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by Louis Dalembert (Author), Marjolijn de Jager (Translator)
In this moving tribute set in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the composite, fictionalized main character Emmett and victim of police violence is seen through the eyes of several individuals who were all touched by his life: the Pakistani shopkeeper who dialed 911; Emmett's former girlfriend; a teacher; a neighborhood friend, and his college football coach all recall Emmett and describe how his love and generous spirit touched their lives. The novel then takes a wider point of view in the second half to focus on the march and memorial service with a resounding and spiritual message of peace. This is a powerful testament to the ongoing struggles for justice, and a moving and hopeful tribute to the many victims of racist violence.
Author Biography
Louis-Philippe Dalembert is a Haitian poet and novelist, who writes in both French and Haitian creole. His works have been translated into several languages. He now divides his home between Paris and Port-au-Prince. He has received several prizes and awards for his work, among them, a residency at the Villa Medicis in Rome, the Grand Prix de la langue franç aise, Polish and Swiss Goncourt Choice 2019, Goncourt des lycé ens shortlist for The Mediterranean Wall and the Prix Orange du livre 2017, Grand Prix du roman de l'Acadé mie franç aise shortlist and Prix Mé dicis short list for his novel, Avant que les ombres s'effacent. He is also known to be an avid soccer fan. Trained in literature and journalism, Dalembert first worked as a journalist in his homeland before leaving in 1986 for France where he obtained his Ph.D. at the Sorbonne in comparative literature and a master's in journalism from the Ecole Supé rieure de Journalisme de Paris. Since then, he has traveled widely as a teacher and visiting poet, and has taught briefly at the University of Wisconsin, the Freie Universitä t (Berlin) and the University of Bern and currently holds the Writer-in-Residence Chair at Sciences Po Paris. His poetry has been published in several major literary journals in the US, and Dalembert was a contributor to the recently released anthology And We Came Out and Saw the Stars Again: Writers from Around the World on the COVID-19 Epidemic.
