We have updated our Privacy Policy Please take a moment to review it. By continuing to use this site, you agree to the terms of our updated Privacy Policy.
Beasts of No Nation
Agu is just a boy when war arrives at his village. His mother and sister are rescued by the UN, while he and his father remain to fight the rebels. ‘Run!’ shouts his father when the rebels arrive. And Agu does run. Straight into the rebels’ path. In a vivid, sparkling voice, Agu tells the story of what happens to him next. His story is shocking and painful, and completely unforgettable.
Beasts of No Nation gives us an extraordinary portrait of the chaos and violence of war. It is a gripping and remarkable debut.
Beasts of No Nation gives us an extraordinary portrait of the chaos and violence of war. It is a gripping and remarkable debut.
Newsletter Signup
By clicking ‘Sign Up,’ I acknowledge that I have read and agree to Hachette Book Group’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
Reviews
'Extraordinary ... you don't come across writing like this very often.'
This is a work of visceral urgency and power: it heralds the arrival of a major talent
'So scorched by loss and anger that it's hard to hold and so gripping in its sheer hopeless lifeforce that it's hard to put down.'
'A harrowing and compelling vision ... the narrator's voice is so authentic you have to check you are still reading fiction ... This is a novel which leaves an impression like a blood-soaked hand print, disturbing not only for the terror around this cleaving, pulverising slayer, but the terror turning to 'ennui' within him. To call it shocking would be to do it a disservice. To call the writing beautiful would hardly be praise. To call the book staggering would be an understatement'
'The power of his material and its hideous relevance rolls all before it ... This book about children that is in no sense a children's book deserves to be read'
'This is an extraordinary book ... horrifying expose ... vivid ... It casts a powerful, if gruesome spell'
'Iweala makes a compelling story from experience which in its nature defies articulation ... Uzodinma Iweala's is a confident and promising new voice'
'Gives a name, a voice and a heart to one of Africa's innumerable child soldiers ... This is urgent writing, starkly unsentimental and convincing'
'His riveting revelations... make this a truly shocking and unforgettable book.'
'First-time novelist Uzodinma Iweala has made a virtue of simplicity and, in beautifully unadorned language, has captured the universal tragedy of war and its victims.'
'Linguistically ingenious, Beasts of No Nation is a remarkable debut, a hugely resonant discourse on an uncomfortable subject.'
'This sad, unforgettable novel is a fitting testament to the countless Agus who continue to kill and be killed across that most tragic of continents.'
'A chilling work of fiction that has visceral impact.'
'Compelling ... perturbing, painful and powerful'
'A stunningly mature debut'
'Compelling, haunting and refreshing'
'Stream-like sentences that convey irrestible, rushing activitiy ... Iweala's powerful debut recalls Saro-Wiwa's first-person masterpiece of a soldier-boy'
'A searing first novel'
'Beasts of No Nation is written with the authority of someone who knows what they're talking about'
'A simple and brutal account of war ... Beasts of No Nation is a raw, compelling first novel'
Extraordinary . . . you don't come across writing like this very often
A work of visceral urgency and power: it heralds the arrival of a major talent
So scorched by loss and anger that it's hard to hold and so gripping in its sheer hopeless lifeforce that it's hard to put down
A harrowing and compelling vision . . . the narrator's voice is so authentic you have to check you are still reading fiction . . . This is a novel which leaves an impression like a blood-soaked hand print, disturbing not only for the terror around this cleaving, pulverising slayer, but the terror turning to 'ennui' within him. To call it shocking would be to do it a disservice. To call the writing beautiful would hardly be praise. To call the book staggering would be an understatement
The power of his material and its hideous relevance rolls all before it . . . This book about children that is in no sense a children's book deserves to be read
An extraordinary book . . . horrifying expose . . . vivid . . . . It casts a powerful, if gruesome spell
Iweala makes a compelling story from experience which in its nature defies articulation . . . Uzodinma Iweala's is a confident and promising new voice
Gives a name, a voice and a heart to one of Africa's innumerable child soldiers . . . This is urgent writing, starkly unsentimental and convincing
Compelling . . . perturbing, painful and powerful
Stream-like sentences that convey irrestible, rushing activitiy . . . Iweala's powerful debut recalls Saro-Wiwa's first-person masterpiece of a soldier-boy
A simple and brutal account of war . . . Beasts of No Nation is a raw, compelling first novel