Theft

The new novel from the winner of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature - 'a maestro' (Guardian). A captivating story of the intertwined lives of three young people coming-of-age in postcolonial East Africa

Aged thirteen, orphaned Badar is taken to his new life as a house boy in Dar es Salaam, where he will work to earn his keep. Life in the beautiful house is beyond anything Badar could have possibly imagined; and when Karim, the ambitious student son of house comes home to visit, the two young men strike up a tentative friendship.

But when an old grudge surfaces, and terrible accusations are made, Badar finds himself expelled from the little kingdom he has come to call home. Aided by Karim, he manages to rebuild a life for himself - behind the desk of a faded hotel on the coast of Zanzibar. Here, Badar watches as the realities of this newly independent nation collide with the presumptions of Western tourists; and is thrown into crisis as he witnesses Karim succumb to temptation.

Vivid, intimate, wise and profound, The Long Road sees Abdulrazak Gurnah at the height of his powers: a captivating story of the coming-of-age of young people in a young nation, and the personal acts of self-determination that help us to write our stories.