Birds of Nabaa is a tale of physical and spiritual journeys, beginning in Nabaa, a remote Mauritanian village, whose herds lead the community according to their own inscrutable instincts, to life in Madrid, the Gulf states and Guinea, where the narrator's work as an embassy accountant takes him, and to Mauritania's capital Nouakchott. Inspired by the Sahara of his childhood and devoted from an early age to the vagabond life of the pre-Islamic poets, the narrator's constant life on the move in search of the inner stillness known only to desert dwellers leads him back always to the music, song and poetry so much a part of Mauritanian life and the spiritual universe of Sufism. The mix of diverse characters joining him includes Teresa, his Brazilian neighbour in Madrid whom he taught to make tea the Mauritanian way; Rajab the inspiring teacher in a blue face veil; Hussein the poet; Mariam, a postman between the living and the dead via cowrie shell readings; the exiled judge of Chinguetti; as well as his close friend the voracious reader and rebel Abdurrahman who wants to change the world, Abdel Hadi, the holy-fool sheikh with an encyclopaedic knowledge of Arab history and poetry, and Ould al-Taher, the first climate-change refugee. The narrator's travels take him to the village of Kanz al-Asrar near a tributary of the Senegal River, an area so fertile it is like a lush paradise. However, two and more years without any rain create drought, wells dry out, livelihoods shatter, and dreams turn to disturbing nightmarish premonitions of disaster. The burning fire of the sun is winning its eternal struggle with the hidden water that the clouds plant in the depths of the sand. As desertification takes hold, that paradise of southern Mauritania and of Nabaa gradually declines and the waves of migration, always a feature of life in the Sahara, intensify.

This first Mauritanian novel in English translation follows the narrator across continents and back to Africa in his search for the inner stillness of desert life through its music, poetry and song.

About the Author
Abdallah Uld Mohamadi Bah is a writer, novelist and journalist from Nabaghiya in southern Mauritania. His journalistic career began in the mid-1980s with al-Sha'b newspaper. He became the West Africa correspondent for the daily al-Sharq al-Awsat, and later for the MBC TV channel, and for Aljazeera in Africa. As well as Birds of Nabaa (Tuyur Nabaa) his works include Timbuktu wa Akhawatuha (Timbuktu and her Sisters) and Yawmiyat Sahafi fe Ifreeqiya (Diary of a Journalist in Africa). He is currently CEO of Sahara Media Group in north and west Africa.

Reviews

"Birds of Nabaa, A Mauritanian Tale by Mauritanian author Abdallah Uld Mohamadi Bah is a cathartic experience inspired by the passion of Sufism."

"Uld Mohamadi Bah's characters are refined and crafted with delicate nuance. He captures the discordant feelings of those who have experienced immigration, whether by choice or impossible circumstances."

Reviewed by Noshin Bokth in The New Arab newspaper: https://www.newarab.com/features/birds-nabaa-mystical-roamings-mauritanian-sufi

Book Information
ISBN 9781913043438
Author Abdallah Uld Mohamadi Bah
Format Paperback
Page Count 192
Imprint Banipal Books
Publisher Banipal Books
Weight(grams) 160g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 14mm