The Shadow King
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- Create Date：2021-06-10 09:53:25
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Maaza Mengiste
- ISBN：1838851178
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Summary
A gripping novel set during Mussolini’s 1935 invasion of Ethiopia， The Shadow King takes us back to the first real conflict of World War II， casting light on the women soldiers who were left out of the historical record。
With the threat of Mussolini’s army looming， recently orphaned Hirut struggles to adapt to her new life as a maid in Kidane and his wife Aster’s household。 Kidane， an officer in Emperor Haile Selassie’s army， rushes to mobilize his strongest men before the Italians invade。 His initial kindness to Hirut shifts into a flinty cruelty when she resists his advances， and Hirut finds herself tumbling into a new world of thefts and violations， of betrayals and overwhelming rage。 Meanwhile， Mussolini’s technologically advanced army prepares for an easy victory。 Hundreds of thousands of Italians—Jewish photographer Ettore among them—march on Ethiopia seeking adventure。
As the war begins in earnest， Hirut， Aster， and the other women long to do more than care for the wounded and bury the dead。 When Emperor Haile Selassie goes into exile and Ethiopia quickly loses hope， it is Hirut who offers a plan to maintain morale。 She helps disguise a gentle peasant as the emperor and soon becomes his guard， inspiring other women to take up arms against the Italians。 But how could she have predicted her own personal war as a prisoner of one of Italy’s most vicious officers， who will force her to pose before Ettore’s camera？
What follows is a gorgeously crafted and unputdownable exploration of female power， with Hirut as the fierce， original， and brilliant voice at its heart。 In incandescent， lyrical prose， Maaza Mengiste breathes life into complicated characters on both sides of the battle line， shaping a heartrending， indelible exploration of what it means to be a woman at war。
With the threat of Mussolini’s army looming， recently orphaned Hirut struggles to adapt to her new life as a maid in Kidane and his wife Aster’s household。 Kidane， an officer in Emperor Haile Selassie’s army， rushes to mobilize his strongest men before the Italians invade。 His initial kindness to Hirut shifts into a flinty cruelty when she resists his advances， and Hirut finds herself tumbling into a new world of thefts and violations， of betrayals and overwhelming rage。 Meanwhile， Mussolini’s technologically advanced army prepares for an easy victory。 Hundreds of thousands of Italians—Jewish photographer Ettore among them—march on Ethiopia seeking adventure。
As the war begins in earnest， Hirut， Aster， and the other women long to do more than care for the wounded and bury the dead。 When Emperor Haile Selassie goes into exile and Ethiopia quickly loses hope， it is Hirut who offers a plan to maintain morale。 She helps disguise a gentle peasant as the emperor and soon becomes his guard， inspiring other women to take up arms against the Italians。 But how could she have predicted her own personal war as a prisoner of one of Italy’s most vicious officers， who will force her to pose before Ettore’s camera？
What follows is a gorgeously crafted and unputdownable exploration of female power， with Hirut as the fierce， original， and brilliant voice at its heart。 In incandescent， lyrical prose， Maaza Mengiste breathes life into complicated characters on both sides of the battle line， shaping a heartrending， indelible exploration of what it means to be a woman at war。
Reviews
Florentina
，
I have mixed feelings about this book。 I desperately wanted to love it。 But I just could not get into it。 And when I did get into it， I could not wait for it to end。 But then the last couple of pages left me wanting more。 You see what I mean by ‘mixed feelings’？ I don’t think I have ever taken as many breaks as I did with this one。 Took me 7 months！。。。Seven long months of trying not to read anything else cause I refused to DNF。
Francesca Rosa
，
Etiopia， 1974。 Una donna attende qualcuno nella stazione di Addis Abbeba， ha con sé una cassetta in cui sono custodite lettere e foto。 La apre e inizia a ricordare la sua storia。Etiopia， 1935。 Hirut è una ragazzina che lavora come cameriera nella casa del nobile Kidane e della moglie Aster， ma l'arrivo delle truppe italiane sconvolge questo precario equilibrio。 Hirut si ritroverà al fianco di Aster nelle vesti della guardia privata del Re Ombra e vivrà sulla sua pelle le esperienze della guerra Etiopia， 1974。 Una donna attende qualcuno nella stazione di Addis Abbeba， ha con sé una cassetta in cui sono custodite lettere e foto。 La apre e inizia a ricordare la sua storia。Etiopia， 1935。 Hirut è una ragazzina che lavora come cameriera nella casa del nobile Kidane e della moglie Aster， ma l'arrivo delle truppe italiane sconvolge questo precario equilibrio。 Hirut si ritroverà al fianco di Aster nelle vesti della guardia privata del Re Ombra e vivrà sulla sua pelle le esperienze della guerra e della prigionia。Un racconto complesso quello imbastito da Maaze Mengiste， che si dipana fra capitoli， coro （momenti raccontati da un narratore esterno） e interludi （brevi divagazioni sul personaggio di Selassie。 Il risultato è un corpus spezzettato， che ha tutta la forma del flusso di coscienza in cui vengono assorbiti anche i dialoghi。 La libertà per cui combattere， il coraggio di un popolo e gli orrori perpetrati dagli invasori vengono buttati nel racconto， quasi non avessero un reale valore。 Persino la figura storica del re diviene un fantoccio ossessionato dalla Aida e dai fantasmi。 Un effetto sicuramente voluto， che lascia però alla fine una sensazione di insoddisfazione。 Non si è letto né un libro di guerra e nemmeno sulla guerra， che è semplice ambientazione di sfondo per una serie di storie che si intrecciano per caso e nemmeno troppo bene insieme。 。。。more
Mike Greenslade
，
I thoroughly enjoyed this epic historical tale。 It took a while to get into the writing style （not a book to read in spurts） but once I found the time to immerse myself， I was swept away by the cinematic descriptions。 As a photographer， I loved the references to lighting （and the birds）。 A tough read for some of my book club colleagues， but Mengiste pulls no punches with this piece of forgotten history。
Lubna
，
I really liked this novel， it was one of the most interesting things I’ve ever read。 The Shadow King is the first novel I read that was written by an Ethiopian author， I’ve read books by African authors from other parts of the continent， but not Ethiopia and this was a revelation。 The subject matter is the Italian fascist invasion of Ethiopia in 1935， an event that doesn’t get enough attention in history books in my opinion。 There’s a lot of war and trauma in here， sometimes it was hard to read， I really liked this novel， it was one of the most interesting things I’ve ever read。 The Shadow King is the first novel I read that was written by an Ethiopian author， I’ve read books by African authors from other parts of the continent， but not Ethiopia and this was a revelation。 The subject matter is the Italian fascist invasion of Ethiopia in 1935， an event that doesn’t get enough attention in history books in my opinion。 There’s a lot of war and trauma in here， sometimes it was hard to read， but I still think it’s an excellent book。 As for the characters， for most of the book I didn’t find the protagonist Hirut to be very interesting， particularly for the first half of the novel。 I felt sorry for her， but didn’t find her particularly sympathetic or compelling。 In contrast， Aster， who has the role of an antagonist for most of the story， was a much more fascinating character。 I found myself looking forward to reading the parts where she played a bigger role and she’s far more complex and nuanced than Hirut。 She’s got an interesting blend of cruelty， kindness， vulnerability， heroism and leadership as well as downright nastiness。 I would’ve liked to have a bit more Aster in this book。 For the secondary characters， I felt that the parts about the emperor were needlessly long and quite boring， they didn’t add much to the action or the plot （they were labeled “interlude” after all）， and could’ve been far shorter。 All in all， I highly recommend this book as one of those stories that opened up a new window into a culture that I didn’t know enough about despite having so much in common with my own culture。 It’s a beautiful and masterful book and I look forward to reading more novels by the author。 。。。more
Keisha Pierce
，
Enjoyed reading about Ethiopian history - the war against the Italians invasion during WWII。 It was super interesting but at times slow， I really thought there would be a stronger story with a bigger relationship between Hirut and the Italian photographer。 I kept waiting for great things to happen - Asher becoming a woman warrior leader， Haile Selassie coming back to help his people， people coming to Hirut's aid anything， low lasting friendships， understanding of the cook's backstory。 Enjoyed reading about Ethiopian history - the war against the Italians invasion during WWII。 It was super interesting but at times slow， I really thought there would be a stronger story with a bigger relationship between Hirut and the Italian photographer。 I kept waiting for great things to happen - Asher becoming a woman warrior leader， Haile Selassie coming back to help his people， people coming to Hirut's aid anything， low lasting friendships， understanding of the cook's backstory。 。。。more
Laura Schantz
，
Unlike anything elseDynamic characters in a story that’s heartbreaking， inspiring， and true。 Written both poetically and cinematically， this novel is stylistic and memorable。 Truly excellent。
Destanye B。
，
I COULD NOT get into this book to save my life。 To me， this book did not deliver a good exciting story。 I really wanted to be captured by this book， which told the story of how Mussolini and his Italian armies were invading Ethiopia。 Read more of my thoughts below。 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
S。C。 Karakaltsas
，
Short listed for the Booker Prize in 2020， this is a fascinating and insightful epic about the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in 1935。It opens with Hirut， an older Ethiopian woman travelling on a bus in 1974 through a troubled Addis Ababa。 She’s on her way to take a box of photos to Ettore， a man who’d once been her jailer after her capture by Mussolini’s army。The story takes us back to just before the Italian invasion when as an orphan， Hirut is taken in as a reluctant servant to Kidane and his w Short listed for the Booker Prize in 2020， this is a fascinating and insightful epic about the Italian invasion of Ethiopia in 1935。It opens with Hirut， an older Ethiopian woman travelling on a bus in 1974 through a troubled Addis Ababa。 She’s on her way to take a box of photos to Ettore， a man who’d once been her jailer after her capture by Mussolini’s army。The story takes us back to just before the Italian invasion when as an orphan， Hirut is taken in as a reluctant servant to Kidane and his wife Aster。 When Kidane， an officer in the army mobilises troupes to fight， strong-willed Aster galvanises all the women in the district to help and Hirut transforms from servant to fierce warrior。The Emperor， Haile Selassie flees the country and when all hope appears lost， Hirut suggests disguising a peasant as the emperor to fool the Italians and inspire the Ethiopian army to continue the fight。 Hirut is eventually captured and embroiled in her own personal war against her captors， one of which is Ettore。It’s an incredibly written and lyrical novel on a brutal and horrific subject。 Mengiste’s descriptions are poetic and I’d suggest you ignore the absence of some punctuation and enjoy the writing。“She is close enough to see him racing across the spine of the mountain， his heels flying， that chest a swell of bony ribs and heavy air。 In the ebbing night， he comes first as sound: the snap of a branch， a scrape of foot on stone。 A hiss curving against the soft orange light。 He is a fleeting mirage speeding over rough hills， shallow gasps stalling in thick breeze。”The history is rich giving us insight into both sides of this little-known war of which I was totally ignorant。 The author explores the bravery and sheer persistence by the Ethiopians in particular the power of their female soldiers。 Mostly told from Hirut’s point of view， we are also given insight into other characters such as Ettore and Selassie who are rich and complex。 The themes are numerous: trauma， survival， forced marriage， and colonisation to name some。 Interestingly， Mengiste’s own great-grandmother had been a soldier and presumably provided her inspiration。t’s a wonderfully enlightening and moving account of war fought by strong courageous women。 Check it out。 。。。more
CarleighC
，
I hate to give this a four star review， because this is a better book than all of the other four stars I’ve handed out。 It’s less of a book than a lyrical ballad put into writing。 The characters are well developed。 The subject matter is pretty grim， and can be devastating at times， but （thank Satan） the characters more or less get what they deserve by the end。 So it’s not all blood and tragedy。 It was a fantastic way to learn about this slice of history。 Only complaints: - Parts of it dragged on I hate to give this a four star review， because this is a better book than all of the other four stars I’ve handed out。 It’s less of a book than a lyrical ballad put into writing。 The characters are well developed。 The subject matter is pretty grim， and can be devastating at times， but （thank Satan） the characters more or less get what they deserve by the end。 So it’s not all blood and tragedy。 It was a fantastic way to learn about this slice of history。 Only complaints: - Parts of it dragged on。 There are a lot of interlude chapters giving sentimental portraits of tangential characters。 I often did not understand their function in the overarching story。 It was clear some were used to humanize the major players on the two sides of the war。 Others， didn’t have a clear purpose。 I didn’t dislike these chapters， but did dislike that there were a lot of them。 - There were a lot of character exchanges that I did not understand。 There would be a ton of beautiful language describing the character and their perception of the situation。 And I’m sure something was implied， but I didn’t understand the implication。 Some of this could just be cultural？ - Someone else had said the lack of quotes indicating that a person was speaking made the character to character conversations difficult to follow。 Somewhat agree。 Though， this added to the feeling that I was reading an oral legend， so it was not super annoying to me。 。。。more
Come Musica
，
“Non c’è via d’uscita se non attraverso， le diciamo。 Non c’è via di fuga se non da dentro。”Questo ritornello （a mo' di mantra） accompagna tutta la lettura e ogni volta che l'ho incontrato è come se mi avesse fornito nuove chiavi di lettura， ma non solo del libro， della mia vita in genere。 Questo libro ha i profumi， i colori e la forza delle donne etiopi。 Maaza Mengisti dà voce a quelle donne che si sono ribellate all'oppressore， dove gli oppressori furono gli italiani che， dal 1935 al 1936， comp “Non c’è via d’uscita se non attraverso， le diciamo。 Non c’è via di fuga se non da dentro。”Questo ritornello （a mo' di mantra） accompagna tutta la lettura e ogni volta che l'ho incontrato è come se mi avesse fornito nuove chiavi di lettura， ma non solo del libro， della mia vita in genere。 Questo libro ha i profumi， i colori e la forza delle donne etiopi。 Maaza Mengisti dà voce a quelle donne che si sono ribellate all'oppressore， dove gli oppressori furono gli italiani che， dal 1935 al 1936， compirono la campagna di Etiopia， voluta da Mussolini。 In ogni pagina vibra la forza di Aster e di Hirut che resistono e non piegano il capo a una condizione di schiavitù。 La guerra etiope non fu una guerra solo maschile。 Con le unghie e con i denti， le donne etiopi difesero la loro terra。 “La nostra terra ci proteggerà， ha ripetuto piú volte， ogni pietra si porrà al nostro servizio， ogni fiume scorrerà verso di noi。 Continuate a camminare， sorelle， con la testa alta e la schiena dritta。 Muovetevi come fecero le nostre madri quando， anche loro， andarono in guerra。”E le donne in questo romanzo fanno sentire la loro voce （questo è infatti un romanzo corale） e sono loro il Re Ombra:“E nell’ampio fascio di luce che entra dalle finestre della stazione， Hirut tira fuori la lettera e la passa a Ettore mentre comincia a dire:Getey， Fasil， Aster， Nardos， Zenebwork， Siti， Tesfaye， Dawit， Beniam， Tariku， Girum， Amha， Bekafa， Bisrat， Desta， Befekadu， Saleh， Ililta， Meaza， Lakew， Ahmed， Eskinder， Biruk， Genet， Gabriel， Matteos， Leul， Hoda， Birtukan， Mulumabet， Estifanos， Hewan， Lukas， Habte， Mimi， Kiros， Mohamed， Wongel， Atnaf， Jembere， Imru， Senait， Yosef， Mahlet， Alem， Girma， Gelila， Birtukan， Freiwot， Tiruneh， Marta， Harya， Hayalnesh， Mengiste， Zinash， Petros， Anketse， Sergut， Mikael， Mogus， Teodros， Checole， Kidane， Lidia， Fifi e Ferres， e la cuoca， la cuoca， la cuoca， e mentre dice i loro nomi sente che le si stanno radunando intorno e la incalzano: Diglielo， Hirut， eravamo noi il Re Ombra。 Fummo noi quelli che entrarono in un paese distrutto da un flagello invasore riaccendendo la speranza del popolo etiope。”Bello anche il racconto attraverso le foto: “Che cosa può sapere se non quel che vede mentre fissa quella giovane donna che stringe seta annodata come se fosse nata per drappeggiarvisi: una bellezza incomprensibile e feroce， forte abbastanza per penetrare nelle ossa e insediarsi nel cuore e spezzarlo per sempre。”Bello， bello， bello！ 。。。more
Tom Kelly
，
This is an amazing story which should be heard - giving great insight into Ethiopia in the 1930s under Italian rule and the role of women in society。The problem was it was such a slog to get through。 The writing was too poetic and fluffy to the extent it was really difficult to engage with as the story never flowed - I rarely wanted to keep on reading or pick the book up again when I had time on my hands （demonstrated by the fact it took me 3 months to finish）。
Amelia Mutter
，
Parts of this story are really interesting but it is not the best written book I have read。 In some cases I had a hard time understanding what was happening， in others nothing happened for long stretches。 The characters were not particularly well developed and the connections between them were a bit hard to understand。 Wouldn't really recommend。 Parts of this story are really interesting but it is not the best written book I have read。 In some cases I had a hard time understanding what was happening， in others nothing happened for long stretches。 The characters were not particularly well developed and the connections between them were a bit hard to understand。 Wouldn't really recommend。 。。。more
Natalie
，
This novel is breathtaking — one of the best I’ve read in a long time。 Maaza Mengiste is a master。 Detailing a turbulent era in Ethiopian history （a clash involving invasion by fascist Italy just before WWII and the flight of Emperor Haile Selassie to England）， Mengiste brings women soldiers back into the historical record， following a young girl named Hirut and the violences she experiences （and inflicts） during wartime。 I thought this would be a coming of age story， but what I got was so much This novel is breathtaking — one of the best I’ve read in a long time。 Maaza Mengiste is a master。 Detailing a turbulent era in Ethiopian history （a clash involving invasion by fascist Italy just before WWII and the flight of Emperor Haile Selassie to England）， Mengiste brings women soldiers back into the historical record， following a young girl named Hirut and the violences she experiences （and inflicts） during wartime。 I thought this would be a coming of age story， but what I got was so much more; instead an epic following the Ethiopian resistance and an Italian camp richly layered against the backdrop of impending Jewish genocide in Europe。 Resurrection is a key theme throughout — for Hirut， orphaned， beaten， violated， imprisoned， who remakes herself again and again; for Aster， rebelling for a second time against the bounds of duty after failed motherhood; for Italian soldier Ettore， who must find himself anew after losing his country; and for all those in the resistance who lost an emperor and remade themselves into a collective （and literal） Shadow King， symbol of hope and fight。 The book is lyrical and mimics song （or perhaps Italian opera？）， falling between narrative， chorus， and interlude， creating an epic register that sings the women back into being。 It’s also told through descriptions of Ettore’s wartime photographs — records of violence committed， passed around as tools of Italian propaganda meant to further perpetuate cruelty， and yet the photographic act is also one of violence itself: as Hirut notices， the images are “never more than an object imprisoned by the eye” （383）。 Exceptionally beautiful and multifaceted， this is one I’ll be thinking through for a long time。 。。。more
Rasheedat
，
This book is so layered and interesting。 I kept jumping between its pages and Google。 Trying to sort out the fiction from non fiction。。it was really nice to learn about this history。 This book took me to many places。 I'd definitely read it again and again This book is so layered and interesting。 I kept jumping between its pages and Google。 Trying to sort out the fiction from non fiction。。it was really nice to learn about this history。 This book took me to many places。 I'd definitely read it again and again 。。。more
Cat
，
liked the writing。 didn't like the story。 liked the writing。 didn't like the story。 。。。more
Jo
，
I couldn’t finish this book。 I found the descriptions of violence against women too brutal， so I only read a few chapters。
Heather Taylor Johnson
，
Such a powerful book of war， written with a strong female focus and a remarkable female flourish。 Taking place in Ethiopia when Mussolini’s army invaded， this is a story about resistance fighters。 Maaza Mengiste is stunning from the sentence-level， and the book is structured fearlessly with both grandness and surprise。 I’m using far too many big words here because I’m impressed， I cannot lie， but do I like reading about war？ Not really。 The violent masculinity is， in the end， too much， but Mangi Such a powerful book of war， written with a strong female focus and a remarkable female flourish。 Taking place in Ethiopia when Mussolini’s army invaded， this is a story about resistance fighters。 Maaza Mengiste is stunning from the sentence-level， and the book is structured fearlessly with both grandness and surprise。 I’m using far too many big words here because I’m impressed， I cannot lie， but do I like reading about war？ Not really。 The violent masculinity is， in the end， too much， but Mangiste makes the narrative more than palpable。 I find the book to be as visual as it is emotional。 。。。more
Claire Kenealy
，
Loved it， it is first time that I have read a book from the viewpoint of a woman combatant。 Really enjoyed it but i wasn't convinced about the need or role of a chorus at beginning of each chapter。 This did not take away from the book either。 It was really interesting that the author had a relative who fought also。 The differences in technology between Italian army and Ethiopian guerrillas were very stark and of course a great victory as Ethiopians won in the end。 Just like Irish against British Loved it， it is first time that I have read a book from the viewpoint of a woman combatant。 Really enjoyed it but i wasn't convinced about the need or role of a chorus at beginning of each chapter。 This did not take away from the book either。 It was really interesting that the author had a relative who fought also。 The differences in technology between Italian army and Ethiopian guerrillas were very stark and of course a great victory as Ethiopians won in the end。 Just like Irish against British empire in war of independence 1919/1920 which was a very underrated campaign internationally。 。。。more
Abigail
，
Gripping。 Heart breaking， beautiful， and righteous。
Lee
，
This book is historical fiction at its best。 Mengiste follows women who fought in the Ethiopian resistance to Italian colonization， two of them intimately。 The novel develops characters on both sides of the struggle and is deeply rooted in archival material。 Mengiste conveys the inhumanity of colonialism and gives texture to the Ethiopian resistance。 As an American， the unfamiliarity of the characters’ names made it a bit hard to follow them all at first。
Claire
，
It's got to be a 2 stars。 I feel bad， because it's a worthy topic （the female Ethiopian fighters in WW2） but MY GOD was I bored and irritated by this book。 I couldn't wait to finish it。I'm slowly working my way through my Christmas and birthday books - this was one Rob got me - he gave up trying to listen to the audio himself as there were too many characters in a short space of time。 I wasn't bothered by that; I was more bothered by the pretentious writing style that plagues all of these histor It's got to be a 2 stars。 I feel bad， because it's a worthy topic （the female Ethiopian fighters in WW2） but MY GOD was I bored and irritated by this book。 I couldn't wait to finish it。I'm slowly working my way through my Christmas and birthday books - this was one Rob got me - he gave up trying to listen to the audio himself as there were too many characters in a short space of time。 I wasn't bothered by that; I was more bothered by the pretentious writing style that plagues all of these historical-fictional retellings。 I honestly couldn't have taken one more poorly structured colon sentence （the number of times she writes 'there is this:' followed by a list of pretentious items really began to fuck me off after a while）。Please don't buy me any historical imaginings。 I really really despise them。 。。。more
sarahreads
，
Stunningly painful to read， wonderful poetic language to decipher， mysteriously confusing and utterly cleansing in the end。This is a story that proves that war is not something that is only male。 Although the form was kind of tiring for me （minus one star）， because the plot is often paused for interludes， "Photos" or "Choruses"， the plot itself totally makes up for it。 Also it picks up on plotting and character-building from the second book on。 4/5 recommendation！ Stunningly painful to read， wonderful poetic language to decipher， mysteriously confusing and utterly cleansing in the end。This is a story that proves that war is not something that is only male。 Although the form was kind of tiring for me （minus one star）， because the plot is often paused for interludes， "Photos" or "Choruses"， the plot itself totally makes up for it。 Also it picks up on plotting and character-building from the second book on。 4/5 recommendation！ 。。。more
Jasmine Hussain
，
Read 60% of this book and decided it was not for me。 I found it quite confusing to keep up with the characters and change in timeline。 I wished there was more depth to the characters especially with the relationship between Hirut and Kidane。 Overall I couldn’t find enough flow in the story for me to continue！
DAGMARA
，
A difficult book to read for all the violence， not just of war but towards women in a patriachal society with arranged child bride marriage。 But worth the effort！ It's about Ethiopia's war of 5 yr against the second Italian invasion which began in 1935 when Mussoli dreamed of empire。 The Italians had tried in the late 1800s and lost to the Ethioians who remained the only part of Africa not colonized。 It is the story of females who because warriors and the fake shadow king Haile Selassie after th A difficult book to read for all the violence， not just of war but towards women in a patriachal society with arranged child bride marriage。 But worth the effort！ It's about Ethiopia's war of 5 yr against the second Italian invasion which began in 1935 when Mussoli dreamed of empire。 The Italians had tried in the late 1800s and lost to the Ethioians who remained the only part of Africa not colonized。 It is the story of females who because warriors and the fake shadow king Haile Selassie after the king fled to England created to encourage the tribal folks to fight on and resist。 The author's great grandmother was a fighter and she while living in Italy collected Fascist memorobilia of that Italian colonial period at flea markets。 Women in the photos she bought or had Italian friends buy when sale to her was refused， inspired her characters of Aster and HIrut-strong survivors and fighters who survived much。 I learned a lot about Ethiopia by reading this。 The emporor was killed in the 70's Marxist revolt by the uprising in his bed （ not in the bk）。 I liked the analogy to Aida and her father brought in by Selasi listening to Verdi recording evoking Ethiopian captivity in the Egyptian conquest。。。。Lyrical good writing that's descriptive。 Not surprised it was a Booker prize list contender。 Author attended Queens college and lives in NY 。。。more
Kate
，
4。5 stars。 Unlike other reviewers I did find this gripping， but I can agree that in places the language is overdone。 The story shines so much so that I didn’t find the prose style distracting。 I really didn’t know much about this time and place and this book certainly takes you there; it’s very much a worthwhile read。“The Shadow King tells the story of those Ethiopian women who fought alongside men， who even today have remained no more than errant lines in faded documents。 What I have come to un 4。5 stars。 Unlike other reviewers I did find this gripping， but I can agree that in places the language is overdone。 The story shines so much so that I didn’t find the prose style distracting。 I really didn’t know much about this time and place and this book certainly takes you there; it’s very much a worthwhile read。“The Shadow King tells the story of those Ethiopian women who fought alongside men， who even today have remained no more than errant lines in faded documents。 What I have come to understand is this: The story of war has always been a masculine story， but this was not true for Ethiopia and it has never been that way in any form of struggle。 Women have been there， we are here now。” ~Maaza Mengiste 。。。more
Christine Butchko
，
Third times the charm， I guess？ I finally read this book in it’s entirety。 It’s beautifully written albeit the writing is dense and you must read carefully or you’ll miss the plot entirely。This was the first Booker nominee I did not enjoy。
Andrea Matteazzi
，
Un libro che racconta un pezzo di storia da un punto di vista diverso， nuovo。 A fronte di descrizioni magistralmente illustrate che evocano immagini e sensazioni che denotano una bravura unica dell'autrice， la scrittura è complicata e rallenta la lettura， con alcune scelte stilisticamente discutibili （una su tutti la totale assenza di punteggiatura nel discorso diretto che si unisce， quindi， senza soluzione di continuità a pensieri ed azioni dei protagonisti）。I fatti narrati， di fantasia dell'au Un libro che racconta un pezzo di storia da un punto di vista diverso， nuovo。 A fronte di descrizioni magistralmente illustrate che evocano immagini e sensazioni che denotano una bravura unica dell'autrice， la scrittura è complicata e rallenta la lettura， con alcune scelte stilisticamente discutibili （una su tutti la totale assenza di punteggiatura nel discorso diretto che si unisce， quindi， senza soluzione di continuità a pensieri ed azioni dei protagonisti）。I fatti narrati， di fantasia dell'autrice， raccontano episodi verosimilmente avvenuti ma sarebbe stata interessante una maggiore integrazione con eventi storici reali。Un libro che va assolutamente letto， ma che deve essere affrontato con la pazienza e l'attenzione necessarie。 。。。more
Rozeeta
，
Fascinating premise， well written， but more them a third through the book I did have any emotional connection or investment in any of the characters。 I wanted to find out what happened， but not enough to push through a very long dense book with characters I couldn't get inside。 Fascinating premise， well written， but more them a third through the book I did have any emotional connection or investment in any of the characters。 I wanted to find out what happened， but not enough to push through a very long dense book with characters I couldn't get inside。 。。。more
robin burak
，
i don't know what to say about this book。 to be fair， it's been a couple months since i read it （i forgot to review it。。。 ）， but i can still attest to its beautiful writing and heartbreaking story。 warning for graphic violence and r*pe， as well as death （it's a war book， so。。。 ）！ but， if you aren't sensitive to that stuff， i'd HIGHLY recommend reading it。 i don't know what to say about this book。 to be fair， it's been a couple months since i read it （i forgot to review it。。。 ）， but i can still attest to its beautiful writing and heartbreaking story。 warning for graphic violence and r*pe， as well as death （it's a war book， so。。。 ）！ but， if you aren't sensitive to that stuff， i'd HIGHLY recommend reading it。 。。。more
Jonathan Frank
，
A little slow to get started and the writing is a bit florid at times， but the story plays out in a pretty powerful and memorable way。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Shadow King
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Shadow King&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Shadow King&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0