Diasporic Wanderings: The Poetics of Tierno Monenembo

This article examines the directions in which the celebrated Guinean author Tierno Monenembo's aesthetics have gone following the publication of L'Aîné des orphelins (2000) [The Oldest Orphan, 2004], a pivotal book. It proposes an in-depth analysis of the ways in which his ensuing novels, Peuls (2004), Le Roi de Kahel (2008) [The King of Kahel, 2010], Le Terroriste noir (2012) [The Black Terrorist, 2015], and Les Coqs cubains chantent à minuit (2015), manifest an expansion in his range of representations and textual strategies, his tackling new types of historical silences, connecting colonial and postcolonial histories, and opening genre categorizations. The article shows how Monenembo is broadening the range of Francophone African literatures by weaving new tales of black diasporic heritage, creativity, and intellectual history that contribute to a complex and original understanding of the African presence in the world.