num_pages: 192
description: The Dark Child is a distinct and graceful memoir of Camara Laye's youth in the village of Koroussa, French Guinea. Long regarded Africa's preeminent Francophone novelist, Laye (1928-80) herein marvels over his mother's supernatural powers, his father's distinction as the village goldsmith, and his own passage into manhood, which is marked by animistic beliefs and bloody rituals of primeval origin. Eventually, he must choose between this unique place and the academic success that lures him to distant cities. More than autobiography of one boy, this is the universal story of sacred traditions struggling against the encroachment of a modern world. A passionate and deeply affecting record, The Dark Child is a classic of African literature.
language: English
title: The Dark Child
titlecomplete: The Dark Child
characters: Kouyaté, Laye, Fanta
genres: Classics, Autobiography, France, African Literature, Africa, School, Biography, Memoir, Nonfiction, Guinea
ratings_count: 2171
awards: name: Prix Charles Veillon
publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux