B i b l i o f i l e

 (Published: Serpent’s Tail 2005)

THE WORST OF TIMES: A TALE OF ONE CITY

 Set in the capital of Algeria in the early 1990s, this short novel is the story of a singer who is on the verge of stardom, for whom a number of things go wrong, resulting in a radical change in his attitudes and his way of life.

Not only does he have to cope with overcrowding (sharing a three-room flat with 13 other family members!) insanitary conditions (piles of rubbish and pools of urine in the stairwells) and a chaotic street life – but he also has to contend with the threat to his way of life posed by the growth of support for Islamism, in the form of the FIS (Islamic Salvation Front).

The army took action in 1992 to cancel the elections in which it was predicted the FIS would gain to gain a majority in the national assembly. A bloody civil war between the state and religious extremists ensued, in which the protagonist is caught up. Something like 120,000 people died between 1992 and 1997.

This book provides a vivid evocation of everyday life in early 1990s Algiers, a world that struck me as bearing more than a passing resemblance to the societies evoked in many a contemporary dystopian science fiction novel. It gives important insights into the culture, politics, and religion of Algeria, and into ostensibly religiously-based political movements in general. Well worth reading if you want to understand more about the underlying tensions and conflicts that loom large in many parts of the world today.

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Paul T Kegan 27/05/10