Zeitoun

Zeitoun

Summary

WINNER OF THE AMERICAN BOOK AWARD AND THE LA TIMES BOOK AWARD

'Masterly. Brilliantly crafted, powerfully written and deftly reported' Guardian

The urgent and unforgettable true story of post-Katrina New Orleans . . .

In August 2005, as Hurricane Katrina blew in, the city of New Orleans has been abandoned by most citizens. But resident Abdulrahman Zeitoun, though his wife and family had gone, refused to leave. For days he traversed an apocalyptic landscape of flooded streets by canoe. But eventually he came to the attention of those 'guarding' this drowned city. Only then did Zeitoun's nightmare really begin.

Zeitoun is the powerful, ultimately uplifting true story of one man's courage when confronted with an awesome force of nature followed by more troubling human oppression.

'Eggers uses Zeitoun's eyes to report on America's reasonless post-Katrina world, Reminiscent of Gabriel Garcia Márquez's documentaries, this is a true story told with the skills of a master of fiction. Immensely readable' Independent

'The stuff of great narrative non-fiction. Fifty years from now, when people want to know what happened to this once-great city, they will be talking about a family named Zeitoun' The New York Times Book Review

Reviews

  • Eggers uses Zeitoun's eyes to report on America's reasonless post-Katrina world. Reminiscent of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's documentaries, this is a true story told with the skills of a master of fiction. Immensely readable
    Independent

About the author

Dave Eggers

Dave Eggers is the author of many acclaimed books, including The Circle; What is the What and Zeitoun.

He is the founder of the publishing house and magazine McSweeney's and the cofounder of 826 Valencia, a youth writing center that has inspired similar programs around the world.

His work has been translated into forty-two languages.
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