affair with the progressive and revolutionary thinking professor Odenigbo of Nsukka University. Kainene the second has inclination towards business and is planning to run the family business and has an admirer , Richards a self proclaimed writer and journalist, from Britain. Their respective life is on the roll until the political and social situation in Nigeria started to change. Started as an angry outburst against the Igbo community, who are from the southern part of the Nigeria, controls majority of the wealth and are better educated and better living, it soon changed into riots and attack. Most of the Igbo people were forced to leave Lagos and other northern part of the country and were forced back to Southern Nigeria.

Igbo community soon started re-grouping under the erstwhile army commanders and soon the civil war is started. Now under the name of Biafra, Igbo and other minor communities has declared independence and the struggle to establish a country with political and economical self - sufficiency. The bloody war and the loss of human life continued until 1970 by which the Nigerian Army with the help of external forces were able to take control of the most of the region. So much from the history.
The story is about the people and their struggle during the troublesome period. Adichie, brings out a beautiful narration, without getting into the sentimental terrain, to show the story of the Biafran people. Until the last days, they were under the hope and promise of victory. Their will power to endure all the sufferings for the cause of a better tomorrow, never ends.
This story is also about Odenigbo, who as an intellectual gives out all from his capacity for the cause of Biafra. It is also about Ugwu, the house boy at Odenigbo, who comes from a poor family, learning his way by listening to the intellectual debates at his master's house with the book he read from his master. It is also about Richards, his admiration for Kainene , makes him to abandon his interest in ancient art of Igbo paintings and move in with her. He also uses his ability to write and uses his British Nationality to send articles about the struggle of Biafra to the European public.
Through the life of Olanna, this novel shows us the depreciating quality of human life in Biafra. Having moved to Nsukka to be with Odenigbo, to the displeasure of her parents and leaving the rich and lavish life of the wealthy family, she was set to experience a new life. From the decent house of the professor, the War had made them to vacate the place with only a pair of dress in hand, to Odenigbo's home town. The spread of war and approaching Nigerian Army made them fled again to a still smaller place , before ending in a smallest, filthy one room attic with the lowest possible living conditions. The families are under stress, Odenigbo gets into despair and drinking as a result. Igwu has been captured by the Biafran Army for fighting against the Nigerians. While all these happens, Olanna continue to support the cause of Biafra, by her means, Kainene chip in to run the relief supply until her disappearance.

Certain chapters end with a kind of footnotes which I guess is from the book being written but Ugwu under the name of The World was silent when we died. This I found was unnecessary and was out of place in most cases.

This book has already won lot of acclaim and literary awards and is heralded as the new era in literature. Is the literary scene is moving away from Latin America towards Africa ? There are definite indication ....

Half of a Yellow Sun
Author : Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Published by Harper Perenniel
433 Pages
Rs 295

A Long way gone - memoirs of a boy soldier by Ishmael Beah

"It is not your fault" , Esther the nurse tells him, so does the others at the rehabilitation center. The world ask "whose mistake is it"? "Who stole their childhoods" ? Why is it, that even in the 21st Century, the world is at war, why does the innocent had to suffer for the gain of a few ? Why is that millions and millions of people homeless and starving ?

Ishmael Beah, a former boy soldier in the war trodden Sierra Leone , brings out a memoir of his troublesome period of his life to tell the world of the gruesome events unfolds in front of him as he witnessed, participated and recovered from. Written as a first person narrative, the story takes us to the villages of Sierra Leone, where the rebel forces of Revolutionary United Front , popularly known as RUF , is on a decade long civil war with the armed forces in a rich country destroyed by war, corruption and many coup attempts to topple the elected government.

His memoirs starts with his childhood days with his family, brother and friends. His fascination to the new generation Rap music and dance. One day, Ishmael with his brother and friends leaves for the nearby town to see the rap music event and participate. Little did they know that they are on a journey , never to return.

While returning , they comes to know that the rebels have attacked their village and destroyed the houses and killed the people. The run for safety and food starts from then. The vast part of the book is dedicated to this task of running away from the rebels, the people they meet whose fate is no better than theirs, few unexpected helps from survived villagers. Being chased and caught by village protection team suspecting them as rebels... and the gruesome incidents and stories experienced by survivors. In one of the skirmishes he also loose his brother, never to see him again. The fate takes him to the army camp and being trained to hold the AK-47s, the machine guns, the RPGs Ishmael becomes one of the hard core military man at the age of 13. Multiple encounters with the rebels, the bullet shots, death of colleagues, slitting of the throat , setting fire, looting the food and valuables etc are described in detail, looks very familiar as from a hollywood movie scene. Marijuana, cocaine and "brown brown" overdoses keeps away the tender feelings away, to give them the mental strength to carry out these gruesome acts.

The efforts of UNICEF and other Peace keeping Missions, gets Ishmael and few of his friends to the rehabilitation center at Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone. I liked the pages describing the effects of "withdrawal syndrome" to the group and his reaction of the "civilians" commanding the "military"men. Gradually, he comes to senses and after a successful rehabilitation, he is re-instated to the normal society , adopted by his paternal uncle as a member of his family. Everything is not normal as events unfolds. A successful coup attempt and the control of Freetown by the new regime, makes the life worse for all. Ishmael fears that he will eventually get back to the killing ways, by forcefully joining the army. He plans his escape from the country which once was his home. The book is written by Ishmael after his escape to the US and after his successful graduation.

This is a war memoir, and not to be called a literary revolution. It brings about the true story of every single boy soldiers fighting the civil war at every part of the world. We are used to the "selective" reporting of the war journalists and here is a story by someone who has seen it all , done it all. It is difficult to write such a memoirs without the emotions taking the first seat. However, Ishmael Beah has done a fantastic job in getting the facts first in a very touching and moving ( at many places) narrative. Language is apt and crisp and it is written as told by a young boy.

Sierra Leone was recently in news in the movie "Blood Diamond" . The RUF rebels which controls the majority of the diamond mines uses innocent child laborers in the mining of diamonds. The book also gives us the chronological events that shaped (?) the current state of the country Sierra Leone.

A Long Way Gone - memoirs of a Boy Soldier
Written by Ishmael Beah ( Sierra Leone / US )
Published by Harper Perennial
229 Pages ( Paperback)
Rs 295/-
PS : Erstwhile dictator of Liberia , Charles Taylor has been under custody of International Crime Beaureau for his alleged involvement in the Sierra Leon civil war. he is being investigated for his support ( financially and arms) of RUF in return of Diamonds.