The JRB is proud to present an exclusive excerpt from the graphic novel An Eternity in Tangiers, by Ivorian illustrator Faustin Titi and Cameroonian journalist Eyoum Nganguè.
The book has been translated from the French (Une éternité à Tanger) by André Naffis-Sahely, for Phoneme Media.
An Eternity in Tangiers
Faustin Titi and Eyoum Nganguè, translated from the French by André Naffis-Sahelyd
Phoneme Media, 2017
In An Eternity in Tangiers, a brave teenager, Gawa, leaves his home, his family and his fiancée in search of a better life in Europe.
Although migration is a common theme in African literature, An Eternity in Tangiers artfully humanises a current crisis that both African and European countries have failed to address sufficiently. The graphic novel stands out in conveying the mental and physical limbo of migrants: the soft melancholy wash of longing is acutely conveyed in watercolor ink.
Gawa sounds older than his years and has the detached tone of someone perpetually disappointed. He relates his rough cross-country journey towards his final destination, Spain, which he gazes at across the Strait of Gibraltar. Juxtaposed spreads of colour and black-and-white illustrate the vivid dangers of going forward and the quiet, suffocating horror of remaining in purgatory.
Read an excerpt (7 pages):
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Editor’s note: This excerpt comes from a collaboration between Phoneme Media, which publishes ‘Curious Books for Curious People’, and The JRB. The award-winning non-profit is shaking things up in fiction by publishing high-quality literature, supporting writers’ and artists’ work in translation, and promoting cross-cultural understanding. More to come!
