Abani, Chris Song for Night: A Novella ISBN 13: 9781933354316

Song for Night: A Novella - Softcover

9781933354316: Song for Night: A Novella
View all copies of this ISBN edition:
 
 
"Not since Jerzy Kosinski’s The Painted Bird or Agota Kristof’s Notebook Trilogy has there been such a harrowing novel about what it’s like to be a young person in a war. That Chris Abani is able to find humanity, mercy, and even, yes, forgiveness, amid such devastation is something of a miracle.” Rebecca Brown, author of The End of Youth

"The moment you enter these pages, you step into a beautiful and terrifying dream. You are in the hands of a master, a literary shaman. Abani casts his spell so completely so devastatingly you emerge cleansed, redeemed, and utterly haunted." Brad Kessler, author of Birds in Fall

Part Inferno, part Paradise Lost, and part Sunjiata epic, Song for Night is the story of a West African boy soldier’s lyrical, terrifying, yet beautiful journey through the nightmare landscape of a brutal war in search of his lost platoon. The reader is led by the voiceless protagonist who, as part of a land mine-clearing platoon, had his vocal chords cut, a move to keep these children from screaming when blown up, and thereby distracting the other minesweepers. The book is written in a ghostly voice, with each chapter headed by a line of the unique sign language these children invented. This book is unlike anything else ever written about an African war.

Chris Abani is a Nigerian poet and novelist and the author of The Virgin of Flames, Becoming Abigail (a New York Times Editor’s Choice), and GraceLand (a selection of the Today Show Book Club and winner of the 2005 PEN/Hemingway Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award). His other prizes include a PEN Freedom to Write Award, a Prince Claus Award, and a Lannan Literary Fellowship. He lives and teaches in California.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author:
Chris Abani, curator of Akashic's Black Goat poetry imprint, is a Nigerian poet and novelist and the author of Song for Night, The Virgin of Flames, Becoming Abigail, and GraceLand (a selection of the Today Show Book Club; winner of the 2005 PEN/Hemingway Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award).
From Publishers Weekly:
Starred Review. In his latest novella, Abani renders the inner voice of mute 15-year-old My Luck, the boy leader of a platoon of mine sweepers in an unnamed war-torn African country. When he was 12, the then volunteer rebel had his vocal cords severed (the rest of his team received the same treatment), so that we wouldn't scare each other with our death screams. At the opening of the novella, My Luck awakens after an explosion to find that he has been separated from his unit. During his journey to find his platoon, he reflects on the events of his violent life. Abani is unafraid to evoke My Luck's dark side, and though My Luck's experience with killing is a singular joy that is perhaps rivaled only by an orgasm, his stock-taking also touches on guilt at witnessing his mother's murder, ambivalence about his imam father and tenderness for Ijeoma, a girl in his platoon killed by a mine. Initially, the present-tense narration is at odds with My Luck's inclination toward memory and reflection, but the story becomes more immersive and dreamlike (and, strangely, lucid) over the course of My Luck's quest. Abani finds in his narrator a seed of hope amid the bleak, nihilistic terrain. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

  • PublisherAkashic Books, Ltd.
  • Publication date2007
  • ISBN 10 1933354313
  • ISBN 13 9781933354316
  • BindingPaperback
  • Number of pages164
  • Rating

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9781846592041: A Song for Night

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  ISBN 13:  9781846592041
Publisher: Telegram Books
Softcover

  • 9781846590573: Song for Night

    Penguin, 1600
    Softcover

  • 9781921372094: Song for Night

    Softcover

Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace

Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
Your Online Bookstore
(Houston, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description paperback. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 1933354313-11-31665740

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 19.85
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
GoldenWavesOfBooks
(Fayetteville, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. New. Fast Shipping and good customer service. Seller Inventory # Holz_New_1933354313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 23.21
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.00
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Softcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Books Unplugged
(Amherst, NY, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. Buy with confidence! Book is in new, never-used condition. Seller Inventory # bk1933354313xvz189zvxnew

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 31.22
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
GoldBooks
(Austin, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. New Copy. Customer Service Guaranteed. Seller Inventory # think1933354313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 26.98
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.25
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Softcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Front Cover Books
(Denver, CO, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: new. Seller Inventory # FrontCover1933354313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 28.88
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.30
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Softcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Hafa Adai Books
(Moncks Corner, SC, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: new. Seller Inventory # Hafa_fresh_1933354313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 46.73
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 3.95
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
Wizard Books
(Long Beach, CA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. New. Seller Inventory # Wizard1933354313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 55.98
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 3.50
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Abani, Chris
Published by Akashic Books, Ltd. (2007)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Softcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
BennettBooksLtd
(LOS ANGELES, CA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. New. In shrink wrap. Looks like an interesting title! 0.4. Seller Inventory # Q-1933354313

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 58.00
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 4.13
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Chris Abani
Published by Akashic Books,U.S., New York (2008)
ISBN 10: 1933354313 ISBN 13: 9781933354316
New Paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
CitiRetail
(Stevenage, United Kingdom)

Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. "Not since Jerzy Kosinskis The Painted Bird or Agota Kristofs Notebook Trilogy has there been such a harrowing novel about what its like to be a young person in a war. That Chris Abani is able to find humanity, mercy, and even, yes, forgiveness, amid such devastation is something of a miracle.Rebecca Brown, author of The End of Youth"The moment you enter these pages, you step into a beautiful and terrifying dream. You are in the hands of a master, a literary shaman. Abani casts his spell so completelyso devastatinglyyou emerge cleansed, redeemed, and utterly haunted."Brad Kessler, author of Birds in FallPart Inferno, part Paradise Lost, and part Sunjiata epic, Song for Night is the story of a West African boy soldiers lyrical, terrifying, yet beautiful journey through the nightmare landscape of a brutal war in search of his lost platoon. The reader is led by the voiceless protagonist who, as part of a land mine-clearing platoon, had his vocal chords cut, a move to keep these children from screaming when blown up, and thereby distracting the other minesweepers. The book is written in a ghostly voice, with each chapter headed by a line of the unique sign language these children invented. This book is unlike anything else ever written about an African war.Chris Abani is a Nigerian poet and novelist and the author of The Virgin of Flames, Becoming Abigail (a New York Times Editors Choice), and GraceLand (a selection of the Today Show Book Club and winner of the 2005 PEN/Hemingway Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award). His other prizes include a PEN Freedom to Write Award, a Prince Claus Award, and a Lannan Literary Fellowship. He lives and teaches in California. Abani's new novella furthers his tremendous success in becoming today's most acclaimed young African Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781933354316

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 24.02
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 46.68
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds