Bitter Wormwood by Easterine Kire

Kohima, 2007. A young man has been gunned down in cold blood ? the latest casualty in the conflict that has scarred the landscape and brutalised the people of Nagaland.

Easterine Kire s new novel traces the story of one man s life, from 1937 to the present day. The small incidents of Mose s childhood, his family, the routines and rituals of traditional village life paint an evocative picture of a peaceful way of life, now long-vanished. The coming of a radio into Mose s family s house marks the beginning of the changes that would connect them to the wider world. They learn of partition, independence, a land called America. Growing up, Mose and his friends become involved in the Naga struggle for Independence, and they are caught in a maelstrom of violence ? protest and repression, attacks and reprisals ? that ends up ripping communities apart.

The herb, bitter wormwood, was traditionally believed to keep bad spirits away. For the Nagas, facing violent struggle all around, it becomes a powerful talisman: We sure could do with some of that old magic now.

Bitter Wormwood gives a poignant insight into the human cost behind the political headlines from one of India s most beautiful and misunderstood regions.

“Easterine Kire is the keeper of her people’s memory, their griot. She is a master of the unadorned language that moves because of the power of its evocative simplicity.” — Paul Pimomo