Black Mamba Boy By Nadifa Mohamed

Written By: Nicole Parker-Jones—Black Mamba Boy is the critically acclaimed debut novel by Somalian-British writer Nadifa Mohamed. Set in the vibrant Aden, Yemen in 1935, Black Mamba Boy follows ten-year old Jama, who unexpectedly finds himself alone in the world when his mother dies. Jama is forced to return to his native Somalia, where war is on the horizon and the fascist Italian forces who control parts of East Africa are preparing for battle. Yet Jama cannot rest until he discovers whether his father, who has been absent from his life since he was a baby, is alive. And so begins an epic journey which will take Jama north through Djibouti, war-torn Eritrea and Sudan, to Egypt. And from there, aboard a ship transporting Jewish refugees just released from German concentration camps, across the seas to Britain and freedom. This story of one boy's long walk to freedom is also the story of how the Second World War affected Africa and its people.

(Photo Credits: Book Cover Art / Hapercollins)