Small Country, Gael Faye
Small Country, Gael Faye
List: $17.50 | Sale: $12.25
Club: $8.75

Small Country

Author: Gaël Faye

Narrator: Dominic Hoffman

Unabridged: 6 hr 2 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 06/05/2018

Synopsis

Already an international sensation and prize-winning bestseller in France, an evocative coming-of-age story of a young boy, a lost childhood and a shattered homeland.
 
SHORTLISTED FOR THE ALBERTINE PRIZE • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY ESQUIRE • LONGLISTED FOR THE ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCE IN FICTION • LONGLISTED FOR THE ASPEN WORDS LITERARY PRIZE  

Burundi, 1992. For ten-year-old Gabriel, life in his comfortable expatriate neighborhood of Bujumbura with his French father, Rwandan mother and little sister Ana, is something close to paradise.
 
These are carefree days of laughter and adventure – sneaking Supermatch cigarettes and gorging on stolen mangoes – as he and his mischievous gang of friends transform their tiny cul-de-sac into their kingdom.
 
But dark clouds are gathering over this small country, and soon their peaceful existence will shatter when Burundi, and neighboring Rwanda, are brutally hit by civil war and genocide.  

A novel of extraordinary power and beauty, Small Country describes an end of innocence as seen through the eyes of a child caught in the maelstrom of history. Shot through with shadows and light, tragedy and humor, it is a stirring tribute not only to a dark chapter in Africa’s past, but also to the bright days that preceded it.

About The Author

Gaël Faye was born in 1982 in Burundi to a French father and Rwandan mother. In 1995, after the outbreak of the civil war and the Rwandan genocide, the family moved to France. An author, songwriter and hip-hop artist, he released his first solo album, Pili Pili sur un croissant au beurre, in 2013. Small Country is his first novel. A bestseller in France, it has been awarded numerous literary prizes, among them the Prix Goncourt des Lycéens, and is being published in thirty countries worldwide. He lives in Paris.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jim on March 08, 2021

Small Country by Gael Faye I think in this review I’ll focus on the background to the story, rather than the story itself. The small country is Burundi in central Africa near Lake Victoria. It is a small country - about the size of Massachusetts. And the story is really about two small countries, cou......more

Goodreads review by Kylie on July 21, 2019

Small Country is the powerful coming of age tale of Gaby, a young mixed-race boy growing up in Burundi. He lives an idyllic lifestyle with his French father, Rwandan mother and his sister. Gaby is a typical ten year old, likes cycling, watching movies and swimming in the river with his friends. Howe......more

Goodreads review by Ellinor on September 16, 2019

I‘ve seldom read a book that touched and moved me as much as Small Country. Told from the perspective of a young boy, it brings to life a bit of African history which is so terrible it once made international front page news but now seems quite forgotten: the genocide of the Tutsi in Burundi and Rwa......more

Goodreads review by Aviones de papel on March 28, 2018

Bufff, no me quedan lágrimas, me ha roto el alma, es un libro durísimo pero necesario, porque es de esos que les da voz a la guerra, a la muerte y a la injusticia, a todos aquellos que no son más que una cifra en el noticiario. Es poético y desgarrador, es algo muy especial que nadie debería perders......more

Goodreads review by enzoreads on December 08, 2024

bon recommandez moi un livre qui va pas me donner envie de me flinguer svp C’était parfait Gaël Faye tu es un génie......more

Quotes

*Time Magazine Best Summer Books 2018*

“Unforgettable… Gaël Faye’s talent is breathtaking; no country that can give the world a writer like him should be ever be called small.” –Imbolo Mbue, author of Behold the Dreamers
 
“An evocative portrait of what it means to lose one’s freedom and innocence… He is a writer of great promise and grace.” –Chigozie Obioma, author of The Fishermen

"Luminous... This is a book that demanded to be written, not only to mark the lives lost in Burundi and Rwanda, but also to show the way in which violence can take hold of a nation. With a light touch, Faye dramatises the terrible nostalgia of having lost not only a childhood but also a whole world to war." —Nadifa Mohamed, Guardian (UK)

“Personal and intimate… Gaël Faye has evoked the darkest pages of contemporary Africa without tipping into pathos.” –Alain Mabanckou, author of Broken Glass

“Faye [writes] with a rare and subtle yearning..." –New York Times

"A stirring and graceful tale of stolen innocence and fragmented identity. Hopeful, raw and deeply human, it is a modern classic in the making." –France Today

"Precise and potent…deeply affecting… a heartrending portrait of the end of childhood.”  –Publishers Weekly

"Vividly translated by Ardizzone, this powerful tale, a best-seller overseas, presents a world where there are no easy demarcations of good and evil, sane and insane, or pure and corrupted, as Faye focuses not on offering judgement but rather on capturing the full impact of social and political disintegration." –Booklist, Starred Review

“The death of innocence seen through the eyes of Gabriel, our beguiling 11-year-old narrator, is at the heart of this gorgeous first novel… Faye eloquently speaks to the untenable choices, among love of country, family, or survival, that victims in conflict zones are forced to make." –Library Journal

"A powerful testament to the rapidity with which life as you know it can change forever.” –Nylon

"Miraculous…Small Country packs multiple experiences into a small space.’ –BookPage

“Gaël Faye is a revelation. Small Country is a luminous and poignant novel about childhood, war, exile and identity… this is literature at its most powerful.” –Le Parisien Magazine
    
“This beautiful coming-of-age novel expresses a harrowing yearning for kindness and harmony. The result is a vision of the world – not political, but poetic – that attempts a balancing act between both horror and wonder." –Le Figaro

"In the summer months, there are two categories of books: those we take on holiday and leave behind in the sand, and those that make their mark on us for life. Small Country by Gaël Faye is firmly part of the latter category" –Le Matin Dimanche

“A literary force to be reckoned with.” –Le Point

"Excellent" –Sunday Times (UK)

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