Dinaw mengestu all our names

The two men are friends who meet in what is probably uganda, right before the wars began. Subtle, intelligent, and quietly devastating, all our names is a novel about identity, about the names we are given and the names we earn. Dinaw mengestu was born in addis ababa, ethiopia, in 1978 and immigrated to the united states in 1980 where his family settled in illinois. Writing within the grand tradition of naipul, greene, and achebe, mengestu gives us a political novel that is also a transfixing portrait of love and grace, of selfdetermination and the. His prose is simple, and all our names is deceptive in this regard. And in a few moments well go to the phones and take some of your calls.

From acclaimed author dinaw mengestu, a recipient of the national book foundations 5 under 35 award, the new yorkers 20 under 40 award, and a 2012 macarthur foundation genius grant, comes an unforgettable love story about a searing affair between an american woman and an african man in 1970s america and an unflinching novel about the fragmentation of lives that straddle countries and histories. Oneil, contributing writer for the first time in my life, every day when i woke up i had clean clothes, and something to eat two. In addition to three novels, he has written for rolling stone on the war in darfur, and for jane magazine on the conflict in northern uganda. Mar 01, 2016 all our names is a transfixing exploration of the relationships that define us.

Now an english professor at georgetown university, mengestu has just published his third novel, all our names, a mournful, mysterious tale about an. A young man from a small african village gives up his name and goes to. Mengestus narration and the finely arranged details about character are placed just soquietly, determinedly. From acclaimed author dinaw mengestu, a recipient of the national book foundations 5 under 35 award, the new yorkers 20 under 40 award, and a 2012 macarthur foundation genius grant, comes an unforgettable love story about a searing affair between an american woman and an african man in 1970s america and an unflinching novel about the fragmentation of lives that. Im susan page of usa today sitting in for diane rehm. Dinaw mengestus all our names describes unexpected love.

Mar 04, 2014 now an english professor at georgetown university, mengestu has just published his third novel, all our names, a mournful, mysterious tale about an african man who comes to the midwest on a. All our names surely dinaw mengestus most assured book to date explores what happens when names for many people, a name is a link to a proud lineage, a tethering to the past, a solid reinforcement of identity. Whats new in all our names, hes said, is the optimism built into its foundation. Elegiac, blazing with insights about the physical and emotional geographies that circumscribe our lives, all our names is a marvel of vision and tonal command. Dinaw mengestus third novel skillfully blends two disparate narrativesthe account of an african revolution and the story of a survivors new life in americato create a moving portrait of the dilemma of identity. Dinaw mengestus all our names follows the relationship between a foreign exchange student from ethiopia and the midwestern social worker assigned to help him. Dinaw mengestu s all our names follows the relationship between a foreign exchange student from ethiopia and the midwestern social worker assigned to help him. But as the line between idealism and violence becomes increasingly blurred, the friends are driven apartone into the deepest peril, as the movement gathers inexorable force, and. Eimear mcbride, author of a girl is a halfformed thing.

Jun 04, 2014 one of the narrators of all our names is a character a little like this. Dinaw mengestu embraces the vastness of love and war. With me in the studio, dinaw mengestu talking about his new book all our names. Mengestu is known for his novels about the immigrant experience in this country, but this book, all our names, is something of a departure. Mar 23, 2014 dinaw mengestus all our names follows the relationship between a foreign exchange student from ethiopia and the midwestern social worker assigned to help him. His writing has also appeared in harpers, the wall street journal, and numerous other publications. As told in parallel narratives, his and hers, its also a bit of a mystery. Dinaw mengestu born 30 june 1978 is an ethiopianamerican novelist and writer.

Doc all our names by dinaw mengestu jordan williams. This detailed literature summary also contains quotes and a free quiz on all our names by dinaw mengestu. All three of mengestus novels focus on immigrant characters who lose their homes and loved ones. In addition to some of their themes and circumstances, it shares. Most of all, he is haunted by the charismatic leader who first guided him to revolution and then sacrificed everything to ensure his freedom. The isaac chapters are from the perspective d, whose real name we never learn, a poor, young aspiring. All our names is a transfixing exploration of the relationships that define us. All our names is the story of a friendship between two young men united during a time of protest and of the woman whose life is changed after the two men are separated. Buy all our names by dinaw mengestu from the telegraph bookshop read. May 14, 2014 the new novel all our names explores lost and found identities and a collision of worlds. One of the narrators of all our names is a character a little like this.

Subtle, intelligent, and quietly devastating, all our names is a novel about identity, about the names we are given and the names. He is a graduate of georgetown university and of columbia universitys m. All our names knopf, 2014, how to read the air riverhead, 2010, and the beautiful things that heaven bears riverhead, 2007. The main character isaac is coming from ethiopia who has never been colonized but still experiences the effects from the european colonial forces. It is a two part story, with alternating chapters from two different perspectives. All our names by dinaw mengestu random house by nancy s. April 3, 2014 meg wolitzer says all our names, told in the alternating voices of two lovers, is a subtle masterpiece. Dinaw mengestus sober, tender third novel is essentially a love story. In all our names, mengestu tells two linked storiesone set in uganda in the early 1970s, and one set in the midwest, about a year laterbut the word immigrant is the wrong word for both, i think. Dina mengestu writes of the conflicted emotions of someone who has survived the loss of family, country and identity. Dinaw mengestu is the awardwinning author of two previous novels, the beautiful things that heaven bears 2007 and how to read the air 2010. The introduction, author biography, discussion questions, and suggested reading that follow are designed to enhance your groups discussion of all our names, the new novel by dinaw mengestu.

In fact this new novel by the ethiopianamerican writer dinaw mengestu, who won the guardian first book award for children. The first is the story of an ethiopian in uganda, though he is not really marked as such in. All our names by dinaw mengestu is a poignant story of two men and a woman. The brilliant novelist dinaw mengestu never mentions amin by name in all our names, his third novel, but the influence of amin is one of the driving forces in this story of resistance fighters and their recruits, and of exiles whose attempts to assimilate in america are complicated by the memory of the horrors they witnessed in their homeland.

About this book a man and a woman each tell the story of their relationships with a mysterious man named isaac in dinaw mengestus captivating third novel. All our names is the third in a trio of novels about the african diaspora in america by ethiopianamerican writer dinaw mengestu. Dinaw mengestu discusses his new novel, all our names, ethiopia, and his upbringing in peoria and forest park. Dinaw mengestu is the author of three novels, all of which were named new york times notable books. Mar 04, 2014 dinaw mengestus deeply moving new novel, all our names, takes place in the early 1970s in two worlds that could not be farther apart. Apr 18, 2014 all our namesby dinaw mengestualfred a.

Much of the story unfolds in africa and there are two. We read not to encounter the other, but to see ourselves refracted in a different landscape, in a different time, in shoes and clothes that perhaps bear no resemblance to our own. Its author, dinaw mengestu, was born in ethiopia, but has lived most of his life in the u. Dinaw mengestus all our names is a gripping, wellcrafted novel about friendship in a time of revolution and coping with the unexpected fallout of life. Mar 21, 2014 dinaw mengestu discusses his new novel, all our names, ethiopia, and his upbringing in peoria and forest park. From uganda to the midwest, all our names draws portraits. In all our names, one character resonates arts the. In this fashion, all our names resembles mengestus lyrical 2007 debut, the beautiful things that heaven bears, which told the tale of ethiopian men who wound up in washington, d. A native of ethiopia who came with his family to the united states at the age of two, mengestu is also a freelance. Named a best book of the year by the new york times, the washington post, npr, the boston globe, the. All our names is set in the 1970s, in the early days of idi amins repressive reign in uganda. His latest novel, all our names, is an unforgettable love story about a searing affair between an american woman and an african man in 1970s. Dinaw mengestu left his native ethiopia when he was just a toddler, but he still experienced america as an immigrant, and that challenge continues to shape his fiction. All our names is the story of a young man who comes of age during an african revolution, drawn from the hushed.

Dinaw mengestus third novel the ethiopian american writers first since being named a macarthur fellow in 2012 is profoundly moving. All our names by dinaw mengestu takes place in uganda during the 1970s. Dina mengestu writes of the conflicted emotions of someone who. But as the line between idealism and violence becomes increasingly blurred, the friends are driven apart one into the deepest peril, as the movement gathers inexorable force, and the other into. All our names is the story of two young men who come of age during an african revolution, drawn from the safe confines of the university campus into the intensifying clamor of the streets outside. Buy all our names by dinaw mengestu from the telegraph bookshop. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read all our names. In a world where things tend to fall apart, where certain outcomes are either impossible or forbidden, things sometimes threaten to come together for no. The emotional power of mengestu s work is indelible. Dinaw mengestu named a best book of the year by the new york times, the washington post, npr, the boston globe, the christian science monitor, and the daily beast a sweeping, continentspanning story about the love between men and women, between friends, and between citizens and their countries, all our names is a transfixing exploration of the. When speaking about his third novel, all our names, dinaw mengestu has sometimes attempted to distinguish it from his previous work by invoking the title of chinua achebes classic things fall apart. Dinaw mengestu, all our names they stared at me, at isaac, and then at the floor rather than at each other, as if they had long since come to terms with the fact that on any given evening men could burst into their house and do something terrible to them.

All our names by dinaw mengestu is a sombre look at the uprising during an african revolution from the eyes of a nameless and yet, multinamed man. Mar 08, 2014 from uganda to the midwest, all our names draws portraits of love dinaw mengestu is known for writing about the immigrant experience, but his latest novel takes a slightly different tack. This read feels that all our names catches the people in the act of trying and failing to be certain about one another, but loving in spite of the uncertainty. From dinaw mengestu, a recipient of the national book foundations 5 under 35 award, the new yorkers 20 under 40 award, and a 2012 macarthur foundation genius grant, comes a novel about exile, about the loneliness and fragmentation of lives that straddle countries and histories. The new novel all our names explores lost and found identities and a collision of worlds.

African exchange student isaac falls in love with helen, the social worker facilitating his transition to midwestern america. All our names, by dinaw mengestu the new york times. The book shows the two narrators struggle to find love in a society which has not yet accepted interracial relationship and. Dinaw mengestus deeply moving new novel, all our names, takes place in the early 1970s in two worlds that could not be farther apart. It is a story of two men whose friendship and love travel through the turmoil of civil unrest until the fight against government becomes so dangerous as to infiltrate their consciousness, blurring. Author dinaw mengestu was born in ethiopia but raised in the usa and he is well qualified to write the novel all our names as it tells the story of a young ethiopian, isaac, leaving his country and going via kenya to uganda and then to the usa. But as the line between idealism and violence becomes increasingly blurred, the friends are driven apart one into the deepest peril, as the. Mar 11, 2014 with me in the studio, dinaw mengestu talking about his new book all our names. Raised in suburban chicago, he began his career in washington with a novel set around logan circle called the beautiful things that heaven bears 2007. The emotional power of all our names seeps through lines that seem placid on the surface.