The Lion’s Binding Oath and Other Stories by Somali author Ahmed Ismail Yusuf is available now from LAPA Publishers.

The stories in The Lion’s Binding Oath are deceptively simple. They combine folktales with everyday events – boys and girls who develop crushes, boys who play soccer and girls who adore poetry – yet, underneath these storylines lies a web of references that combine seemingly haphazard narratives into a tightly knit unity.

The first story is of a boy who has to face up to wild animals in order to protect his family’s goats and sheep. Then the scene changes: We are transported into the heart of the ongoing caste system in Somalia and we experience first-hand how people conduct themselves worse than any predator ever would, for the ills in Somali society gave way to a civil war that to this day has not been resolved.

The stories remain personal, though: A mother tries to save her twin boys on the eve of Somalia’s collapsed state; a newlywed woman tries to save her sister from being raped by soldiers.

Yet, despite the horrors, the author finds beauty in simple, everyday moments. Boys and girls still fall in love. A teacher who has endured the shameful legacy of her outcast heritage encourages a young scholar to understand Somali poetry.

Yusuf does not shy away from tragedy, instead he explores both the human limits of endurance and the human limits of love. Somali folklore flows freely in and out of the fibres of these stories. In the last story a boy, who flees from the civil war, befriends a lion. Not only does it complete the story cycle, it yet again draws on an old folktale.

Yusuf’s simple narratives belie the fact that he is a masterful storyteller. This book is a must for all those who loved Arundhati Roy’s novel The Ministry of Utmost Happiness. In the United States The Lion’s Binding Oath was awarded a Kirkus Star, one of the highest honours a book can receive.

Categories Africa Fiction

Tags Ahmed Ismail Yusuf LAPA Publishers New books New releases Short Stories Somalia The Lion’s Binding Oath