Horses Of God by Mahi Binebine (2013), published by Granta
What is it about? On May 16, 2003, fourteen suicide bombers launched a series of attacks throughout Casablanca. It was the deadliest attack in Morocco's history. The bombers came from the shantytowns of Sidi Moumen, a poor suburb on the edge of a dump. Horses of God follows four childhood friends growing up here as they make the life-changing decisions that will lead them to become Islamist martyrs. It is narrated by Yachine, one of these friends, from the afterlife.
Why should you read it? Beautifully wrought, Horses of God is both fierce and fearless, offering insight into the circumstances and forces which lead to such radical choices. It has divided critics though, with some questioning a gratuitous rape scene. Short-listed for the IMPAC Literary Award in 2015.
What the critics say: "Binebine is also a painter, and he uses all his senses to convey the squalor of the slum and 'its camp fires, where random musicians, their petrol cans transformed into mandolins, unfurl their laments into a hashish-scented sky'. This is in sharp contrast to the luxury hotel targeted by the suicide bombers." - Lucy Popescu, The Independent.
The author, on his role in society: "I hate being an activist. I can't get down to any work. I write a novel every couple of years and organise anything from ten to twenty exhibitions every year. In both my art and my writing I try to deal with issues such as migration and the causes of terrorism, but it is my practical work that really allows me to help people. There is a big difference between just writing about things and actually getting involved in helping directly."
For readers of… The Sacred Night by Tahar Ben Jelloun, Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall, A Good Country by Laleh Khadivi.
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