[ad_1]
Maaza Mengiste is an Ethiopian-American writer and author of the novels Beneath the Lion’s Gaze and The Shadow King, the latter of which was shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize. (Courtesy photo)
Staff of the week
Maaza Mengiste’s The King of Shadows, a novel set in Ethiopia during Mussolini’s invasion in 1935, was shortlisted for this year’s Man Booker Prize. Here, the New York-based author recommends her favorite books from writers in her native country.
The tale of the wife by Aida Edemariam (2018).
The tale of the wife is a passionate and elegant biography of the author’s grandmother, who was born in the 1920s and lived for almost 100 years. It’s an intimate look at how a remarkable woman experienced some of the most significant moments in modern Ethiopian history.
The beautiful things that heaven carries by Dinaw Mengestu (2007).
Mengestu’s story of a 1970s Ethiopian-born grocer in Washington, DC, has become a classic and deserves all the praise. Haunting, heartbreaking, and beautifully written, Mengestu’s novel is a testament to what remains, even when we think we’ve left our past behind.
Daughters of Silence by Rebecca Fisseha (2019).
A flight attendant from Canada is stranded in Addis Ababa, her hometown, in a novel that becomes a deep meditation on pain and secrets, and how those two things can unite a family and tear it apart at the same time. Daughters of Silence is an exploration of things to talk about and call out, despite the potential cost.
Your body is war by Mahtem Shiferraw (2019).
The title poem of this impressive collection by a talented writer and artist begins, “because you have spent / enough time carving a wound / as big as a star, and when it is ready / you develop it.” And what unfolds as we read each poem is an evocative examination of the power and vulnerability of the female body as it moves through the world.
Hyena belly notes by Nega Mezlekia (2000).
This is a vivid and fascinating memoir about the author’s childhood in Jijiga, Ethiopia, and the events that led to his forced recruitment into a guerrilla army at the age of 18. Vividly detailed and written with deep emotion and urgency, it brings Ethiopia’s 70s and 80s to life.
Things are going good now by Djamila Ibrahim (2018).
The nine stories of Ibrahim’s poignant debut revolve around women at the mercy of history, family and love. The lives enlightened here offer us new ways of talking about displacements that can be both physical and psychological.
This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like this, you can try six risk-free issues of the magazine here.
–
Join the conversation at Twitter and Facebook.
[ad_2]
