The Drinker of Horizons (Sands of the Emperor, 3)
Couto’s Sands of the Emperor trilogy explores the destruction of a nation and subjugation of its people. This third book relates a journey of individuals crushed by the Portuguese military takeover of Mozambique in 1895. It takes place on a steamship sailing from Maputo to Lisbon. Amongst others on board the vast iron coffin, ironically named África, is the vanquished warrior king, Ngungunyane—once the oppressor, now the oppressed—and seven of his 300 wives. Leaving her white lover, Germano, in Africa, the pregnant Imani is forced to travel as interpreter and spy serving the Portuguese crown. Ngungunyane sinks into delusions as his hopes of recognition by Dom Carlos I as a fellow king are dashed.
The voyage has varied meaning for all who embark upon it—the imprisoned Blacks journey to the ends of the earth; Imani sails to eternity, through her unborn child; all trudge barefoot and humiliated towards total submission. The narrative is timeless, poetic, often conveying more than the words say. Queen Dabondi, a nyamosoro who hears the dead, tells of the origins of wind, rain, river and sea, suffusing the novel with a dreamlike quality.
I was entranced by the diversity of people immersed in the hellish conditions aboard ship, loving the lush vibrancy of an innocent Africa. This is not a standalone, but is so heartbreakingly tragic, I believe readers will return to the beginning. Germano’s letters to Imani, relayed through a third party and remaining just out of her reach, poignantly foreshadow later events. The ending is unusual, as though the full impact can only truly resonate with those who have read all three books. The Mozambiquan author writes with heartfelt tenderness about his country’s brutal history and has crafted a powerful story of humanity and survival that resonates long beyond its pages.
