The King of Kahel
By: Tierno Monénembo ; translated by Nicholas Elliott
Contributors: Elliott, Nicholas
Publisher: AmazonCrossing; Produced by Melcher Media
Published: 2010
Place of publication: Las Vegas, NV; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 289
ISBN-13: 9780982555071
Subjects: Fiction; History
Work titles: Roi de Kahel
Description: The story is loosely inspired by the life of Olivier de Sanderval, who, intent on becoming an explorer for most of his life, finally set sale for Africa in 1879 after turning 40. As Monenembo tells it, once there he recruits a crew of Senegalese infantryment and travels to Fouta Djallon, a land he desperately wants to rule. He learns local customs that will aid him in his quest to govern. During the following years of conquests and re-conquests, Sanderval never loses his taste for European luxury and moves between Africa and France, where he publishes books on his experience and struggles to command Fouta. Eventually, her returns to Fouta with his grown son, Georges, to find war raging between locals and the French army, finally extinguishing his lifelong dream.
Notes: First published in 2008 by Editions du Seuil as Le Roi de Kahel.