The Dragonfly Sea
'One of the most unforgettable books I have read in the last few years... What a writer! What a thinker! What a woman!' Fiammetta Rocco
'Lyrical, compassionate, and deeply original, it has stayed with me, and is the novel I have most enjoyed this year' Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireland
The Dragonfly Sea follows the unforgettable Ayaana's journey to adulthood after her small-island childhood is interrupted. Targeted first by religious fundamentalists and second by Chinese emissaries, Ayaana is sent on a container ship to study in China, where she is forced to grow up fast.
With its epic scope and lush lyricism, Owuor evokes a fascinating kind of beauty in this dangerous, chaotic world and its ever-shifting oceans and trade. A transcendent story of love and adventure, and of the inexorable need for shelter in a dangerous world.
Book details
- Format
- Paperback
- ISBN
- 9781914613081
- Published
- 7 July 2022
- Pages
- 496
- Duration
- Dimensions
- 126 x 198 mm
- Genre
- Fiction
- Imprint
- September
Reviews
'Owuor's rich prose makes a pointed commentary about interconnectedness'
'A daring and compelling novel, evocative and lavishly detailed'
'One of Africa's most exciting voices... The Dragonfly Sea is a continent-hopping novel of epic proportions'
'The Dragonfly Sea transported me at a time I really wanted to be transported. Lyrical, compassionate, and deeply original, it has stayed with me, and is the novel I have most enjoyed this year'
'One of the most unforgettable books I have read in the last few years... What a writer! What a thinker! What a woman!'
'A paean to both cultural diffusion and difference'
'Owuor writes in heart-stopping bursts of imagery and retooled language... gloriously unique'
'This lushly written epic of contemporary cultural clashes and world politics is as magically enveloping as a fairy tale'
'Moving, epic and transcendent, The Dragonfly Sea is a glorious tale that spans two continents, multiple cultures and the lives of endearing characters'
'You will smell the sea, be swayed by its currents and feel the texture of the place with every flip of the page... It will transport you to other lands, and also break your heart. Thankfully, when the characters are reshaped by the waters and find themselves again, you will also patch yourself together... A mesmerizing rendering of a little talked about island and its people' The East African
'Unprecedented... The aptness of the descriptions, the exactness of geographies and the intricate histories of hurt tell of extensive research and very serious reading behind it... The Dragonfly Sea offers a new journey of liberation, discovery, reflection, interaction and even new imagination'
'People, music, languages sail back and forth; The Dragonfly Sea colourfully dips in and out of several languages... [a] lyrical and contemplative book’
