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Title:
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Silence of the Choir, The |
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Authors:
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Sarr, Mohamed Mbougar |
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Genre:
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Fiction |
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Pages:
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391 |
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Year:
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2017 |
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Publisher:
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Europa Editions |
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Language:
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English |
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Description:
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Seventy-two men arrive in the middle of the Sicilian countryside. They are “immigrants,” “refugees” or “migrants.” But in Altino, they’re called the ragazzi, the “guys” that the Santa Marta Association have taken responsibility for. In this small Sicilian town, their arrival changes life for everybody.
While they wait to know their fate, the ragazzi encounter all kinds of people: a strange vicar who rewrites their pasts, a woman committed to ensuring them asylum, a man determined to fight against it, an older ragazzo who has become an interpreter, and a reclusive poet who no longer writes.
Each character in this moving and important saga is forced to reflect on what it means to encounter people they know nothing about. They watch as a situation unfolds over which they have little control or insight. A story told through a growing symphony of voices that ends only when one final voice brings silence to the choir. Europa Editions, Taken from the book cover.
Comments from BDS Reviewers:"At first, I thought this might be 'just another refugee book', but it's not fair to call it that. Every refugee story is different, and each one has its own power."
"A very challenging book and it brings up so many questions, contains so much wisdom, acute observations, and amazing characterisation."
"The writing is diverse, lyrical and beautiful. Sometimes it can seem dense and very detailed, but it is well worth the read."
"Extraordinarily well-written, and an incredibly good job done by the person translating it."
"What impressed me most was the way the novel touches you on some emotional level almost every few pages. Sometimes it feels like testimony, sometimes like poetry, but it never lets you stand back at a safe distance."
"It is both plot driven and character driven and there are numerous back stories - both of the refugees and the local inhabitants."
I think all of humanity should read books like this, just to see life through other people's eyes."
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Categories:
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Fiction, Just Added, 2027 Titles |
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