Human Love by Andrei Makine

Human Love

Andrei Makine

Forty years in the life of an African 'professional revolutionary' as understood, and partly narrated, by his Russian friend. As sad as might be expected but full of an amazing love of life and human beings. All Makine's books should be read and this is one of the best.

Extract
He made an effort to salvage the residue of love in this encounter between a fat body and a slim one. Then he remembered the movements made by the feet of the lovers in the sexual act. Tensing, relaxing, scratching. If only he could ask Ernesto: 'Could your struggle one day awaken something other than that in human hearts?'
Two days later he managed to join his father, whose travels across the country he was now to share. 'It's no good waiting passively for the revolutionary situation to arise.' Ernesto declared addressing the rebels. 'You have to provoke it. Yes. By force of arms!' Elias thought he had heard the terminology somewhere before. But most of all what these words silenced in him was the only question he wanted to ask: 'After the revolution do you think people will love one another in a different way?'
Parallels
  • Waiting for the Wild Beasts to Vote by Ahmadou Kourouma
  • Dr Zhivago by Boris Pasternak
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Violence
Explicit sexual Content