Red Earth / Laterite - Softcover

Tadjo, Veronique

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1597660094 ISBN 13: 9781597660099

Publisher: University of Washington Press, 2006

Synopsis

Cast in a language at once as stark and as pregnant with possibility as the West African landscape itself, this prizewinning collection of poems by acclaimed African writer and artist Veronique Tadjo cuts to the heart of the modern African experience. The term laterite refers to the red, iron-rich earth characteristic of many West African villages and roads. Suggestive of movement-of the age-old displacement of African peoples, of shifting directions and an uncertain future-it is at the same time emblematic of connectedness, of the visceral bond between people and the land that sustains them. These themes echo throughout Red Earth / Laterite as the poems slowly intertwine, recapitulating one another to form an extended recitative, a lyrical narrative of love and outrage and loss. Together, they constitute a vivid statement about the African experience from on of the continent's most powerful and spellbinding voices.

About this title

Synopsis

This dual-language collection of poems by a leading African writer is illustrated with her evocative paintings. First published in 1984 by Hatier, Laterite [Red Earth],Veronique Tadjo's first book of poems, won the Prix Litteraire de L'Agence de Cooperation Culturelle et Technique. The title comes from the red mineral composition of many West African roads and is suggestive of change, the uncertain future, and the continuing displacement of peoples and cultures. She refers to it as a "collection of poems," but it reads like a long recitative, the pieces recapitulating each other in a language often striking in its colour and elemental boldness. Red Earth is an important book from one of the Third World's strongest and clearest voices.

About the Author

Born in Paris and raised in Ivory Coast, VERONIQUE TADJO is the author of numerous works of fiction and poetry and of The Shadow of Imana (2000), a series of reflections on the genocide in Rwanda. In 2005, she was honored with the prestigious Grand Prix Litteraire d'Afrique Noire, awarded each year by the Association des Ecrivains de Langues Francaises to an author from French-speaking Africa for the body of his or her work. She is currently based in Johannesburg. Translator PETER S. THOMPSON teaches Romance languages and literatures at Roger Williams University. The author of numerous publications, he has contributed extensively to the study of creolity and francophone writing worldwide.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Washington Press
• Publication date: 2006
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1597660094
• ISBN 13: 9781597660099
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 216