by Nuruddin Farah

Nuruddin Farah was born in 1945 in the Italian-controlled south of Somalia, to a merchant father, Hassan Farah, and a poetess mother, Aleeli Faduma. As a child Farah became fluent in Somali, Arabic, and Amharic, and then proceeded to learn both English and Italian at school. His exposure to these languages as well as his mother’s stature as a recognized poet had a profound impact on Farah. His family moved to Mogadishu in 1963, and Farah later left to study abroad. He received his bachelor’s degree in India, and pursued graduate studies in England. On his way home from England in 1976, he placed a casual call to his brother from the Rome airport and learned that his novel A Naked Needle had offended the government of Somali dictator Muhammad Siyad (Siad) Barre. He then ran into the Somali minister...