Aichetou's "The Forsaken" at Words Without Borders

An excerpt from Aichetou’s historical novel Je Suis N’Daté , which details the legend of the Forsaken, a community of Bedouin women in a seventeenth-century nomadic encampment.

Part of Words Without Borders’ May 2021 issue focusing on Mauritania, guest edited by July Blalack, who provides an excellent introduction.

Simultaneously Arab, West African, Saharan, and Sahelian, and straddling the Arabophone and Francophone spheres, Mauritania boasts a rich literature reflecting its multiple cultures. Ahmed Isselmou depicts a global currency system under cyberattack. In tales that speak to Mauritania's tradition of movement, Aichetou looks back to a female community in a seventeenth-century Bedouin encampment, while Moussa Ould Ebnou sends a time traveler in search of a better future. Cheikh Nouh records the history and traditions of a village, and Mariem Mint Derwich highlights the role of women in preserving a nomadic culture. Mamadou Kalidou Ba sits in as two activist groups join forces against the repressive state. And Bios Diallo finds common ground with other African nations.