The Past Ahead: A Novel

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A C K N O W L E D G M E N T S The translator wishes to express her sincere gratitude to Dee Mortensen ,senioreditoratIndianaUniversityPress,andtoDominicThomas, professor of French & Francophone studies at University of California , Los Angeles, for their unswerving encouragement and support for the translation of Gilbert Gatore’s novel. Without such enthusiasm for and faith in the importance of francophone African literature, works such as these would remain unknown to the large audience that is waiting to discover these voices. I am equally grateful to the French Embassy’s program of French Voices, which has supported this publication with the generosity of its funding. And, as always, warm gratitude goes to David Vita, my first and acutely critical reader, without whose daily presence and support my work would be much more difficult. This page intentionally left blank ...