Petit Piment

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A rollicking new novel described as Oliver Twist in 1970s Africa Les Inrockuptibles by the finalist for the Man International Booker PrizeIt s not easy being Tokumisa Nzambe po Mose yamoyindo abotami namboka ya Bakoko There s that long name of his for a start, which means, Let us thank God, the black Moses is born on the lands of the ancestors Most people just call him Moses Then there s the orphanage where he lives, run by a malicious political stooge, Dieudonn Ngoulmoumako, and where he s terrorized by two fellow orphans the twins Songi Songi and Tala Tala.But after Moses exacts revenge on the twins by lacing their food with hot pepper, the twins take Moses under their wing, escape the orphanage, and move to the bustling port town of Pointe Noire, where they form a gang that survives on petty theft What follows is a funny, moving, larger than life tale that chronicles Moses s ultimately tragic journey through the Pointe Noire underworld and the politically repressive world of Congo Brazzaville in the 1970s and 80s.Mabanckou s vivid portrayal of Moses s mental collapse echoes the work of Hugo, Dickens, and Brian DePalma s Scarface, confirming Mabanckou s status as one of our great storytellers Black Moses is a vital new extension of his cycle of Pointe Noire novels that stand out as one of the grandest, funniest, fictional projects of our time. Best Read Petit Piment author Alain Mabanckou For Kindle ePUB or eBook – kino-fada.fr 3.5 stars I m really curious to know the reason behind the choice of the title for the English version that will be released on June 6th Indeed I m pretty sure there s a wink somewhere for us to see from the French Petit Piment literally, little hot pepper , which is the main character nickname after some hmm hot pepper affair, lol to the English Black Moses which is the name given by a priest to the MC , we seem to embrace all the different parts of our dear boy, 3.5 stars I m really curious to know the reason behind the choice of the title for the English version that will be released on June 6th Indeed I m pretty sure there s a wink somewhere for us to see from the French Petit Piment literally, little hot pepper , which is the main character nickname after some hmm hot pepper affair, lol to the English Black Moses which is the name given by a priest to the MC , we seem to embrace all the different parts of our dear boy, contradictions and all.Petit Piment relates the life of Mo se, a young Congolese, from his childhood in an orphanage to his adventures in Pointe Noire, Congo s capital We follow him during the time when religion becomes forbidden due to the rise of Socialism, and see how his life is impacted by these changes I very much enjoyed how refreshing Petit Piment was Indeed whilst some readers were disappointed that Alain Mabanckou seemed to... It all began when I was a teenager, and came to wonder about the name I d been given by Papa Moupelo, the priest at the orphanage in Loango Tokumisa Nzambe po Mose yamoyindo abotami namboka ya Bakoko A long name, which in Lingala means Thanks be to God, the black Moses is born on the earth of our ancestors as it still inscribed on my birth certificate today Book 11 of 13 for me from the 2017 Man Booker International longlist.Alain Mabanckou was a finalist in the previous author rather It all began when I was a teenager, and came to wonder about the name I d been given by Papa Moupelo, the priest at the orphanage in Loango Tokumisa Nzambe po Mose yamoyindo abotami namboka ya Bakoko A long name, which in Lingala means Thanks be to God, the black Moses is born on the earth of our ancestors as it still inscribed on my birth certificate today Book 11 of 13 for me from the 2017 Man Booker International longlist.Alain Mabanckou was a finalist in the previous author rather than individual book version of the Man Booker International in 2015 Following that I read perhaps his best known novel, his Rabelaisian 2005 book Verre Cass Broken Glass see my review a novel consciously influenced also by the classic The Palm Wine Drinkard My review concluded At face value a rather simple and crude bar room tale, but there is a lot of literary merit going on underneath, not all obviou...3.5I believe that the rating would have been higher if it was the first Mabanckou s book I ve read Black Moses is sparkling with greatest AM s qualities satire, dark humour, political absurdities, ability to address heavy issues with irony and wisdom, refers brilliantly to African folklore, Judaeo Christian tradition, literature All that is great however, after reading Tomorrow I ll be Twenty and, exquisite in my opinion, Broken Glass I wantfrom him than seeing again not only the 3.5I believe that the rating would have been higher if it was the first Mabanckou s book I ve read Black Moses is sparkling with greatest AM s qualities satire, dark humour, political absurdities, ability to address heavy issues with irony and wisdom, refers brilliantly to ...There is something strange about the balance of this book If you read the blurb here on Goodreads, it gives you a break down of the initial plot and then says What follows is This suggests an introduction followed by a longer tale that expands on what follows However, the actual book is in two parts of almost exactly equal length I didn t read that blurb until I reached the end of part one, but I turned to it then because I genuinely felt that I had spent half a book reading the There is something strange about the balance of this book If you read the blurb here on Goodreads, it gives you a brea...Black Moses may not be for everybody If unwieldy character names put you off, for example, you ll be put off right from the start with this one Tokumisa Nzambe po Mose yamoyindo abotami namboka ya Bakoko, or, in shorthand Moses If you re not familiar with the repressive politics of the Congo and feel that you re missing out, you may want to brush up on it first and even then, you won t truly catch every reference.Have I frightened you off yet Hopefully not, because this is a surprisingly Black Moses may not be for everybody If unwieldy character names put you off, for example, you ll be put off right from the start with this one Tokumisa Nzambe po Mose yamoyindo abotami namboka ya Bakoko, or, in shorthand Moses If you re not familiar with the repr...There are many books for which if I was editor, I would have told their author s to give the work another year It is that kind of book Great promise but it loses its way in second half Plus, it should probably have been much bigger2.5 stars Black Moses was yet another of my Man Booker International Prize 2017 Longlist reads, and I can quite understand why this didn t make the shortlist Although it is an enjoyable and easy read for the most part, there were issues I had with it and overall it didn t really leave much of a mark on me.It follows young Moses whose full name is far too long to type , as he tries to get by in the orphanage he s grown up in as it s taken over by an overtly political director, before making his 2.5 stars Black Moses was yet another of my Man Booker International Prize 2017 Longlist reads, and I can quite understand why this didn t make the shortlist Although it is an enjoyabl...Petit piment or Black Moses , as per the English translation, is a novel by famed African writer Alain Mabanckou.The novel follows the life of a young Congolese orphan by the name of Moses who tries, like all of the other characters in the novel incidentally, to find a better life for himself in a corrupt, dangerous and unjust world.Moses childhood years are spent undergoing terrible abuse and deprivation in an orphanage He later runs away to the big city, where things are just as hard, if Petit piment or Black Moses , as per the English translation, is a novel by famed African writer Alain Mabanckou.The novel follows the life of a young Congolese orphan by the name of Moses who tries, like all of the other characters in the novel incidentally, to find a better life for himself in a corrupt, dangerous and unjust world.Moses childhood years are spent undergoing terrible abuse and deprivation in an orphanage He later runs away to the big city, where things are just as hard, if not worse The colorful cast of suppor...A little book that is quite inventive in it s structure and style.The first half is about life in an Congolese orphanage at Loango The narrator is 13 years old and things are changing in the country The teaching moves from the religious to the government slogans of socialism.Moses escapes with two fellow orphans and they reach Pointe Noire where they run a local gang Moses meets a local madam and lives with her for a while before moving into a job on the wharves.He then suffers from some sort A little book that is quite inventive in it s structure and style.The first half is about life in an Congolese orphanage at Loango The narrator is 13 years old and things are changing in the country The teaching moves from the religious to the government slogans of socialism.Moses escapes with two fellow orphans and they reach Pointe Noire where they run a local gang M...Solid book about growing up in a Congolese orphanage First third of the novel concerns Moses and his day to day second third is about Moses after he and the twins escape, and his relationship with the women in brothel mostly maternal the final third of the novel concerns Moses s deteriorating mental health due to malnutrition I wish the book, rather than g...

Petit Piment
  • French
  • 13 September 2017
  • Kindle Edition
  • 288 pages
  • Alain Mabanckou
  • Petit Piment