The African Prince, the Translator, and the Nazi

A fast-moving historical thriller set in Paris during World War II when the city was under German control. It involves an African prince, his translator, and their dealings with the Nazi occupiers, particularly one Gestapo officer. There are several other characters, all marginalized by nationality, colour or ethnicity, all with precarious lives under the Nazis and the French authorities.

Leclair provides a unique perspective by featuring main characters who are Black, surviving, and even prospering, through their resources and using their wits, in a city controlled by an ideologically racist occupying army. They are advantaged by rivalries and conflicts among the French and German authorities, in particular by the greed and sexual proclivities of the Gestapo officer.

The book includes a lot of historical details about life in Paris at the time. There are descriptions of the streets, hotels and cafés of the period, as well as the clothes and vehicles, which add to the flavour of life in those times.

Didier Leclair is a three-time finalist for the Prix Trillium and the recipient of both the Trillium and the Christine Dumitriu van Saanen book prizes. His second novel, Ce pays qui est le mien, was shortlisted for the 2004 Governor General's Award for French-language fiction. Its English translation, This Country of Mine (2018) was a finalist for the Toronto Book Awards. Didier Leclair was born in Montreal to Rwandan parents. He grew up in different African countries--Gabon, Benin, Togo, The Republic of Congo--and returned to Canada in the late 1980s. Since that time, he has been living and writing in Toronto.