"Abeba Tesfagiorgis has a startling story. A story which might as well have been acted out on the dark side of the moon for the world knew of what befell her. her record of her experiences at the hands of the Ethiopians in Asmara, and the odyssey which follows her escape from the tortures, gives us a picture of how thoroughly the forces, first the Emperor, and then the Stalinist dictator Mengistu, alienated the Eritrean people. When tyrants go to so much trouble to alienate the innocent purely on the basis of their nationalist, they create conditions for a popular uprising, the uprising which has now at least succeeded in Eritrea. Abeba's voice is simply one voice raised on behalf of humanity and directed against the folly of dictators.

Abeba's tale will stand for a long time as a remarkable story of an Eritrean experience and of the forces which created an Eritrean diaspora. It will astound, elevate and ennoble all who read it." -Tom Keneally, award-winning novelist of To Asmara and Schindler's List

"I think that this is a story of everyone to whom freedom and justice are not negotiable..." -Basil Davidson, author of African Civilization Revisted and The Black Man's Burden

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ABEBA TESFAGIORGIS is an Eritrean mother and former political prisoner in Ethiopian dominated Eritrea. Two of her earlier books were published in Tigrigna in Asmara. As a young professional she was actively involved in forming and nurturing  many civic organizations for women. She played a formative role in the relief effort during the drought of the 1980s.

CATEGORY
Autobiography/AFRICA