A Riveting Tale of Identity and Power
In the teeming, chaotic city of N'Djamena, Chad, a child is born with two destinies. Adam Hawwa enters the world with both a penis and a vulva, an anomaly that defines his existence. Raised as a daughter by a loving mother but rejected by a father who wanted a son, Adam is caught between two warring identities. Navigating a city rife with danger, corruption, and superstition, Adam befriends a young refugee who becomes the narrator of this powerful tale. Their bond is born of a moment of cruelty and shame, and as it deepens, the narrator watches as Adam struggles to find a place in a world that sees him as a spectacle. Seeking freedom from constant scrutiny, Adam journeys to a mystical healer who promises to "make the choice" for him. He chooses to become a man, a decision that sets him on a breathtaking and brutal new path. He trades his fragile beauty for the harsh realities of military school, where he rises with dizzying speed. He is a hero, a husband, and a direct link to the elite, but his rise is built on the deliberate death of his former self. As a coup threatens to topple the government, the secrets Adam has buried refuse to stay hidden. His past, a burden he tried to shed, returns to confront him, forcing him to reckon with the man he chose to become. The Secret Declared History of Adam Hawwa is a sprawling epic of identity, war, and the search for oneself. It is a story of a city that devours its children and a country that cannot escape its history of violence. This is a novel that will challenge and move you, leaving you to question what it truly means to be a man, a woman, a friend, a hero?or a traitor. You will not forget the story of Adam Hawwa, a person who decided to declare his own history, even if it meant destroying everything he once was.