Samahani, the latest work by Sudanese author Abdelaziz Baraka Sakin, winner of the 2020 Prix de la Littérture Arabe, means 'forgive me' in Swahili, two words that stand in stark contrast to everything that happens in this novel.

Set in 19th century Zanzibar, this is a dark story of slavery, cruelty and vengeance, that depict the agonies of the native Zanzibaris at the hands of both Europeans and Arabs, that turns their apparent island paradise into a living hell of cruelty and exploitation. Through the relationship between a spoilt, scheming, powerful Omani princess and her eunuch African slave Sundus, captured and castrated by Arab slavers, Sakin builds a grand narrative that paints a picture of barbarism and man's inhumanity to man and becomes a furious cry against persecution in all its forms.



Abdel Aziz Baraka Sakin is one of the most prominent writers from Sudan today. He was born in Kassala, eastern Sudan, in 1963 and was living in the city of Khashm el-Girba until he was forced into exile abroad by the Islamist military regime in Khartoum. Although most of his major works are banned in his home country his books are secretly traded and circulated online among Sudanese readers of all generations.

Sakin's seminal work, al-Jungo Masameer al-Ardh, which appeared in English as "The Jungo: Stakes of the Earth", was the winner of Tayeb Salih's Novel Award. His other novels include Maseeh Darfur (The Messiah of Darfur), al-Aashiq al-Badawi (The Bedouin Lover), and al-Khanadrees (The Khandarees).



'A masterpiece tinged with caustic earthiness that makes you laugh until you cry'

– Jean-Paul Brighelli, Marianne 18 November 2022



'A dazzlingly audacious novel about a tragic period'

– Valérie Marin La Meslée, Le Point 01 December 2022



A more thoroughgoing account of a historical era's devastating impact on an overlooked society is explored in... this finely structured, fascinating novel.