The Memory of Love
About the book
Stories of love and betrayal reveal the long aftermath of Sierra Leone's civil war.
Africa · A READING GUIDE
Sierra Leone
The Memory of Love explores memory and war’s aftermath, while Ancestor Stones widens the perspective with four women’s family stories. A Long Way Gone is Beah’s autobiographical testimony and also has a Polish edition. Little Family offers a separate fictional story of young people seeking community. Syl Cheney-Coker’s Sacred River opens a route into expansive, myth-infused fiction.
WHERE TO START
- The Memory of LoveAminatta Forna
- A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy SoldierIshmael Beah
- Sacred RiverSyl Cheney-Coker
Books to begin with
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Ancestor Stones
About the book
Four aunts recount family history and a West African country’s transformations across the twentieth century.
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
About the book
Beah’s memoir describes his experience as a child soldier and his journey from war to rehabilitation.
EnglishOriginal
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
Sarah Crichton Books / Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Edition source ↗
Little Family
About the book
Five young people create their own family as they seek security on society’s margins.
Sacred River
About the book
A novel brings a fictional West African country together with myth and the history of several generations.
Happiness
About the book
A chance London encounter connects urban wildlife with migration and trauma.
The Hired Man
About the book
A house renovation in Croatia uncovers wartime memories and unspoken conflicts.
Context and sources
Sources on authors and their connections to this country. Specific edition details appear beside each book. Polish and English originals are not labelled as translations.
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