Maaze Mengiste: The Shadow King
Ethiopia, 1935.
With the threat of Mussolini's army looming, recently orphaned Hirut struggles to adapt to her new life as a maid. Her new employer, Kidane, an officer in Emperor Haile Selassie's army, rushes to mobilise his strongest men before the Italians invade.
Hirut and the other women long to do more than care for the wounded and bury the dead. When Emperor Haile Selassie goes into exile and Ethiopia quickly loses hope, it is Hirut who offers a plan to maintain morale. She helps disguise a gentle peasant as the emperor and soon becomes his guard, inspiring other women to take up arms. But how could she have predicted her own personal war, still to come, as a prisoner of one of Italy's most vicious officers?
The Shadow King is a gorgeously crafted and unputdownable exploration of female power, and what it means to be a woman at war.
SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2020
A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, GUARDIAN, ELLE, TIME, SPECTATOR
448 pages
We currently ship to the UK via Royal Mail 48 delivery.
We are hoping to expand our shipping options to include international customers very soon.
Prices
Orders under £45 : £4.50
Orders over £45: Free
Dispatch and delivery time
We dispatch all orders within 2-5 working days. Please allow at least 6 working days for your item to arrive.
We are a small team operating out of a venue which is open to the public. We will always do our best to keep you informed where there are any delays to our service.
Click and Collect
We now offer free click and collect from the Migration Museum in Lewisham Shopping Centre. Please note that the museum is currently open Friday - Sunday.
Ordering our organic cotton, sustainable clothing range
In order that we are able to offer a wide range of sizes and variations of our most popular design, we work with a print-on-demand clothing company. These items will be fulfilled separately from other items ordered from the Migration Museum and will arrive separately.
