First published 2021
Ahmed tends his camel herd in the vast Sahara, following the same patterns his father taught him and that he will pass to his son Abdullahi. The nomadic freeg moves with the seasons across the desert, bound together by ancient stories and the rhythm of herding life. But forces beyond Ahmed's control press closer each day. French colonizers advance from the horizon. Cities pull people from traditional ways. A brutal drought kills animals and threatens survival itself. Ahmed tries to maintain the old routines, focusing on his beloved camels and the customs of his ancestors. Then Zarga, one of his most precious camels, disappears into the desert. Ahmed mounts his reliable Laamesh and rides into the wilderness to find her. The search becomes a test of everything he knows about desert survival. Along the way, he encounters people who show him both human cruelty and unexpected kindness. His journey to recover Zarga forces him to confront the reality that his traditional world may not survive the changes sweeping across the Sahara.
Genres: family-life, historical-fiction, african-literature, adventure
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, man-vs-nature
Setting: Sahara, France
Period: 20th-century
171 pages · Kindle Edition · Ohio University Press
Content warnings: colonialism