Season of Migration to the North

AfteryearsofstudyinEurope,theyoungnarratorofSeasonofMigrationtotheNorthreturnstohisvillagealongtheNileintheSudan.Itisthe1960s,andheiseagertomakeacontributiontothenewpostcoloniallifeofhiscountry.Backhome,hediscoversastrangeramongthefamiliarfacesofchildhood—theenigmaticMustafaSa’eed.Mustafatakestheyoungmanintohisconfidence,tellinghimthestoryofhisownyearsinLondon,ofhisbrilliantcareerasaneconomist,andoftheseriesoffraughtanddeadlyrelationshipswithEuropeanwomenthatledtoaterriblepublicreckoningandhisreturntohisnativeland.ButwhatisthemeaningofMustafa’sshockingconfession?Mustafadisappearswithoutexplanation,leavingtheyoungman—whomhehasaskedtolookafterhiswife—inanunsettledandviolentno-man’s-landbetweenEuropeandAfrica,traditionandinnovation,holinessanddefilement,andmanandwoman,fromwhichnoonewillescapeunalteredorunharmed.SeasonofMigrationtotheNorthisarichandsensualworkofdeephonestyandincandescentlyricism.In2001itwasselectedbyapanelofArabwritersandcriticsasthemostimportantArabnovelofthetwentiethcentury.