Les Maîtres du sol
Conversation with Ryad Assani-Razaki

The Canadian Cultural Center invites you to a meeting with Canadian author Ryad Assani-Razaki to mark the French release of the novel Les Maîtres du sol, published by Liana Levi.

An ambitious and romantic epic, Les Maîtres du sol explores a fascinating yet little-known chapter in African history..

It was just a small fishing village on the Gulf of Guinea at the end of the 15^th century. Yet the Portuguese chose it as a base from which to reach sub-Saharan Africa and settle there. The villagers were utterly astonished, for the skin of these men—who had come in search of gold—was translucent, and their language indecipherable. Little by little, under pressure from the “white devils,” ancient beliefs begin to waver, and customs fade away. Everything changes—except for the custom that requires the disposal of children born with deformities, such as little Efua. Yet a mysterious man, who recently arrived in the village, takes an interest in the girl. Is he a slave, a prince, or a warrior? And what is the reason for his interest in Efua? The answers to these questions lie at the end of a long journey to Timbuktu. There, too, some are questioning the ancient beliefs. Dazzled by the Arabs’ knowledge, they want to impose the religion of Allah—which has come from the East—on the powerful Songhai Empire, at the risk of upsetting an ancestral balance…

Born in 1981 in Cotonou, Benin, Ryad Assani-Razaki lives in Toronto. In 2010, he won the Trillium Award for his collection of short stories, Deux cercles. He is also the author of La Main d’Iman, which won the Robert-Cliche Award for Best First Novel in 2011.

The event will be hosted by Lize Veyrard, editorial director of contemporary literature for the Folio series and will be followed by a book signing and sale.