Algerian White Book

In Algerian White, Assia Djebar uses the deaths of three friends ? a sociologist, a psychiatrist, and a playwright ? as a springboard for a meditation on the history of modern Algeria. She provides an insider?s view of the horrors of civil war and the intricate political and social issues that have at times threatened to overwhelm this multilayered society. Living in exile in France and the United States, Djebar feels remorse for having left her native country, and this sensibility accounts for much of the book?s poetry and power. Algerian White opens with Djebar?s memories of the deaths of her friends. Next, she describes their last moments. In part three, she interweaves important historical events with the processions of her friends? burials. Finally, she examines the writer?s role in a land where freedom of speech has been overruled. ?A hymn to friendship and the enduring power of language.? ? The New York TimesRead More