Ahmadou Kourouma facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ahmadou Kourouma
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| Born | 24 November 1927 Boundiali, Côte d'Ivoire |
| Died | 11 December 2003 (aged 76) Lyon, France |
| Language | French |
| Nationality | Côte d'Ivoire |
| Genre | Novel |
| Notable works | Les Soleils des indépendances; En attendant le vote des bêtes sauvages; Allah n'est pas obligé |
| Notable awards | Prix Renaudot; Prix Goncourt des Lycéens |
Ahmadou Kourouma (born November 24, 1927 – died December 11, 2003) was a famous writer from Côte d'Ivoire, a country in West Africa. He wrote many novels, which are long stories, mostly in French. His books often talked about important events and challenges in Africa after countries gained their independence.
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About Ahmadou Kourouma
Ahmadou Kourouma was born in 1927 in a town called Boundiali in Côte d'Ivoire. He was the oldest son in a respected family of the Mandinka people. His uncle raised him, and he first studied in Bamako, Mali.
From 1950 to 1954, when Côte d'Ivoire was still controlled by France (this was called "colonial control"), Ahmadou Kourouma joined the French army. He fought in wars in a place called Indochina. After his time in the army, he went to France to study mathematics in the city of Lyon.
Returning Home and Speaking Out
In 1960, Côte d'Ivoire became an independent country. Kourouma returned home, but he soon started to disagree with the government's leader, Félix Houphouët-Boigny. Because of his views, he was put in prison for a short time.
After that, Kourouma had to live outside his home country for many years. This is called "exile." He lived in Algeria (from 1964 to 1969), then in Cameroon (from 1974 to 1984), and later in Togo (from 1984 to 1994). Finally, he was able to return to Côte d'Ivoire.
Kourouma wanted to share his thoughts about how African countries were doing after becoming independent. He felt that some of the hopes people had for independence were not being met. So, he started writing novels.
His Important Books
His first novel, Les Soleils des indépendances (which means The Suns of Independence), was published in 1970. In this book, he wrote about the problems faced by African governments after they became independent.
Twenty years later, he published his second book, Monnè, outrages et défis. This book looked at a hundred years of colonialism, which is when one country controls another.
In 1998, he wrote En attendant le vote des bêtes sauvages (translated as Waiting for the Wild Beasts to Vote). This story is a bit like a funny but serious play, similar to the style of a famous writer named Voltaire. It also uses ideas from old African stories, like the Epic of Sundiata. In the book, a griot (a traditional storyteller) tells the tale of a hunter who becomes a dictator, a ruler who has total power and often uses it unfairly. This story was inspired by a real president from Togo, Gnassingbé Eyadéma.
In 2000, Kourouma published Allah n'est pas obligé (translated as Allah is Not Obliged). This powerful story is about an orphan boy who becomes a child soldier while trying to find his aunt in Liberia.
His Stance on Conflict
When a civil war started in Côte d'Ivoire in 2002, Kourouma spoke out against it. He also spoke against the idea of "Ivorian nationalism," which he called "an absurdity which has led us to chaos." This means he thought it was a bad idea that caused a lot of trouble. Because of his strong opinions, the president at the time, Laurent Gbagbo, accused him of supporting rebel groups.
Awards and Recognition
Ahmadou Kourouma's novels were very popular in France. They sold many copies and won several important awards. These included the Prix Renaudot and the Prix Goncourt des Lycéens for his book Allah n'est pas obligé in 2000.
Even though his books were highly praised in France, they were not as well known in English-speaking countries. However, Allah Is Not Obliged was translated into English in 2006, helping more people discover his work.
Ahmadou Kourouma passed away in Lyon, France, in 2003. He was working on a follow-up to Allah n'est pas obligé at the time. The new book was going to be called Quand on refuse on dit non (which means "When One Disagrees, One Says No"). It would have continued the story of the child soldier from the first book, showing him returning home to Côte d'Ivoire during a new conflict.
Awards and honours
Ahmadou Kourouma received many awards for his writing. Here are some of them:
- Grand prix littéraire d'Afrique noire (1969), for Les Soleils des indépendances
- Prix Maillé-Latour-Landry (1970), for Les Soleils des indépendances
- Prix Tropiques (1998), for En attendant le vote des bêtes sauvages
- Grand prix Poncetton (1998), for En attendant le vote des bêtes sauvages
- Prix du Livre Inter (1999), for En attendant le vote des bêtes sauvages
- Grand prix Jean-Giono (2000), for Allah n'est pas obligé
- Prix Renaudot (2000), for Allah n'est pas obligé
- Prix Goncourt des Lycéens (2000), for Allah n'est pas obligé
See also
In Spanish: Ahmadou Kourouma para niños
