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Maaza Mengiste. Beneath the Lion's Gaze. New York. W.W. Norton. 2010. 308 pages. $24.95. isbn 978-0-393- 07176-4
Ethiopia twice resisted Italy's colonial campaigns, holding it to just a four-year occupation (1937-41). Yet the later history of this proud ancient state has sadly resembled that of its postcolonial neighbors: a weakened kingdom supported by the bourgeoisie à la Fanon, rising discontent among the youth and poor, a military coup "for the people" that installs a totalitarian regime, inevitable resistance, and a new cycle of violence. Maaza Mengiste's riveting debut novel unfolds in 1974, when the ailing regime of the legendary but elderly emperor Haile Selassie suffers its death-blow after underground footage of Ethiopian famine victims airs on national television. As student and military opposition intensifies, the military ousts the government. Promising a people's...