- National Book Award for Translated Literature 2026 · Finalist · for the translation by Lara Vergnaud
Pure Men
De purs hommes
Mohamed Mbougar Sarr (born 1990)
Translated by Lara Vergnaud
English editions
In EnglishPure Men
Other Press · United States · 2 June 2026 · Paperback · 208 pages
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A clip spreads across Senegalese phones: a mob pulls a buried man from his grave and hauls the body away from the burial ground. Ndéné Gueye, who teaches literature at a university, is weary of his job and of the moral double standards around him, and he cannot let the images go. Who was the dead man, and what had he done? The only explanation going round is the Wolof word góor-jigéen, 'man-woman', meaning that he was gay. Ndéné starts to dig into the man's life and even visits his mother. Soon colleagues and relatives begin to whisper about Ndéné himself, which shakes him and puts a strain on his love for Rama.
AI-generated summary
About the book
- Form
- Novel
- Length
- 190 pages in the original
- Genres
- Politics, Love (assigned by AI)
- Set in
- Senegal
- First published
- 2018 by Philippe Rey
- Author's age
- 28 when first published
- ISBN
9782848766638 (original)
9781635424706 (Other Press, United States)
- More
- Wikidata