Neuf nouvelles: hommage aux Sénégalaises ed. by M. Kathleen Madigan (review)

dans les colonies françaises des Antilles” (46). If an instructor wishes to combine the lessons provided in the book with Saint-George’s music, it is advisable to investigate recordings of his compositions by European orchestras that are available online. Le Chevalier de Saint-George is a beautiful, gentle, and highly effective tool for introducing intermediate to advanced students of French to the life and times of Saint-George. Rich in detail yet written in an approachable prose, students will readily engage in an active discussion about slavery, discrimination, and respect for the talents of others. Canisius College (NY) Eileen M. Angelini MADIGAN, M. KATHLEEN, éd. Neuf nouvelles: hommage aux Sénégalaises. Eatontown, NJ: Academic Press ENE, 2008. ISBN 1-930879-57-1. Pp. 243. $49.95. This anthology of short stories does not follow the typical anthology format. With a focus on women in Sénégal, it is comprised of short stories commissioned for the book and written by three men and six women, an interview, a biography, a list of other works for each author, and three lengthy entretiens with Sénégalaises who have achieved world-wide reputations in their respective fields. The volume offers an impressive array of material on the role of women as wives and mothers, but also as professionals, which makes it an invaluable aid for upper-level French classes. A nine-page introduction to the book includes the customary preview of each story while also providing background information, such as useful statistics on life in Sénégal (life expectancy, education of women at the graduate level, birth rate, etc.). The information on each author, including a photo and a list of his/her other works, is extensive. With one exception (Anne Piette who has spent years in the country) all are native Sénégalais. The interview questions plumb each writer’s inspiration for his/her short story, and examine how fiction connects to local life. The short stories are between five and seventeen pages in length and are arranged alphabetically by each author’s name, rather than the level of difficulty for the student reader. However, the instructor is free to arrange the stories in almost any order, since there is only one case where questions for a given story refer to a preceding one. The varied format of the Questions de Compréhension includes identification (somewhat difficult for students unfamiliar with African names), true/false, multiple choice, matching, completion, and arranging statements in chronological order. Réflexion et Discussion asks for student opinions on the issues in the story, and for evaluations of the actions and choices of the characters. Activités typically include research on a tribe, an ethnic group, or an important element in the story, or activities such as improvisation or creating original dialogs. Parallels are often drawn between the fictional elements of the story and current situations in both rural and urban Sénégal. The final three interviews are with Arame Boye Faye, an atomic physicist who reflects in a 4.5 page interview on managing her roles as a mother and a scientific researcher; Penda Mbow, a historian who discusses the positive impact of women on history and their role in Sénégal’s future (an 11 page interview); and Fatou Sow, a world-renowned sociologist who has traveled and taught in the U.S. and discusses her research on the role of women in society (21 pages). While 218 FRENCH REVIEW 84.1 no lexique is provided at the end of the book, footnotes on each page give French equivalents for vocabulary deemed unfamiliar. The collection, taken as a whole, provides an excellent blend of fiction, challenging questions, and factual information to increase the readers’ knowledge of West African culture, and specifically the place of women in that culture—in a polygamous relationship, in leadership, and in academic achievement. This reviewer who has spent a week in Sénégal, time in other Francophone countries, and has also lived in two Anglophone African countries, greatly appreciated the breadth and depth of information and recognizes the ways she has benefited from reading the book. In short, the goal of...