So long a letter

Description

This novel is in the form of a letter, written by the widowed Ramatoulaye and describing her struggle for survival. A beautiful glimpse inside a woman's heart.

Description

Written by award-winning African novelist Mariama Ba and translated from the original French, So Long a Letter has been recognized as one of Africa's 100 Best Books of the 20th Century. The brief narrative, written as an extended letter, is a sequence of reminiscences-some wistful, some bitter-recounted by recently widowed Senegalese school teacher Ramatoulaye Fall. Addressed to a lifelong friend, Aissatou, it is a record of Ramatoulaye's emotional struggle for survival after her husband betrayed their marriage by taking a second wife. This semi-autobiographical account is a perceptive testimony to the plight of educated and articulate Muslim women. Angered by the traditions that allow polygyny, they inhabit a social milieu dominated by attitudes and values that deny them status equal to men. Ramatoulaye hopes for a world where the best of old customs and new freedom can be combined. Considered a classic of contemporary African women's literature, So Long a Letter is a must-read for anyone interested in African literature and the passage from colonialism to modernism in a Muslim country.

Subjects

Other Editions

• So long a letterWaveland Press, Inc.2012-01-01
• So long a letterHeinemann1981-01-01
• So long a letterVirago1982-01-01
• So long a letterVirago Press1982-01-01
• Ein so langer BriefUllstein HC Verlag1984-01-01
• Une Si Longue LettrePaperbackDistribooks Inc1986-06-01