A Moonless, Starless Sky
Ordinary Women and Men Fighting Extremism in Africa
by Alexis Okeowo
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Pub Date Oct 03 2017 | Archive Date Nov 03 2017
Description
"A rich and urgently necessary book" (New York Times Book Review), A Moonless, Starless Sky is a masterful, humane work of journalism by Alexis Okeowo--a vivid narrative of Africans who are courageously resisting their continent's wave of fundamentalism.
In A Moonless, Starless Sky Okeowo weaves together four narratives that form a powerful tapestry of modern Africa: a young couple, kidnap victims of Joseph Kony's LRA; a Mauritanian waging a lonely campaign against modern-day slavery; a women's basketball team flourishing amid war-torn Somalia; and a vigilante who takes up arms against the extremist group Boko Haram. This debut book by one of America's most acclaimed young journalists illuminates the inner lives of ordinary people doing the extraordinary--lives that are too often hidden, underreported, or ignored by the rest of the world.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9780316382939 |
| PRICE | $26.00 (USD) |
| PAGES | 256 |
Featured Reviews
Karen L, Reviewer
Full Review TK.
Author Alexis Okeowo has lived in Africa as a journalist and this book goes in depth in four regions: Uganda, Mauritania, Somalia, and Nigeria. Okeowo lived for several years in Lagos as a "repat" (someone who returns to the mother country that their parents left behind). This unique vantage point - and being black - powers her unique access to previously un-reported or under-reported stories. A MOONLESS, STARLESS SKY offers fascinating profiles of ordinary people rising to heroic actions in the face of horrific situations.
Communities in Uganda struggle to overcome the legacy of an insurgency led by the LRA’s abducted child soldiers. A movement to abolish slavery in Mauritania gains momentum thanks to the dedication of one activist. Young athlete Aisha just wants to play basketball in Somalia, where the al-Shabaab militants demand that women stay home and stay covered. In northern Nigeria, citizens take the law into their own hands to resist and to push back against ruthless Boko Haram militants.
Okeowo is fearless in her pursuit of true and complex moments. This book represents her quest to illuminate injustice, and more essentially, to inspire hope for the future in these desperate times. She is a gifted, powerful storyteller, bringing light to incredibly complicated lives.
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