A General Theory of Oblivion

A General Theory of Oblivion

Summary

WINNER OF THE INTERNATIONAL DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD 2017

A finalist for the Man Booker International Prize 2016

The brilliant new novel from the winner of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.

On the eve of Angolan independence, Ludo bricks herself into her apartment, where she will remain for the next thirty years. She lives off vegetables and pigeons, burns her furniture and books to stay alive and keeps herself busy by writing her story on the walls of her home.

The outside world slowly seeps into Ludo’s life through snippets on the radio, voices from next door, glimpses of a man fleeing his pursuers and a note attached to a bird’s foot. Until one day she meets Sabalu, a young boy from the street who climbs up to her terrace.

Reviews

  • A remarkable novel from one of Angola’s most notable storytellers
    Angel Gurria-Quintana, Financial Times, Books of the year

About the author

José Eduardo Agualusa

José Eduardo Agualusa was born in Huambo, Angola, and is one of the leading literary voices in Angola and the Portuguese-speaking world. His novel Creole was awarded the Portuguese Grand Prize for Literature, The Book of Chameleons won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize, and A General Theory of Oblivion won the DUBLIN Literary Award and was shortlisted for the Man Booker International Prize.
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