The Night Wanderers

A sweeping portrait of contemporary Africa by one of Europe's most exciting and talked-about journalists, The Night Wanderers describes Uganda in the aftermath of a civil war that destroyed the country and in which children were the main agents of destruction. The Lord's Resistance Army abducts children from their homes, forcing them to kill family members and enter a brutal life of guerilla warfare. Jagielski inserts himself into the hellish landscape and finds a way to speak of these children and their wounded world.

About the Author :
Formerly a reporter at Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland’s first and biggest independent daily, WOJCIECH JAGIELSKI has been witness to some of the most important political events of the end of the twentieth century. He is the recipient of several of Poland’s most prestigious awards for journalism, including a Bene Merito honorary decoration from the Polish government and the Dariusz Fikus award for excellence in journalism. Seen by many as the literary heir to Ryszard Kapuściński, he is the author of several books of in-depth reportage, including Towers of Stone: The Battle of Wills in Chechnya, which won Italy’s Letterature dal Fronte Award. Arguably Poland’s best-known contemporary non-fiction writer, Jagielski lives outside Warsaw.

Review :
"The Night Wanderers is a balanced union of reflection and reporting, with a fine eye for ironic detail." —Minneapolis Star Tribune "Uganda has been ravaged by civil war, and Joseph Kony's militant Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) continues to perpetrate one of the gravest humanitarian crises of our time—this is the context for this brave, devastating work of war reportage. The facts are chilling, and Jagielski handles them with integrity and a minimum of stylistic flourish, treating the subject with the dignity it deserves." —Publishers Weekly "Jagielski’s moving, beautiful, and winding account of Uganda’s sad history of multiple conflicts leaves one mourning the suffering so many have endured and questioning to what extent the current government can provide long term solutions for the generations who survived." —Maria E. Burnett, Senior Researcher, Human Rights Watch, Africa Division "A disturbing, thought-provoking account of an under-reported and tragic story." —Edward Lucas, International Editor, The Economist “During the 20 years I spent in Uganda I often wondered how Kapuscinsky would describe the situations I saw with my eyes in the country’s tormented North. Reading Night Wanderers, I found the answer. Its pages of great literary beauty carried me to the streets of Gulu and made me meet the formerly abducted children, feel the depths of their pain and awake inside me images, sounds, and smells so long cherished. Jagielski is a master, not only of story-telling, but also of digging into the intimacy of people’s hearts in tragic situations. By taking their side he makes us understand from a unique angle the complexity of politics in one of Africa’s most conflictive regions.” —Father Carlos Rodriguez Soto, author of Tall Grass: Stories of Suffering and Peace in Northern Uganda "This is not strictly a journalistic account of war and mayhem; it is something more powerful and lasting: a literary sojourn through an African landscape of haunted horrors, observed with extraordinary patience and empathy by an exceptional writer and reporter. Wojciech Jagielski paints masterful portraits of messianic guerrilla leaders and mad dictators, but unforgettable ones of stone-faced child rebels who have been forced to kill and maim, and in the process have lost the ability to laugh, cry, or even enjoy ice cream." —Pamela Constable, author of Playing with Fire: Pakistan at War with Itself and Fragments of Grace: My Search for Meaning in the Strife of South Asia