Golden Boy

July 8, 2013
Sullivan's standout debut spotlights the quest of 13-year-old Habo, an albino ("zeruzeru") struggling to survive in Tanzania, where albinos are both reviled and prized; some even believe that their limbs possess magic and are willing to kill for them. The narrative begins in the small village of Arusha, where Habo, his mother, and siblings are starving. The family decides to immigrate to the city of Mwanza, in hopes of finding stability. In raw, candid prose, Sullivan conveys Habo's learned shame and the violence that his family encounters as a result of their poverty and perceived difference. Habo's sense of liberation is almost palpable when an elderly, blind sculptor trains him as an apprentice and begins to show him the meaning of unconditional love. Weaving in Kiswahili words and phrases, Sullivan presents a nuanced view of Tanzanian culture and its entangled economic circumstances, while writing vividly of the country's landscape. Though the novel is horrifying in parts, Habo's tender interactions with those he loves combat the sense of lurking dread that, most often, takes human form. Ages 12âup. Agent: Caryn Wiseman, Andrea Brown Literary Agency.