Description:
Editorial Reviews
Review
One of 50 best memoirs of the past 50 years — The New York Times
"[Mukasonga’s] haunting, urgent personal history of the Rwandan genocide (translated by Jordan Stump) will deeply shade your map." — New York Times Book Review
"A child’s view of one of history’s most chilling instances of genocide. . . . 'I wasn’t only Tutsi,' [Mukasonga] recalls of the ethnic turmoil that made her a refugee, 'I was an Inyenzi, one of those cockroaches they’d expelled from the livable part of Rwanda, and perhaps from the human race.' Such people, she writes later, were 'fit only to be crushed like cockroaches, with one stomp. But they preferred to watch us die slowly.' . . . A thoughtful, sobering firsthand account of the refugee experience, a story that speaks to readers far beyond the African highlands." -- Kirkus Reviews
"Related with brave, sobering, steely-eyed calm" -- Library Journal (Starred Review)
"Harrowing ... Mukasonga’s powerful and poignant book plants itself in that terrible absence, its stone etched with a difficult, necessary grief." -- Publishers Weekly
"Cockroaches stands out for its bracing, unmitigated, and often bitter ironies." — New York Review of Books
"Scholastique Mukasonga has done something extraordinary with her autobiographical work Cockroaches. In straightforward prose over a mere 165 pages, in a binding approximately the size of a 5x7 family photograph, she harnesses four decades of devastating imagery and emotion emanating from the genocide of the Tutsi people in Rwanda. From the heartrending dedication to the last page, Mukasonga holds the reader's aghast but rapt attention through the hardships endured and resilience shown by her family and their fellow refugees... Cockroaches is a haunting love letter to the lost, beautifully written and imbued with controlled emotion, a story to which we should all bear witness." — Lauren O'Brien of Malcolm Avenue Review, in Shelf Awareness
"Cockroaches is vital precisely because it reconfigures not only a common understanding of the genocide in Rwanda, but privileged assumptions about peace more generally ... When she left Rwanda, Mukasonga understood that her role was “to live in the name of others.” You get the sense that every sentence in Cockroaches bears this weight and is, therefore, a remarkable achievement." — Lara Pawson, Times Literary Supplement
"Heavy, unflinchingly raw, inspiring." — Book Stalker Blog
"We are told that Rwanda is now a peaceful country; the ethnic massacres of the 1990s are all behind them now and all is forgotten and forgiven(?). But even before that ethnic cleansing, before the term was even used, there were post-colonial massacres that singled out Tutsis. Told by one who survived and thrived by some miracle [...] Her memories are bitter and I challenge you to read this without tears and without wondering what is to become of humanity." — Darwin Ellis, Books on the Common
"Beautifully written in the graceful, lilting prose that dominated Our Lady of the Nile." - Eileen Battersby, Irish Times (Best Books of 2016)
"Written with a restraint and simplicity that touches directly...on the heart of life, on the eye of the cyclone. There is a force to these words, something that delves into the most profound depths of things. Scholastique Mukasonga's voice is as if broken away from the night, taut but pure, clear, vibrant, with a tranquil force...Read it." --Farenheit 451
"A kind of memoir also, a real homage to the dead that Mukasonga loved and that she stands vigil over now. This book gives them the dignified burial that they never received." --Marie-Alix Saint-Pau, Africa Vivre
"[Mukasonga] describes with humility the daily inferno that was her family's existence during the years before the massacre in the spring of '94...Sholastique Mukasonga cannot obtain reparations for the horrors she endured, but here she accomplishes a feat of memory and a story of surprising sobriety." --Urobepi, Coups de Coeurs Littéraires (Et Plus)
"The genocide in Rwanda has been depicted in many ways, but few have succeeded ... like
Scholastique Mukasonga in recreating the world that in 1994 was shattered to pieces." — Svenska Dagbladet
"[After she was awarded the Prix Renaudot] I went out and procured every work by
Scholastique Mukasonga.... Never has a prize been more merited." - Frederic Beigbeder, Lire
Praise for Our Lady of the Nile (2014, Archipelago):
• A Publishers Weekly Book of the Year for 2014
• Longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award
• "In part, this is a good-humored yearbook of the adventures and scandals among the all-girl school's precocious teenage charges, where the greatest peril to morality is the arrival of a male teacher with long blond hair. But soon the school, abetted by its hypocritical administrators (including those Belgian civilizers), becomes a petri dish for Hutu militancy, and normal adolescent pranks take on horrifying consequences. The novel's abrupt transition from a naïve coming-of-age story to a violent tragedy is jarring--though surely it doesn't even begin to convey the shock of the reality." - The Wall Street Journal
• "[Mukasonga's] deliciously limpid, melodious style makes Rwandan daily life vividly accessible ... Mukasonga expertly draws together all her threads and stories in climactic sequences to create a skillfully-orchestrated vision, both loving and fearful, of her beloved homeland ripped apart by vicious racial hatred." - Shelf Awareness
• "Our Lady of the Nile swept me up with its artful bitterness [...] [Our Lady of the Nile] is buoyed by its air of foreboding consequence that imparts urgency to almost every page." - Barnes & Noble Review
About the Author
Reviews:
5.0 out of 5 stars Memories of the horrific Past informs the Present
To keep alive the spirits of her dear family Mukasonga has written her exceedingly pain filled journey to survival and then back to her home and vague traces of her family. All 37 destroyed in 1994. She also provided the historical preparations for these bestial deeds beginning in the 1950's and the designation of the Tutsis as COCKROACHES. Important document to remind us of our capacity for evil with the implicit hope that we can learn from the Past.
5.0 out of 5 stars A tiny book but it's a gem
Cockroaches is a remarkable memoir about growing up as an impoverished Tutsi girl in Hutu dominated Rwanda and the author's return visit much later. 37 members of her family had been killed in the genocide of '94. Touching, intimate vignettes. Highly recommend this one!
5.0 out of 5 stars Great writer, excellent book
Excellent book, either for historiographic research, or literary delightment! Scholastique Mukasonga is one of the most delicate and unique voices in contemporary literature. It is indeed a "must be read immediately"
4.0 out of 5 stars Harrowing, troubling
Mukasonga’s harrowing, troubling memoir of her family’s life in Rwanda prior to the 1994 genocide and the death of 37 family members in that genocide serves as a prequel to "The Barefoot Woman." The book is a remarkable mix of disturbing, gruesome accounts of violence and deprivation on the one hand and accounts of what seems like a fairly happy childhood on the other. Nevertheless, an impending sense of doom hangs over the story, as we know – and as Mukasonga hints at – what will happen to her Tutsi family in the end. Mukasonga herself left Rwanda prior to the genocide to study social work in France and so was spared, but the sorry at the loss of her family is still powerful. Her return to the family home after the genocide is painful but a reminder of the duty we have to remember our losses and to carry on in spite of them. The writing is subdued, which only magnifies the horror of the events being described.
5.0 out of 5 stars Heartbreaking.
This book is hard to read. It will bring out anger and tears, but atleast the story of just a few of those murdered will be known.
5.0 out of 5 stars essential read
what a wonderful woman to be able to share the horror of her life, yet make it so matter of fact you do not descend into tears -- we should all read this book and be grateful for the life we have which, in most cases, would be so much more desirable than her experiencesshe does not blame but tells the world of a time of genocide on a massive scale delivered in the most appalling way
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent non-metaphor
Slow start, necessary for the buildup of this dramatic tale. No spoilers here.
5.0 out of 5 stars Hard, good read!
Hard, good read! Such a sad story, but a must read! Must read! Such a great piece of history, but heartbreaking.
A memoir including some extremes of human suffering
A memoir of growing up as a Tutsi in Rwanda when Tutsi were seen as cockroaches by the Hutu, and periodically attacked and constantly victimised before the genocide of 1994. This book covers the author's life as a child (when the family escapes one attack on Tutsi and is exiled to a part of the country not seen as properly part of Rwanda by the Tutsi) and as a young girl (victimised at school but surviving as the family sees education as the best protection for its members), then being spirited across the border to Burundi, together with a brother. We do not follow her life as a social worker outside Rwanda but do experience two very brief returns to Rwanda to visit her family (not really safe for them even once she has become a French citizen following her marriage) then takes us through the genocide in which the author's extended family including her parents and siblings are almost all killed, often following terrible torture and a return visit in 2004, which is probably the prompt for the writing of the memoir.This is a very touching narrative. But potential readers should bear in mind that the subjects covered are at the extreme of human suffering.
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Cockroaches
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Visit the Archipelago Store
Cockroaches
AED11405
Quantity:
Order today to get by 7-14 business days
Delivery fee of AED 20. Free for orders above AED 200.
Imported From: United States
At BOLO, we work hard to ensure the products you receive are new, genuine, and sourced from reputable suppliers.
BOLO is not an authorized or official retailer for most brands, nor are we affiliated with manufacturers unless specifically stated on a product page. Instead, we source verified sellers, authorized distributors or directly from the manufacturer.
Each product undergoes thorough inspection and verification at our consolidation and fulfilment centers to ensure it meets our strict authenticity and quality standards before being shipped and delivered to you.
If you ever have concerns regarding the authenticity of a product purchased from us, please contact Bolo Support. We will review your inquiry promptly and, if necessary, provide documentation verifying authenticity or offer a suitable resolution.
Your trust is our top priority, and we are committed to maintaining transparency and integrity in every transaction.
All product information, images, descriptions, and reviews originate from the manufacturer or from trusted sellers overseas. BOLO is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or an authorized retailer for most brands listed on our website unless stated otherwise.
While we strive to display accurate information, variations in packaging, labeling, instructions, or formulation may occasionally occur due to regional differences or supplier updates. For detailed or manufacturer-specific information, please contact the brand directly or reach out to BOLO Support for assistance.
Unless otherwise stated, all prices displayed on the product page include applicable taxes and import duties.
BOLO operates in accordance with the laws and regulations of United Arab Emirates. Any items found to be restricted or prohibited for sale within the UAE will be cancelled prior to shipment. We take proactive measures to ensure that only products permitted for sale in United Arab Emirates are listed on our website.
All items are shipped by air, and any products classified as “Dangerous Goods (DG)” under IATA regulations will be removed from the order and cancelled.
All orders are processed manually, and we make every effort to process them promptly once confirmed. Products cancelled due to the above reasons will be permanently removed from listings across the website.
Description:
Editorial Reviews
Review
One of 50 best memoirs of the past 50 years — The New York Times
"[Mukasonga’s] haunting, urgent personal history of the Rwandan genocide (translated by Jordan Stump) will deeply shade your map." — New York Times Book Review
"A child’s view of one of history’s most chilling instances of genocide. . . . 'I wasn’t only Tutsi,' [Mukasonga] recalls of the ethnic turmoil that made her a refugee, 'I was an Inyenzi, one of those cockroaches they’d expelled from the livable part of Rwanda, and perhaps from the human race.' Such people, she writes later, were 'fit only to be crushed like cockroaches, with one stomp. But they preferred to watch us die slowly.' . . . A thoughtful, sobering firsthand account of the refugee experience, a story that speaks to readers far beyond the African highlands." -- Kirkus Reviews
"Related with brave, sobering, steely-eyed calm" -- Library Journal (Starred Review)
"Harrowing ... Mukasonga’s powerful and poignant book plants itself in that terrible absence, its stone etched with a difficult, necessary grief." -- Publishers Weekly
"Cockroaches stands out for its bracing, unmitigated, and often bitter ironies." — New York Review of Books
"Scholastique Mukasonga has done something extraordinary with her autobiographical work Cockroaches. In straightforward prose over a mere 165 pages, in a binding approximately the size of a 5x7 family photograph, she harnesses four decades of devastating imagery and emotion emanating from the genocide of the Tutsi people in Rwanda. From the heartrending dedication to the last page, Mukasonga holds the reader's aghast but rapt attention through the hardships endured and resilience shown by her family and their fellow refugees... Cockroaches is a haunting love letter to the lost, beautifully written and imbued with controlled emotion, a story to which we should all bear witness." — Lauren O'Brien of Malcolm Avenue Review, in Shelf Awareness
"Cockroaches is vital precisely because it reconfigures not only a common understanding of the genocide in Rwanda, but privileged assumptions about peace more generally ... When she left Rwanda, Mukasonga understood that her role was “to live in the name of others.” You get the sense that every sentence in Cockroaches bears this weight and is, therefore, a remarkable achievement." — Lara Pawson, Times Literary Supplement
"Heavy, unflinchingly raw, inspiring." — Book Stalker Blog
"We are told that Rwanda is now a peaceful country; the ethnic massacres of the 1990s are all behind them now and all is forgotten and forgiven(?). But even before that ethnic cleansing, before the term was even used, there were post-colonial massacres that singled out Tutsis. Told by one who survived and thrived by some miracle [...] Her memories are bitter and I challenge you to read this without tears and without wondering what is to become of humanity." — Darwin Ellis, Books on the Common
"Beautifully written in the graceful, lilting prose that dominated Our Lady of the Nile." - Eileen Battersby, Irish Times (Best Books of 2016)
"Written with a restraint and simplicity that touches directly...on the heart of life, on the eye of the cyclone. There is a force to these words, something that delves into the most profound depths of things. Scholastique Mukasonga's voice is as if broken away from the night, taut but pure, clear, vibrant, with a tranquil force...Read it." --Farenheit 451
"A kind of memoir also, a real homage to the dead that Mukasonga loved and that she stands vigil over now. This book gives them the dignified burial that they never received." --Marie-Alix Saint-Pau, Africa Vivre
"[Mukasonga] describes with humility the daily inferno that was her family's existence during the years before the massacre in the spring of '94...Sholastique Mukasonga cannot obtain reparations for the horrors she endured, but here she accomplishes a feat of memory and a story of surprising sobriety." --Urobepi, Coups de Coeurs Littéraires (Et Plus)
"The genocide in Rwanda has been depicted in many ways, but few have succeeded ... like
Scholastique Mukasonga in recreating the world that in 1994 was shattered to pieces." — Svenska Dagbladet
"[After she was awarded the Prix Renaudot] I went out and procured every work by
Scholastique Mukasonga.... Never has a prize been more merited." - Frederic Beigbeder, Lire
Praise for Our Lady of the Nile (2014, Archipelago):
• A Publishers Weekly Book of the Year for 2014
• Longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award
• "In part, this is a good-humored yearbook of the adventures and scandals among the all-girl school's precocious teenage charges, where the greatest peril to morality is the arrival of a male teacher with long blond hair. But soon the school, abetted by its hypocritical administrators (including those Belgian civilizers), becomes a petri dish for Hutu militancy, and normal adolescent pranks take on horrifying consequences. The novel's abrupt transition from a naïve coming-of-age story to a violent tragedy is jarring--though surely it doesn't even begin to convey the shock of the reality." - The Wall Street Journal
• "[Mukasonga's] deliciously limpid, melodious style makes Rwandan daily life vividly accessible ... Mukasonga expertly draws together all her threads and stories in climactic sequences to create a skillfully-orchestrated vision, both loving and fearful, of her beloved homeland ripped apart by vicious racial hatred." - Shelf Awareness
• "Our Lady of the Nile swept me up with its artful bitterness [...] [Our Lady of the Nile] is buoyed by its air of foreboding consequence that imparts urgency to almost every page." - Barnes & Noble Review
About the Author
Reviews:
5.0 out of 5 stars Memories of the horrific Past informs the Present
To keep alive the spirits of her dear family Mukasonga has written her exceedingly pain filled journey to survival and then back to her home and vague traces of her family. All 37 destroyed in 1994. She also provided the historical preparations for these bestial deeds beginning in the 1950's and the designation of the Tutsis as COCKROACHES. Important document to remind us of our capacity for evil with the implicit hope that we can learn from the Past.
5.0 out of 5 stars A tiny book but it's a gem
Cockroaches is a remarkable memoir about growing up as an impoverished Tutsi girl in Hutu dominated Rwanda and the author's return visit much later. 37 members of her family had been killed in the genocide of '94. Touching, intimate vignettes. Highly recommend this one!
5.0 out of 5 stars Great writer, excellent book
Excellent book, either for historiographic research, or literary delightment! Scholastique Mukasonga is one of the most delicate and unique voices in contemporary literature. It is indeed a "must be read immediately"
4.0 out of 5 stars Harrowing, troubling
Mukasonga’s harrowing, troubling memoir of her family’s life in Rwanda prior to the 1994 genocide and the death of 37 family members in that genocide serves as a prequel to "The Barefoot Woman." The book is a remarkable mix of disturbing, gruesome accounts of violence and deprivation on the one hand and accounts of what seems like a fairly happy childhood on the other. Nevertheless, an impending sense of doom hangs over the story, as we know – and as Mukasonga hints at – what will happen to her Tutsi family in the end. Mukasonga herself left Rwanda prior to the genocide to study social work in France and so was spared, but the sorry at the loss of her family is still powerful. Her return to the family home after the genocide is painful but a reminder of the duty we have to remember our losses and to carry on in spite of them. The writing is subdued, which only magnifies the horror of the events being described.
5.0 out of 5 stars Heartbreaking.
This book is hard to read. It will bring out anger and tears, but atleast the story of just a few of those murdered will be known.
5.0 out of 5 stars essential read
what a wonderful woman to be able to share the horror of her life, yet make it so matter of fact you do not descend into tears -- we should all read this book and be grateful for the life we have which, in most cases, would be so much more desirable than her experiencesshe does not blame but tells the world of a time of genocide on a massive scale delivered in the most appalling way
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent non-metaphor
Slow start, necessary for the buildup of this dramatic tale. No spoilers here.
5.0 out of 5 stars Hard, good read!
Hard, good read! Such a sad story, but a must read! Must read! Such a great piece of history, but heartbreaking.
A memoir including some extremes of human suffering
A memoir of growing up as a Tutsi in Rwanda when Tutsi were seen as cockroaches by the Hutu, and periodically attacked and constantly victimised before the genocide of 1994. This book covers the author's life as a child (when the family escapes one attack on Tutsi and is exiled to a part of the country not seen as properly part of Rwanda by the Tutsi) and as a young girl (victimised at school but surviving as the family sees education as the best protection for its members), then being spirited across the border to Burundi, together with a brother. We do not follow her life as a social worker outside Rwanda but do experience two very brief returns to Rwanda to visit her family (not really safe for them even once she has become a French citizen following her marriage) then takes us through the genocide in which the author's extended family including her parents and siblings are almost all killed, often following terrible torture and a return visit in 2004, which is probably the prompt for the writing of the memoir.This is a very touching narrative. But potential readers should bear in mind that the subjects covered are at the extreme of human suffering.
Similar suggestions by Bolo
More from this brand
Similar items from “Women”
Share with
Or share with link
https://www.bolo.ae/products/U0914671537