Bel abîme

Bel abîme is a short, incandescent novel told as a single feverish monologue. From a prison cell, a teenage Tunisian boy speaks to the lawyer and the psychiatrist who have come to see him, laying out — without apology — the road that led him to violence.

He recounts a childhood shaped by a cold, humiliating father, a society obsessed with appearances and religion, and the everyday brutality of the strong toward the weak. His one refuge is Bella, a stray dog he takes in and loves. When Bella is killed in the name of an absurd crusade, something in the boy breaks, and he crosses a line he refuses to disown.

Written by Tunisian author Yamen Manai, Bel abîme is a fierce, compact cry of revolt — an allegory of a post-revolution Tunisia and a searing indictment of hypocrisy, injustice, and the abuse of power. It won several awards for its raw voice and moral urgency.