THE SILENCE OF THE CHOIR

By Mohamed Mbougar Sarr and translated by Alison Anderson

Europa Editions, 2017

Reviewed by Mary Ellen Talley

The novel, The Silence of the Choir, by Mohamed Mbougar Sarr immerses readers in a tale of 72 immigrant men after they survive their journey from several African countries to immigrate to Sicily. Although this book is nearly ten years old, the story rings true and is relevant for the USA now.

There are many voices in this novel. Early in the story, some residents of Altino, the town that welcomed the refugees, are growing edgy and resentful. They are afraid refugees, the “ragazzi,” (the guys), will take their jobs. Why are the ragazzi given free housing, food, education, and health care when the citizens can hardly afford their own? They are also afraid of possible refugee violence.

Later, a woman who leads the refugee-assisting Santa Marta Association is “overwhelmed” by her naivety, as she discovers that “a certain definition of humanity—couldn’t explain everything. Because despite the humanity that united them, she was different from the ragazzi.” What’s more, “She’d always imagined that when you spoke about humanity, that meant identifying what was good and generous in people. That way of looking at things had now turned out to be wrong, or obsolete at best.”  The woman asks, “Where did humanity start and where did it end?”

The helpful citizens of the Santa Marta Association and the citizens ask why the refugees are dissatisfied with their current lot?  The same woman above reports the comment of the refugee translator, that humanity means being given something more than just a roof and some bread. It goes beyond hospitality. Food and shelter aren’t enough. “Human beings, all human beings, need deeper reasons to exist.”

There are factions in the town of Altino. One faction belongs to the Santa Marta Association that is helping to resettle the refugees. Another faction is planning how to get rid of those refugees. Without paying jobs, the ragazzi are bored and frustrated waiting for their asylum hearings. The only bit of excitement is preparing for a football (soccer) game.

 Tensions mount slowly and viscerally. All hell breaks loose after the ragazzi celebrate their win in the football game. Obviously, I’m leaving much out. But trust me, readers learn the complete painful story and who are the perpetrators.

There are many key characters. The number grew as I began to realize relationships and varied motivations. The revered elder poet, the blind priest, the beautiful and compassionate lawyer, her ex-colleague enraged by her attraction to another man, the honest physician, the mayor driven to dishonesty by political aspirations, the translator who was until recently a refugee himself,  the do-gooder volunteers, the innocent lovers, the swayable townspeople, the ragazzi who tire of playing the waiting game for their asylum hearing and the rehearsals for how best to phrase their desire for asylum. Add place, for some say setting is a character in any story.

Sarr makes the beautiful and volatile Mt, Etna a main character, as the poet describes the massive visage “wearing a fine scarf of white cloud.” Moreover, “It seemed more inclined to share secrets with him tonight. The volcano’s crater was an immense inkwell. The poet took up his pen, dipped it into the well, and with a hand both steady and fragile at once, began to write.” The only prose writing that could be more lyrical might be to read this novel in the original French.

With this beautiful translation by Alison Anderson, Sarr’s sentences and paragraphs shine. For example, “One realized, contemplating Altino by night, that it was a small-town nestling in the vast countryside like a slender, loving woman in the middle of a huge bed.”

Sarr grew up in Senegal and lives in France. He is an expert at character development and storytelling. Little did I know how eager I would be to keep reading his 400-page novel for my book club. Sarr also inserts a typewritten narrative within the novel to let a refugee translator tell his own story. Readers are drawn in as Sarr reveals characters’ motivations.

Why is this book a valuable tool for our time? Surely, when I open The Seattle Times, when I watch and listen to the news, I am chagrined and think of the term, “man’s inhumanity to man.”

I was gob smacked by lines describing liberals and progressives in both Europe and the United States: “Those people don't care about acting if they've voiced their moral condemnation. So let them condemn, and we'll go on acting. The irreproachable world sees itself as a great democracy. And like all democracies, it's dying because of the image it has of itself: the empire of Good.”

The refugees are awaiting their interview to move from their current limbo, on to a more permanent status, and jobs. There is a discussion in Chapter 20 about how these ragazzi might respond to a key interview question, “Why did you leave home?” Sarr breaks possible answers and how each might be received by the “interlocutors.” The implications and results of semantics have impacts. “Those who say ‘because’ or ‘due to’ have a greater chance of affecting their listener and being granted asylum.”

This novel puts readers in the minds and hearts of refugees. Content warning:  some sexual violence is depicted. It has never been easy to be an immigrant or a refugee. We in the USA are becoming aware of injustices perpetrated on brown-skinned residents who have been here for years: living, working, raising families, contributing. There is a faction in favor of current injustices. Another faction considers the treatment of immigrants inhumane and unlawful. This novel made me aware of the strategies and machinations employed by both factions and those who govern those factions.

Sarr’s words demonstrate how language is used to influence, cajole, and  persuade citizens. This novel makes refugee politics come alive and deserves to be read by those on both sides of multi-faceted immigration issues. Mostly though, it’s a riveting story written beautifully. Humanity resounds throughout this compelling novel.

Mary Ellen Talley’s poems have appeared in many journals including Louisville Review, Deep Wild, and Trampoline as well as in multiple anthologies. Her chapbooks are: “Postcards from the Lilac City” from Finishing Line Press, “Taking Leave” from Kelsay Books, and “Infusion” online at Red Wolf Journal. She resides in Seattle, WA and worked for many years as a school-based speech/language pathologist (SLP.) Her website is www.maryellentalley.com.