Algeria, 1962: on the eve of Independence, in a village devastated by seven years of war, fifteen-year-old Hassan begins to lose his sight following retinal detachment. Faced with the impotence of modern medicine to cure the child, the mother resorts to magic and traditional medicine: marabouts, sorcerers and charlatans multiply comical and dangerous treatments. The teenager experiences a double tragedy: the relentless progress of his illness and the history of his country made up of pain and uncertainty. And yet Hassan the marvelous knows how to laugh and desire, to suffer and learn, to visit his burning memory and observe the life around him - tender, mad and cruel. His lucidity and courage make this novel a rare work that touches our hearts. France Culture Prize 1987
