Sweetness in the Belly

by Gibb, Camilla

• ISBN13: 9780385660181
• ISBN10: 0385660189
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-02-14
• Publisher: Anchor Books

Summary

NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE

Set in Emperor Haile Selassie’s Ethiopia and the racially charged world of Thatcher’s London, Sweetness in the Belly is a richly detailed portrayal of one woman’s search for love and belonging. Lilly, born to British parents, eventually finds herself living as a devout, young, white Muslim woman in the ancient walled city of Harar in the years leading up to the deposition of the emperor. She is drawn to an idealistic young doctor, Aziz, but their love has only just begun to fulfil its promise when the convulsions of a new order wrench them apart, sending Lilly to an England she has never seen, and Aziz into the darkness of a radical revolution. Camilla Gibb brings to life characters facing extraordinary hardship and loss with the unblinking honesty and emotional generosity that have made her one of Canada’s most exciting literary talents.

Author Biography

Camilla Gibb was born in London, England, and grew up in Toronto. She has a Ph.D. in social anthropology from Oxford University for which she conducted fieldwork in Ethiopia. Her two previous novels, Mouthing the Words and The Petty Details of So-and-so’s Life, have been translated into eleven languages and published to rave reviews around the world. She is one of 21 writers on the “Orange Futures List” — a list of young writers to watch, compiled by the jury of the prestigious Orange Prize. She is currently Writer in Residence at the University of Toronto.