The African Child

The African Child

First English-language edition
Author	Camara Laye
Translator	James Kirkup
Language	French
Genre	Autobiographical
Publisher	Plon
Publication date	1953
Publication place	Guinea
Published in English	1954, Noonday Press

The African Child (French: L'Enfant noir) is an autobiographical French novel by Camara Laye published in 1953. ^[1] It tells the story of a young African child, Baba, growing up in Guinea. The novel won the Prix Charles Veillon writing prize.

It was translated into English by James Kirkup and Ernest Jones and published in the United States by Noonday Press in 1954 as The Dark Child and in the United Kingdom by Collins 1955. This translation was later republished under the title The African Child in 1959. ^[2]

Adaptations

The novel was adapted into a movie called L'Enfant noir in 1995. ^[3] Many of the cast in the film were relatives of Laye. ^[4]

Critical reception

The scenes early in the novel, when the young narrator witnesses his father working with gold, have drawn considerable critical attention for their spiritual overtones, ^[5] but also because of the importance of the douga, the song and dance begun by the griot when the work is complete. ^[6]

Publication history

• The Dark Child: The Autobiography of an African Boy (New York: Noonday Press, 1954)
• The Dark Child: The Autobiography of an African Boy (London: Collins, 1955)
• The African Child: Memories of a West African Childhood (London: Fontana, 1959)

References

1. Prima Birungi. "The African Child (by Camara Laye)". Africa Book Club. Archived from the original on 2017-07-22.
2. Birch, Dinah; Hooper, Katy (2013). The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. OUP Oxford. p. 108. ISBN   9780191036743. Archived from the original on September 7, 2023. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
3. "L'enfant Noir: Un long-métrage de Laurent Chevallier: Dossier Pédagogique" (PDF). clermont-filmfest.com (in French). Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
4. "The Dark Child by Camara Laye" (PDF). Literary Cavalcade. April 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
5. Ada Uzoamaka Azodo (1994). "The Work in Gold as Spiritual Journey in Camara Laye's The African Child". Journal of Religion in Africa . 24 (1): 52–61. JSTOR   1581374.
6. Esonwanne, Uzo (1993). "The Nation as Contested Referent". Research in African Literatures . 24 (4): 49–62. Archived from the original on 2020-07-15. Retrieved 2020-07-20.