Birahima, the narrator of this novel, is a boy of about twelve who recounts his journey as a child soldier in contemporary Africa, between Liberia and Sierra Leone. Orphaned and accompanied by a marabout who is part philosopher, part con man, Birahima is taken in by a band of marauders. With a Kalashnikov slung over his shoulder, he participates in the worst atrocities to earn his keep: "From fortified camp to besieged city, /.../ I have killed many people. /.../ Many of my young fellow soldiers have died. But Allah is not obligated to be just with all that he has created here." After "En attendant le vote des bêtes sauvages" (Prix du Livre Inter 1999), Ahmadou Kourouma offers us a picaresque and chilling account of a time of mass slaughter in which children are the sad protagonists.