The Drinker of Horizons
by Mia Couto, translated by David Brookshaw (World Editions, ISBN 9781912987375)
Fifteen-year-old Imani sits deep in the belly of a ship named Africa. Her fellow travellers include Ngungunyane, emperor of a pre-colonial African kingdom, and his seven wives. It is 1895 and Mozambique’s colonial rulers are shipping them off to Portugal, and from there to permanent exile in the Azores.
The journey is arduous and full of intrigue, drama and despair. As the designated translator between captors and captives, Imani, who speaks perfect Portuguese (and whose own belly is carrying the child of a Portuguese sergeant) holds a pivotal position on board, but as a result is not fully trusted by anyone. Her
