Kid Moses

This lean, raw, and surprising debut is a deeply moving and powerful story of Moses, a nine-year-old survivor of the harsh streets of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Moses longs for something outside the grim existence he has known. He and his friend Kioso hitch a ride out of the city on the back of a truck only to find themselves in the wilderness where their street wisdom no longer helps them as they encounter poisonous snakes, cruel jungle travelers, and a brutal shoot-out with elephant poachers. Separated from Kioso and on the verge of starvation, Moses is saved and sheltered by an unlikely cast of characters, including a prostitute, a crippled fruit vendor, and a hunter-gatherer.Unsentimental, honest, brutal, and lyrical, this hypnotically written book provides insight into the issues that affect modern Africa: the relationship between human beings and the wilderness, the needs of the displaced and the dispossessed, and the ties that bind us together. Mark Thornton uses the...