Silence is My Mother Tongue

Praise for Silence is My Mother Tongue:

• “Elegant and descriptive . . . A riveting, mysterious, almost magical and delightfully chaotic depiction of the inner workings of an East African refugee camp. . . . As this story of young, codependent refugees is propelled into a revelatory, formally experimental and ultimately tragic conclusion, the initial depth and beauty Jamal witnessed through his ‘cinema’ curtains has only further blossomed. The novel leaves us with the lingering imprint of the siblings’ many sacrifices, and their ever-growing love.”—The New York Times Book Review

• “Jagged yet subtle. . . . The structure keeps upending the ordinary. [Silence Is My Mother Tongue] reads like a picaresque in a nutshell, tightly confined yet full of reversals. Some are swift as a finger-snap, others unfold like a ballad. . . . Addonia [has] asserted the humanity of people often cloaked in shadow.”—The Brooklyn Rail

• ‘Addonia, who spent his own early life in a Sudanese refugee camp, has a unique & intelligent voice which makes sensual evocative poetry of the deepest, fiercest emotions.’
  —The Big Issue

• The exchange of masculine and feminine roles within the context of a sexually conservative culture makes for a gripping and courageous narrative.’
  —Guardian

• ‘[A] richly written second novel, which brims with the sensory flavours of remembered experience.’
  —Daily Mail

• ‘The novel’s vignette structure underscores the fragmentary, hallucinatory quality of trauma and memory. A memorable chronicle about “the bitterness of exile” and the endurance of the spirit.’
  —Kirkus Reviews

• ‘Darkly poetic. . . . [Sulaiman Addonia] maintains a strong voice with vibrant lyrical imagery.’
  ―Publishers Weekly

• ‘Stunning. At once sensuous and provocative, Addonia s prose layers imagery and insight to keep us glued right to the spectacular end. This is a splendid, compulsive reading experience.’
  —Maaza Mengiste, author of Beneath the Lion s Gaze

• ‘Silence is My Mother Tongue dissects how a refugee camp erases one’s individuality, what communities demand of women, and how, in the face of great loss and scrutiny, one can find a way to redeem individuality by redefining love, sex and gender roles.’
  ―The Rumpus

• ‘Sulaiman Addonia’s Silence Is My Mother Tongue, perhaps in defiance of expectations, sings with the confidence of characters who believe that they are going to end up somewhere better, someday, even if they have to wade through the mire to get there.’
  —Ploughshares

• ‘Mesmerizing and provocative. . . . Addonia writes with poetry and depth. His sentences are plaintive vessels for what has been lost.’
  —Triangle House

• ‘Addonia’s chorus of characters is exquisite, and his interrogation of both traditionalism and love in the desperate circumstances of a Sudanese refugee camp makes for a stunning, enveloping read.’
  ―Wayétu Moore, author of The Dragons, the Giant, The Women

• ‘Silence Is My Mother Tongue is a remarkably accomplished and circuitously constructed tale that highlights the poetic aesthetic of its creator as well as its central protagonist.’
  ―Ru Freeman, author of On Sal Mal Lane