The Dictator's Last Night - by Yasmina Khadra (Paperback)

About the Book

A gripping imagining of the last hours of President Gaddafi.

Book Synopsis

Described as 'deeply affecting' by The Guardian, Yasmina Khadra provides us with a fascinating insight into the mind of one of the most complex and controversial figures of recent history in this gripping imagining of the last hours of President Gaddafi.

'Khadra's prose is gentle and precise' The New Yorker

People say I am a megalomaniac. It is not true. I am an exceptional being, providence incarnate, envied by the gods, able to make a faith of his cause.

October 2011. In the dying days of the Libyan civil war, Muammar Gaddafi is hiding out in his home town of Sirte along with his closest advisors. They await a convoy that will take them south, away from encroaching rebel forces and NATO aerial attacks.

The mood is sombre. In what will be his final night, Gaddafi reflects on an extraordinary life, whilst still raging against the West, his fellow Arab nations and the ingratitude of the Libyan people.

Review Quotes

'Compulsive, funny, powerfully emotional..sinuously intelligent. Khadra's perceptive and confident novel, translated from French by Julian Evans, is an unmissable entertainment' The Guardian

'Mesmerizing' The New Yorker

'In this closed-door drama, which reads almost like a piece of theatre, Yasmina Khadra gets inside the mind of a tyrant awaiting the fatal bullet' Le Point

'Packs a devastating punch' Shortlist

'Bold, often mischievous. A wonderfully entertaining read - as commanding and schizophrenic as the psychopath who 'speaks' its words' The Big Issue

'A skilled storyteller working at the height of his powers' Times Literary Supplement

'Like all the great storytellers of history, [Khadra] espouses the contradictions of his characters, who carry in themselves the entirety of the human condition' Le Point

'World-class' Rosie Goldsmith, The Independent

'Captivating and perversely delightful' The Wall Street Journal

About the Author

Yasmina Khadra is the author of more than 20 novels, including The Swallows of Kabul and The Attack, both shortlisted for the IMPAC literary award. Khadra's work has been published in 45 countries. His Guardian piece on the role of the West in causing chaos in Libya attracted over 1,000 comments and 3,000 shares. Born in Algeria, he now lives in France.

Julian Evans is a writer and translator from French and German. His most recent translations are Michel Déon's The Foundling Boy and The Foundling's War.