Awards

• 'A gorgeous feat of magical realism, intricately infused with stylized prose reminiscent of jazz, this is a tale of darkness, of class and struggle, of light.'

Overview

Finalist for the National Book Award for Translated Literature Zaire. Late 90's. Mobutu's thirty-year reign is tottering. In Lubumbashi, the stubbornly homeless Sanza has fallen in with a trio of veteran street kids led by the devious Ngungi. A chance encounter with the mysterious Monsieur Guillaume seems to offer a way out . . . Meanwhile in Angola, Molakisi has joined thousands of fellow Zairians hoping to make their fortunes hunting diamonds, while Austrian Franz finds himself roped into writing the memoirs of the charismatic Tshiamuena, the ""Madonna of the Cafunfo Mines."" Things are drawing to a head, but at the Mambo de la Fête, they still dance the Villain's Dance from dusk till dawn.

Full Product Details

9781916751675

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Reviews

‘Mujila’s frenetic energy is captured in rapturous language by Roland Glasser, translating from the French. Recalling the gritty, exuberant novels of the South African Zakes Mda and the Congolese Alain Mabanckou, Mujila has brought to life a feverish tale of Africa’s underclass, whose demands – like the author’s – are hard to resist.’ New York Times ‘Mujila’s virtuosic narrative shifts, feverish magical realism, and dizzying chronological leaps make for an intoxicating reading experience. This complex tale bears exquisite fruit.’ Publishers Weekly ‘Poetic and inventive, Fiston Mwanza Mujila’s The Villain’s Dance sees — and mourns — the Angola that could have been.’ Eric Mayrhofer, Independent Book Review ‘Fiston Mwanza Mujila opens the doors of an effervescent Africa, one devastated by misery, but incredibly fresh and in which the dance is some sort of metamorphosis and Fiston's language, jazzy and acid, becomes magical.’ Page des Libraires

Author Information

Fiston Mwanza Mujila was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1981 and lives today in Austria. His writing – including the International Booker longlisted Tram 83 – responds to political turbulence in his native country and frequently foregrounds its debt to jazz. Roland Glasser has published over 25 translations from French (fiction, art, travel, and trade non-fiction) alongside literary editing and theatre lighting design.

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