Harmattan

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Harmattan from an Arabic word meaning destructive wind tells the story of Haoua, a young girl growing up in a remote village in the Republic of Niger Spirited independent and intelligent, Haoua has benefitted from a stable home life and a loving and attentive mother She enjoys working and playing with her siblings and friends Haoua worships her elder brother, Abdelkrim, a serving soldier who sends money home to support the family But, on his last home visit, Abdelkrim quarrels with their father accusing him of gambling away the money he sends and being the cause of their mother s worsening health It also emerges that their father plans to take a second wife Despite this Haoua finds contentment in her schoolwork, her dreams of becoming a teacher and in writing assiduously to the family in Ireland who act as her aid sponsors But for Haoua, there are new storm clouds on the horizon As civil strife mounts in Niger, Haoua begins to fear for Abdelkrim s safety Haoua s mother s illness is much serious and further advanced than anyone had recognised and her father s plans are turning out to be far threatening than she could have ever imagined Approaching her twelfth birthday, Haoua is alone and vulnerable for the very first time in her life. New Download [ Harmattan ] By [ Gavin Weston ] – kino-fada.fr An Irish male writer narrates in the first person the life of Haoua a 11 12 year old girl in a Niger village The backdrop is the 1990s a time Niger s government undergoes many changes with corruption, coups and assassinations.The early part of the book deals with the hard life of a villager especially the women , the total domination of her father, Haoua s determination to do well at school and the good work being done by the local aid worker The father is fundamentally lazy and spends what An Irish male writer narrates in the first person the life of Haoua a 11 12 year old girl in a Niger village The backdrop is the 1990s a time Niger s government undergoes many changes with corruption, coups and assassinations.The early part of the book deals with the hard life of a villager especially the women , the total domination of her father, Haoua s determination to do well at school and the good work being done by the local aid worker The father is fundamentally lazy and spends what little money they ha...The first half of this book was a pleasant and easy read Niger girlhood holding much description and cultural, tribal, life task information Haoua tells us about her daily habits, her pen pals, her contacts within school and primarily of her family and Sushie, a support helper towards her further lessons.But the second half quickly became difficult to read after her Mother s illness drives her into a distant village s hospital Her brothers, her sister no friend can eventually and quite The first half of this book was a pleasant and easy read Niger girlhood holding much description and cultural, tribal, life task information Haoua tells us about her daily habits, her pen pals, her contacts within school and primarily of her family and Sushie, a support helper towards her further lessons.But the second half quickly became difficult to read after her Mother s illness drives her into a distant village s hospital Her brothers, her sister no friend can eventually and quite quickly prevent her life taking a huge change just days after her 12th birthday.It s an extremely sorrowful book No reveal here, but there is no joy remaining by the end And the abrupt ending gave an increased sense of hopelessness, quite beyond a point of that lack It s 3.5 star but I ca...This novel gave gave me my 100th country on my Round the World trip I wanted an unusual country for the milestone and this was just the ticket Set in Niger, it s about the struggles of a 12 yo girl living in a happy family at the outset, but in a male dominated society and with the storm clouds of personal upheaval and civil strife gathering She is aid sponsored by a family with 12 yo twin girls in Northern Ireland and the girls exchange letters about themselves This is a great device for This novel gave gave me my 100th country on my Round the World trip I wanted an unusual country for the milestone and this was just the ticket Set in Niger, it s about the struggles of a 12 yo girl living in a happy family at the outset, but in a male dominated society and with the storm clouds of pers...This is the story of Haoua a 12 year old girl She lives with her parents and siblings in a remote village in Niger Her mother soons takes ill and has to be taken away to a hospital for treatment Haoua s brother and neighbors inform her that their mother is HIV positive and the outcome is going to be grave In the meantime, Haoua s father decides he wants to take a second wife The second wife is terrible to Haoua and her siblings treating themlike servants than children Haoua s This is the story of Haoua a 12 year old girl She lives with her parents and siblings in a remote village in Niger Her mother soons takes ill and has to be taken away to a hospital for treatment Haoua s brother and neighbors inform her that their mother is HIV positive and the outcome is going to be grave In the meantime, Haoua s father decides he wants to take a second wife The second wife is terrible to Haoua and her siblings treating themlike servants than children Haoua s father is gonethan he is at home Haoua wants desparately to find her mother and visit her before she dies, so she enlists the help of one of her father s friends to get to her brother and then get to the hospital to see her mother The travel to and from is treacherous, and whe...Heart wrenching trueI was drawn to this book by the cover The image of a man with a headwrap crouching in the foreground, looking at a scene of camels and what appears to be a young woman standing under a leafless tree against a backdrop of searing orange and yellow light in the desert Harmattan is a heartbreaking story It is the story of Haoua Boureima a young girl growing up in the village of Wadata in Niger In many ways it is ...The title,Harmattanrefers to a dusty wind that blows in from the Sahara Gavin Weston defines the term in a frontispiece by saying Probably from the Arabic haram, a forbidden or accursed thing The novel, a miraculous creation, deals with a life that seems accursed I couldn t get the taste of grit out of my mouth and nose when reading this book.There are many things miraculous about Gavin Weston s creation It is set in an African nation that only makes its way onto travel itineraries The title,Harmattanrefers to a dusty wind that blows in from the Sahara Gavin Weston defines the term in a frontispiece by saying Probably from the Arabic haram, a forbidden or accursed thing The novel, a miraculous creation, deals with a life that seems accursed I couldn t get the taste of grit out of my mouth and nose when reading this book.There are many things miraculous about Gavin Weston s creation It is set in an African nation that only makes its way onto travel itineraries of the most adventurous foreigners, and yet Weston, a visual artist, helps the reader clearly see Niger and its life The hottest country in Africa, straddling the Sahara and spreading along the great Niger river, it is one...Harmattan the wind of change blows south, clouding the pathway through life of Haoua Intelligent and optimistic, Haoua s story of her life in a village in Niger is related in her own words, posited with, and punctuated by, letters and gifts from her sponsors, a Northern Irish family The knock on effect of sponsorships organised by international aid agencies not only provides basic comforts and education for the sponsored child the family benefits also Howev...I no longer believe my father , February 29, 2016 This review is from Harmattan Kindle Edition This Niger based novel opens with Haoua, an abused 12 year old third wife looking back on her earlier life.And as the narrative begins, five years earlier, it would seem that Haoua s prospects are good as a sponsored child through a charity programme Letters between her and her Irish family form part of the novel yet these cheerful little epistles show their writers have little grasp of the I no longer believe my father , February 29, 2016 This review is from Harmattan Kindle Edition This Niger based novel opens with Haoua, an abused 12 year old third wife looking back on her earlier life.And as the narrative begins, five years earlier, it would seem that Haoua s prospects are good as a sponsored child through a charity programme Letters between her and her Irish family form part of the novel yet these cheerful little epistles show their writers have little grasp of the recipient s life And Haoua s hopes for an education and a career are not to be so easily attainedI enjoyed this novel but felt that the text sometimes felt as if the author was determined to incorporate every aspect of Niger for the reader s edification fauna, funerals, AIDS, a look at the capital, the desert, the military, the political situation, weddings, funerals There was also a road trip that I think would have benefitted f...This was a novel that practically jumped off the shelves at me in the library, shouting read me, read me I love fiction with a strong sense of place, and books that tackle serious issues in the world today And the little line on the front stating it was from the publishers of The Garden of Evening Mists simply clinched the deal for me Harmattan is the story of a brave young girl, Haoua, growing up in the ...

Harmattan
  • English
  • 12 October 2017
  • Paperback
  • 512 pages
  • 1905802579
  • Gavin Weston
  • Harmattan