Part of my concern in this book was to center the story on people who are often not written about in history—the farmers, the peasants, the servants … - Maaza Mengiste

Some of my favorite writers are those who break form. I wanted to see if I could do that under their tutelage. I’m really proud of being able to combine the stories of the Ethiopians and the Italians, to force questions about both of them, about loyalty, about racism, about being subjugated by the very people who should be protecting you. These were the questions I wanted to bring forward.

We all know that war destroys mankind, and in spite of their differences in race, creed, and religion, women all across the world despise war because its fruit is nothing but destruction.

part of what I’ve realized with this [second] book is that creativity is always about running against and into yourself. In every way. (2017)