Continues the author’s proclaimed mission of speaking for the desert. The first book of a trilogy it recounts the birth and growth of the New Waw oasis in the Sahara, the Tuareg’s lost ‘paradise like’ community… In rhythmic, poetic prose the dilemma of the leaders of the desert tribe are revealed – how to interpret the signs when everything is a sign from the Spirit World that rules them.” – Banipal

“His work remains obsessed with nomadism and the desert landscape, and the relationship between settled and nomadic peoples. From Bleeding of the Stone to Gold Dust to Animists to many of his short stories, his works also explore the human-animal relationship in a fresh, unique way. Although it’s been many decades since al-Koni has lived in the desert, he continues to make it his narrative home.” – The Louisiana Channel