‘It would be hard to overpraise the achievement… a truly remarkable novel. To write it must have taken not just Zameenzad’s great gifts as a writer, but also something else, some extra dose of humanity.’ Punch
Kimo, Golam, Matt and Hena live in an African village that is dying. So they embark on a search for an older cousin who has supposedly made it big in the city, but they find on their journey a country paralysed by famine and civil war. Although they are soon little more than skeletons, the children are full of resources with which to meet this world. One is laughter; another is Hena’s practical intelligence. Their willingness to help those less able to cope is a powerful affirmation of man’s fundamental humanity towards his fellow man.
An unforgettable story of four courageous children on a journey in war-torn Africa, even more powerful and relevant today than when it was first published.
‘Outstanding… into this odyssey of nightmares and magic the author manages to weave a thread of humour which is the most remarkable achievement of his horrifying book.’ Sunday Times
‘Beautifully written, imbued with enormous integrity and insight, his book is a plea for us to exercise humanity towards our fellow humans; it is in the characters’ expressions of love and care that we are offered a glimmer of hope, both for the present and the future.’ Time Out
‘Through Zameenzad’s craft, these fables are first of all stories, riveting and moving; they are, furthermore, exemplary – leaving the reader enthralled. In any case, the art of the fable, in Adam Zameenzad’s hands, has become one again alert and invigorating, restored to its original place of authority.’ Alberto Manguel, Washington Post
‘Truly astonishing.’ i-D
‘This moving, often harrowing novel about the coming-of-age of four spirited children in a starving African village is narrated by Kimo, a nine-year-old boy who recounts brutal scenes of civil strife in one breath, while playfully describing the personalities of his bosom pals in another from “smart-ass” Matt to innocent Golam with his “lovely smile” and Hena, with her “twisted mind.” When life in their village is disrupted by civil war and famine, the children travel to the big city to get help from Kimo’s supposedly successful cousin. But the cousin is hiding from the police and nowhere to be found. The stirring part of the book is the way they cleverly extract themselves from dangerous situations as they wend their way through the violence and disorder of the city. Even though the fighting causes them terror and pain, Kimo refuses to stop believing in the goodness of people, saying that “the hurt of those who stop loving you is worse than the hurt of those who leave you” and “the hurt of those who never love you is the worst of all.” Zameenzad, an award-winning novelist living in England, adds a new dimension to the footage of hungry children we see on television newscasts and makes them come alive in an unforgettable way.’ Publishers Weekly
Sales
- Ziji Publishing UK
- Giunti Italy
Previously published (rights reverted):
- Fourth Estate/Flamingo UK
- Viking & Random House USA
- Klett Cotta/Unions Verlag Taschenbuch Germany
- Van Gennep NL
- Christian Bourgois France
- Marcos y Marcos Italy
- Ediciones Versal Spain
- Teorema Portugal
- Mellemfolkeligt Samvirke Denmark
- Ordfront Sweden
- Pax Norway
- Treville Japan
- Am Oved Israel
Material: finished copies (298pp)