The Antonio Lozano Book Club at Casa África (C/ Alfonso XIII, 5, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria) will meet this Wednesday, May 20, to discuss Gaël Faye’s novel “The Jacaranda Tree.” This meeting is open to the public as it coincides with the Africa Lives Festival.
In this work, the author immerses us in an intimate and evocative story that explores memory, identity, and family ties—recurring themes in his narrative. Through sensitive and poetic prose, Faye constructs a story that connects the personal with the collective, inviting reflection on the past and its traces in the present.
The meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. at Casa África. Those who wish to connect online can do so via Microsoft Teams. Here is the link and meeting details:
- Join
- Meeting ID: 352 743 481 764 419
- Passcode: mo9M5Be2
About the book:
Versailles, 1994. Although growing up in a happy environment, young Milan suffers from his Rwandan mother’s stubborn silence about his origins and family. This lack of knowledge will only gradually fade, first with images of the genocide and then with the arrival of the young and badly wounded Claude, whom they will take in for a few days.
Four years later, when Milan visits Rwanda for the first time with his mother, his stay there will be such a profound experience that it will change his life forever. From that moment on, and throughout two decades and successive returns, Milan recounts “his Rwanda” with moving sincerity: the colonial past, the still-open wounds of the conflict and reconciliation, but also the lively evenings in the capital, the new friends, and the getaways to Lake Kivu. In Kigali, he meets Stella, a young girl trying to unravel family secrets in the shade of a jacaranda tree, a tree capable of blooming after the storm.
Woven from real events, “The Jacaranda tells” the poignant story of a country striving for dialogue and forgiveness. With great sensitivity and infinite elegance, Gaël Faye has written a hymn to life that highlights the strength of friendship and the power of human resilience.
About the author
Gaël Faye (Buyumbura, Burundi, 1982), son of a Rwandan mother and a French father, is a writer and singer-songwriter. At the age of thirteen, he had to flee to France due to the civil war in Burundi and the Rwandan genocide of the Tutsis. He is the author of the novels Little Country (winner of the FNAC and Goncourt des Lycéens awards, among others) and The Jacaranda (winner of the 2024 Renaudot Prize, the 2025 Goncourt Audience Award, Spain section, and the 2025 Macondo Prize), both published by Salamandra, and several picture books, such as Pili Pili on a Butter Croissant, Mean Monday, and Mauve Jacaranda. He won the award for best live performance with “Paris Métèque” at the 2018 Victoires de la Musique. His literary work is characterized by its exploration of themes such as exile, childhood, and the recent history of Africa.
