In memory of Milorad Pavić

A long time ago, in a world before smartphones and social media, I was wandering through a bookstore when I came across an intriguing book “Dictionary of the Khazars” by Milorad Pavić. A gush of excitement at the discovery because he wrote two versions of the book, a male and female version, both identical with the exception of a single paragraph. I bought both versions and was delighted to have found the single different paragraph. I only bought one more book by Pavić but never came across any of his other books.

Today, out of the blue, I came across his book lying in the corner. I then decided to look-up if he wrote any other books or if he was still writing. Sadly, I found out that he passed away ten years ago in 2009. That explains why I never came across any new books. He did write many other books and I will have to find those other books, a task much easier nowadays than it was decades ago. I also have to re-read the Dictionary because I have forgotten many of the details. What I haven’t forgotten is the sheer sense of dizzying delight that followed when I read his book. It was a similar feeling when reading books by Jorge Luis Borges, Italo Calvino or Haruki Murakami.

Here’s to you Mr. Pavić, thank you for making the world a better place with your words.

The Dictator Novel

The recent death of Gabriel García Márquez is a huge loss to the literary world, especially Magic Realism. I owe my knowledge about this style to Márquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude which led me down a path of Magic Realism and the discovery of many other global authors. Even though Márquez is associated with Magic Realism, he was also a big part of the Dictator Novel. I first learned about the Dictator Novel genre when I read Augusto Roa Bastos' I Supreme as part of the 2011 Copa America Spotlight a few years back. Many references to Márquez's The General in His Labyrinth and The Autumn of the Patriarch appeared when discussing the roots of this genre in Central and South American literature. It is these two books that have been foremost in my mind since I heard of Márquez's passing.

The Dictator Novel is associated with Latin America given the number of dictatorships and generals that took power from the 1960's-70's but the genre can also apply to works about Africa. There are certainly similarities between Latin America and Africa in how some dictators rose to power and the ruthless methods they used to maintain their position. Yet, most of the official talk about this genre does not feature African literature or books about Africa.

Here are a few examples of books that highlight abuse of power in Africa and can be branched under The Dictator Novel, even though two of them are non-fiction.

1. Wizard of the Crow by Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o;

Wizard of the Crow by Kenyan author Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o is pure magic realism in depicting the myth around an African ruler's hold on power. The book is set in a fictional country of Free Republic of Abruria but it incorporates elements that could apply to many African countries.

2. The Last King of Scotland by Giles Foden

Giles Foden's book meshes fact with fiction in depiction of Uganda's Idi Amin and is told from the perspective of a doctor.

3. The Emperor by Ryszard Kapuściński 

Ryszard Kapuściński's book about Haile Selassie's reign in Ethiopia is non-fiction but his beautiful writing paints such a vivid picture that most fiction authors fail to achieve.

4. In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in the Congo by Michela Wrong 

Like Kapuściński, Michela Wrong's writing about Africa is essential reading. Her debut book highlights Mobutu Sese Seko in Zaire.