Description

Jacaranda follows Milan as he uncovers secrets in Rwanda. His search comes after the genocide against the Tutsi. It takes years. His bond with Stella gives him strength. Her favourite tree is a jacaranda with blue-lavender flowers. It stands for memory and the will to live. Young people tell the stories of those lost. This helps them feel less alone.

Gaël Faye’s novel spans four generations of life in Rwanda. It covers thirty years of the country’s past. It shows how families pass on deep wounds. It asks how people learn to speak about pain. Love and friendship shape Milan’s need to grasp the past. Those who lived through the genocide share what they saw. Victims and killers live in the same country. Distrust marks their lives. We meet brave women and a man named Sartre, who loves parties. Their lives raise questions about the truths people deny. They also ask if people can forgive and heal through speech.

Faye was born in Bujumbura, Burundi, in 1982. His mother is Rwandan and his father French. His parents sent him to France in 1995, after war and genocide. He later formed a hip-hop duo with Edgar Sekloka. They called it Milk Coffee Suggar. His first novel, Mica țară, drew on his own life.

Jacaranda won the 2024 Prix Renaudot. Lucia Visinescu translated this edition from French. It is part of the Fiction Connection series.