Long regarded as one of Africa's preeminent Francophone authors, Camara Laye (1928-80) wrote this engrossing memoir in 1954. In prose of great directness and intimacy, Laye marvels over his mother's supernatural powers, his father's distinction as the village goldsmith, and his own passage into manhood. Eventually, he must choose between the traditions of his village in French Guinea, and the prospects of academic success that lure him to distant cities.