Read Around Africa Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Africa.
Best books from Africa (890)
41.
The Last Summer of Reason by Tahar Djaout EN
AlgeriaDescription:
This elegant, haunting novel takes us deep into the world of bookstore owner Boualem Yekker. He lives in a country being overtaken by the Vigilant Brothers, a radically conservative party that seeks to control every element of life according to the laws of their stringent moral theology: no work of beauty created by human hands should rival the wonders of their god. Once-treasured art and literature are now despised. ø Silently holding his ground, Boualem withstands the new regime, using the shop and his personal history as weapons against puritanical forces. Readers are taken into the lush de... continue
42.
The German Mujahid by Boualem Sansal EN
Description:
Based on a true story and inspired by the work of Primo Levi, The German Mujahid is a heartfelt reflection on guilt and the harsh imperatives of history. The Schiller brothers, Rachel and Malrich, couldn't be more dissimilar. They were born in a small village in Algeria to a German father and an Algerian mother, and raised by an elderly uncle in one of the toughest ghettos in France. But the similarities end there. Rachel is a model immigrant--hard working, upstanding, law-abiding. Malrich has drifted. Increasingly alienated and angry, a bleak future seems inevitable for him. But when Islamic ... continue
43.
The First Man by Albert Camus EN
Description:
The unfinished manuscript of The First Man was discovered in the wreckage of car accident in which Camus died in 1960. Although it was not published for over thirty years, it was an instant bestseller when it finally appeared in 1994. The 'first man' is Jacques Cormery, whose poverty-stricken childhood in Algiers is made bearable by his love for his silent and illiterate mother, and by the teacher who transforms his view of the world. The most autobiographical of Camus's novels, it gives profound insights into his life and the powerful themes underlying his work.Albert Camus was born in Algeri... continue
45.
Norah's Secrets by Samia Shariff EN
Description:
The many vicissitudes in Norah’s story possess an empowering impudence which leads to believe that, despite the prevailing fundamentalism in some countries, the new generation of Muslim women will not be silently crushed and humiliated as were its predecessors. Norah’s undaunted strength and hope for a brighter future are characteristics which somehow prevail in those whose destinies are held captive by perpetrators who use religion and sacred scriptures as an excuse to torment their victims at will. This book recalls some events found in Samia Shariff’s notorious Veil of Fear, published in 20... continue
47.
Le sel de tous les oublis by Yasmina Khadra FR
Description:
Rentrée littéraire 2020. Lorsqu'une femme claque la porte et s'en va, elle emporte le monde avec elle. Adem Naït-Gacem l'apprend à ses dépens. Ne supportant pas le vide laissé par le départ de son épouse, l'instituteur abandonne ses élèves et, tel un don Quichotte des temps modernes, livré aux vents contraires de l'errance, quitte tout pour partir sur les chemins. Des rencontres providentielles jalonnent sa route : nain en quête d'affection, musicien aveugle au chant prophétique, vieux briscards, galériens convalescents et simples d'esprit le renvoient constamment aux rédemptions en lesquelles... continue
48.
Inside the Battle of Algiers by Zohra Drif EN
Description:
This gripping insider's account chronicles how and why a young woman in 1950s Algiers joined the armed wing of Algeria's national liberation movement to combat her country's French occupiers. When the movement's leaders turned to Drif and her female colleagues to conduct attacks in retaliation for French aggression against the local population, they leapt at the chance. Their actions were later portrayed in Gillo Pontecorvo's famed film The Battle of Algiers. When first published in French in 2013, this intimate memoir was met with great acclaim and no small amount of controversy. It is essent... continue
50.
A General Theory of Oblivion by Jose Eduardo Agualusa EN
AngolaDescription:
WINNER OF THE INTERNATIONAL DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD 2017 A finalist for the Man Booker International Prize 2016 The brilliant new novel from the winner of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. On the eve of Angolan independence, Ludo bricks herself into her apartment, where she will remain for the next thirty years. She lives off vegetables and pigeons, burns her furniture and books to stay alive and keeps herself busy by writing her story on the walls of her home. The outside world slowly seeps into Ludo’s life through snippets on the radio, voices from next door, glimpses of a man fleeing his... continue