Friday, September 29, 2006

The Seattle Times introduces three debutant writers in this nice review. The books mentioned seem very interesting:

Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow - Faiza Guene
[Set in] the Paris of low-income high-rises, housing a restless immigrant population on the perimeter of the city. And it is rendered with tough defiance by Faïza Guène, who was just 17 when she sold her book to a French publisher (she is now 20).
Brief Encounters with Che Guevara: Stories - Ben Fountain
offers pointed prose, nimble revelation, some stunning description of flora and fauna, and a rueful generosity toward a string of well-intentioned bumblers who get in over their heads
Tropical Fish: Tales from Entebbe - Doreen Baingana

"Tropical Fish" is set against the backdrop of "the Amin days and each coup thereafter."

That would be Idi Amin, Uganda's brutal 1970s dictator, who made headlines around the world for his arbitrary laws and his expulsion of his country's Indian population. What Doreen Baingana brilliantly evokes here is the experience of growing up in the wake of his regime, in Uganda's former colonial capital of Entebbe.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I just finished reading "Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow" and hope to get to "Tropical Fish" soon. I haven't heard of the Che Guevera one (but then again, oft late there have been so many books with his name in the title), but I will make a note of it, thanks!