This is the short tale of Adalgiza, Manila, and some descendants of the Spanish romantic Francisco Romero Perez y Perez, along with Andreza da Annunciaçao, the splendid Andreza, daughter of Iansan, a striking mixed-race woman. It serves as an exemplar and a warning, describing events that are undeniably unexpected and curious, which occurred in the city of Bahia – a place unlike any other.

While the significance of chronicling is relative, it’s noteworthy that everything transpired over a brief period of forty-eight hours, yet rich with life, during the late 1960s or early 1970s. The tale is narrated without a search for explanation since it aims to tell a story, not interpret it. This novel was a projected idea announced almost two decades ago, under the title War of the Saints, but it was only now, in the summer and autumn of 1987, and spring and summer of 1988, in Paris, that the structure was put on paper. While writing it, I found enjoyment, and if anyone finds more joy in reading it than I did, I would be pleased by that.

J. Amado

Jorge Amado, the Brazilian novelist and writer, is regarded as one of the most prominent authors in Brazil and one of the most renowned in Latin America and the world. Born in Bahia, Brazil, in 1912, and having passed away there in 2001, Amado led a long and eventful life immersed in politics, literature, and partisan struggles, experiencing exile and imprisonment, yet remaining devoted to writing until his departure. His literature sided with the poor and oppressed, characterized by a poetic style filled with mythical atmospheres and the heroism of ordinary people in his birthplace, Bahia. Amado published over forty books, most of which have been translated into more than thirty languages, including Arabic.

Publishing house: Dar Al-Farabi Publishing and Distribution

Number of Pages: 320

Year of publication: 2015