Child Witch Kinshasa: Volume 1 - Softcover

Mike Ormsby

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1479285129 ISBN 13: 9781479285129

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2013

Synopsis

"If you liked The Poisonwood Bible, then Child Witch Kinshasa is for you." (Mail & Guardian, Johannesburg) Child Witch Kinshasa is an epic tale of travel, love and loss, set in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and England. This colorful tragicomedy unfolds through the eyes of Dudu - a young Congolese boy, Frank - a British journalist, and his wife Ruth - a mother of two, with a full-time job in London. Their lives entwine, and cultures clash, after chance encounters that reverberate from Kinshasa to Kingston-upon-Thames. The story begins when an evangelical pastor visits Dudu's remote village and accuses him of being a 'child witch' with mysterious and dangerous powers. Dudu flees his village to stay with relatives and avoid divine retribution, but his plan goes wrong and he finds himself alone and homeless. To survive, he teams up with Kilanda, a former child soldier, whose reckless sense of adventure spins them - Huck Finn style - across the vast country by road, rail, and river. Meanwhile, British journalist Frank is travelling around DR Congo, training local reporters in a western-funded project. It's a tough job, especially as his efforts are undermined by propaganda from government and rebels locked in civil war. Eventually, Frank wonders whether he can actually do any good in the DRC. The answer comes when he helps to rescue two boys from a beating in Kinshasa. Frank offers to re-home the youngest - Dudu - but this savvy street kid has learned the hard way not to trust adults, especially foreigners. Just as Frank is about to give up and go home to England, his wife Ruth has an irresistible idea that changes everything, for everybody. The story continues in Child Witch London.

About this title

Product Description:

It’s spring 2002 and Frank Kean is training journalists in troubled Congo. When he learns that religious zealots are torturing and murdering so-called child witches, his reporter's instincts kick in. Why so little news coverage of these 'exorcisms'? He is determined to break the silence. In a remote village, Pastor Precious arrives to battle Satan. Twelve-year-old Dudu faces a torrent of accusations and is forced to flee, far from home. He swears he is not a witch, but evidence suggests otherwise. When Frank meets Dudu in Kinshasa, he sees an opportunity to help the vulnerable and wary street kid, even if it means crossing the line and making promises he may be unable to keep. Can they trust each other in a crisis? 'Child Witch Kinshasa' is the first part of a two-volume novel, where superstition and fear play out against a bloody and relentless civil war. It highlights the devastating effects, on families, of Africa's Great War, 1998-2003. The story continues in 'Child Witch London', to be published in March 2014.

Review:

"If you liked The Poisonwood Bible, then Child Witch is for you." - Mail & Guardian, Johannesburg
"The exotic sounds, smells and sights of the Congo bring Child Witch vividly to life. It's a compelling, often exciting, story built around strong characters in a world that makes readers question their own beliefs and motives." - Liverpool Echo

"Gives profound insights into three very different ways of life: the incomprehensible bureaucracy of international charity work; the difficulty of bringing up kids in the UK; and the life of a street kid in one of Africa's most screwed up nations. This tricky issue is handled deftly. The novel is peppered with Mike Ormsby's cynical scouse humour and never gets boring." - Huffington Post

"Child Witch Kinshasa is about so-called child witches in Congo - as seen mainly by Frank Kean, a journalist who lands in a strange place and tries to discover its "secrets", to understand a completely different world. As I was reading this, absorbed, the second part of his novel was published - Child Witch London. The novel is a very interesting read, so I wanted more. " - Bookaholic.ro

"Excellent. Excellent. Follow Dudu, a Congolese boy accused of sorcery, who flees his village and is befriended by a former child soldier, on an adventure he could never have imagined. They cross paths with British journalist Frank, who is wondering how to make a difference in DRC. Frank saves the boys from a beating and sees his chance. I loved this funny, adventurous, and heartwarming book. Ormsby writes with humor, sensitivity and empathy, from personal experience. For any reader craving good fiction, more than simple entertainment. Highly recommended." - Tracy A. Fischer, Readers' Favorite

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1479285129
• ISBN 13: 9781479285129
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 506