The Review of Contemporary Fiction
Silence on the Shores by Leïla Sebbar. Trans. Mildred MortimerValerie Orlando
Leïla Sebbar. Silence on the Shores. Trans. Mildred Mortimer. Univ. of Nebraska Press, 2001. 96 pp. Paper: $15.00.
Leïla Sebbar’s minimalist style wielded in a stream-of-consciousness format further enhances the world of immigrant literature to which she has dedicated over two decades of writing. Born to an Algerian father and a French mother, Sebbar is known in France and the U.S. as an author who champions her croisée heritage, a mixed background that places her constantly in the middle of “two shores,” one French and the other Algerian. Her novels—many of which have been translated into English—have enjoyed success in France among both French nationals and Maghrebian immigrant readers. Like her novels of the past, Silence on the Shores exposes the harsh reality of Maghrebian immigrant life in France, laying bare the loneliness and despair of people isolated from homeland, family, and clan. Silence on the Shores depicts the final day in the life of a Maghrebian man in France. Through the interweaving of several monologues and the thoughts of an unnamed hero, Sebbar examines the multiple facets of exile. He had crossed the Mediterranean to the other shore as a young man to find work. Like many others before him, he remained in France, married a French woman and renounced the traditions of his homeland. As his death draws nearer, he fears the ultimate desolation of exile–dying alone, with no other Muslim compatriot at his side who will pronounce the ritual prayers “and whisper in [his] ear the language of [his] homeland.” Once again, Leïla Sebbar gives a voice to those who have none, opening up a silent world that has suffered for years under the yoke of exile. [Valerie Orlando]