Praise for the Sands of the Emperor trilogy
"With riveting prose and thorough research, Couto paints [his setting] as a doomed magical space where blind people can see and sighted people are blind, where dreams about the dead guide the living, where fish fall from the sky and the earth spits up weapons. There is not one dull moment . . . Completely enchanting."
–Ayesha Harruna Attah, The Guardian "Every bit as bewitching as the titles suggest . . . Couto's storytelling truly soars . . . Couto calls into question the very essence of race and identity, belief and belonging, in Mozambique and beyond."
–Anderson Tepper, The New York Times Book Review "Exquisite . . . David Brookshaw has captured the African and European nuances in a translation that is poetic, agile, and so beautifully executed that it reads like an original text."
–Miranda France, Times Literary Supplement
"Couto's mastery lies in his ability to turn his exploration of this slice of history into a commentary on all of human civilization. Richly translated by Brookshaw in words that suggest more than they say, Couto's tale evokes a sense of timelessness . . . An intriguing combination of folklore, history, and magic realism . . . To be read and reread, savored and analyzed."
–Shoba Viswanathan, Booklist (starred review)
