''Beneath the Lion's Gaze'' is a 2010 novel by Ethiopian-American writer

Maaza Mengiste Maaza Mengiste (born 1974) is an Ethiopian-American writer. Her novels include ''Beneath the Lion's Gaze'' (2010) and ''The Shadow King (novel), The Shadow King'' (2019), which was shortlisted for the 2020 Booker Prize. Early life Mengiste was b ...

. It describes a family in

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

in 1974, living through the transition from emperor

Haile Selassie Haile Selassie I (born Tafari Makonnen or ''Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles#Lij, Lij'' Tafari; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as the Ethiopian aristocratic and court titles, Rege ...

to rule by the

Derg The Derg or Dergue (, ), officially the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC), was the military junta that ruled Ethiopia, including present-day Eritrea, from 1974 to 1987, when they formally "Civil government, civilianized" the ...

. Favorably reviewed, ''Beneath the Lion's Gaze'' was a nominee for several prizes.

Plot

''Beneath the Lion's Gaze'' is set in

in 1974, at the end of the rule of Ethiopian emperor

and the beginning of the military junta replacing Selassie's rule, the Derg. It follows the family of a doctor, his dying wife and their two sons through the political upheaval.

Reception

Writing in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', Lorraine Adams says, "Mengiste understands well the unique position her country occupies in Africa’s postcolonial landscape. And her uncanny rendition of Selassie’s last moments reveals her sensitivity to the twisted singularity of his magnetism." In ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', Pushpinder Khaneka named it to a list of best books about Ethiopia, saying, "This compassionate, tightly woven tale immediately draws the reader into its unfurling domestic and political drama. It’s an impressive literary debut." In ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'', Francesca Mari said, "The real marvel of this tender novel is its coiled plotting, in which coincidence manages to evoke the colossal emotional toll of the revolution."

Awards

* Shortlist, 2010 Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize * Finalist, 2011

Dayton Literary Peace Prize The Dayton Literary Peace Prize is an annual United States literary award "recognizing the power of the written word to promote peace" that was first awarded in 2006. Awards are given for adult fiction and non-fiction books published at some point ...

* Finalist, 2011 Indies Choice Book of the Year Award in Adult Debut

References

External links

''Beneath The Lion's Gaze'' at Norton's website
{{authority control 2010 American novels American historical novels Novels set in Ethiopia W. W. Norton & Company books Novels set in the 20th century