Category: Adults, Historical Fiction
Language: EnglishKeywords: Africa African Literature Madagascar
Written by Naivo, Allison M. Charette (Translation)
Read by Neil Gant, Alfred Vines, Jo Sands
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 128 Kbps
Unabridged
The first novel from Madagascar ever to be translated into English, Naivoâs magisterial Beyond the Rice Fields delves into the upheavals of the nationâs past as it confronted Christianity and modernity, through the twin narratives of a slave and his masterâs daughter.
Fara and her fatherâs slave, Tsito, have been close since her father bought the boy after his forest village was destroyed. Now in Sahasoa, amongst the cattle and rice fields, everything is new for Tsito, and Fara at last has a companion. But as Tsito looks forward to the bright promise of freedom and Fara, backward to a dark, long-denied family history, a rift opens between them just as British Christian missionaries and French industrialists arrive and violence erupts across the country. Love and innocence fall away, and Tsito and Faraâs world becomes enveloped by tyranny, superstition, and fear.
With captivating lyricism, propulsive urgency, and two unforgettable characters at the storyâs core, Naivo unflinchingly delves into the brutal history of nineteenth-century Madagascar. Beyond the Rice Fields is a tour de force that has much to teach us about human bondage and the stories we tell to faceâand hide fromâourselves, each other, our pasts, and our destinies.
Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins
Release date: 12-01-22
The first novel from Madagascar ever to be translated into English, Naivoâs magisterial Beyond the Rice Fields delves into the upheavals of the nationâs past as it confronted Christianity and modernity, through the twin narratives of a slave and his masterâs daughter.
Fara and her fatherâs slave, Tsito, have been close since her father bought the boy after his forest village was destroyed. Now in Sahasoa, amongst the cattle and rice fields, everything is new for Tsito, and Fara at last has a companion. But as Tsito looks forward to the bright promise of freedom and Fara, backward to a dark, long-denied family history, a rift opens between them just as British Christian missionaries and French industrialists arrive and violence erupts across the country. Love and innocence fall away, and Tsito and Faraâs world becomes enveloped by tyranny, superstition, and fear.
With captivating lyricism, propulsive urgency, and two unforgettable characters at the storyâs core, Naivo unflinchingly delves into the brutal history of nineteenth-century Madagascar. Beyond the Rice Fields is a tour de force that has much to teach us about human bondage and the stories we tell to faceâand hide fromâourselves, each other, our pasts, and our destinies.
Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins
Release date: 12-01-22