Guban

A volcanic mountain range in the northeastern part of Somalia, Guban is also a name given to the surrounding habitat by Somali nomads. Literally translating to "burnt" in English, Abdi Latif Ega uses it as a metaphor for the entire nation and its people. In the world of Guban there is a parade of human characters wielding and being wielded by their societal circumstances and individual proclivities. Set against the backdrop of East Africa, the novel explores the clash of modernity, urban civilization and the traditional, more egalitarian life of pastorialists, that still populate the region. A truly kaleidoscopic tale of the Somali revolution, the novel deftly interlocks stories of all strata of society-interlopers, interlocutors, diplomats, camel herders, revolutionaries, military personnel, and clan leaders, to name but a few. Documenting both the brutality of the national dictatorship and the international pressures of this cold war driven world. Guban brings together the immediacy of journalistic reportage with the imaginative expansiveness of the novel.