'ONE OF AFRICA'S GREATEST LIVING WRITERS' _GUARDIAN_ 'SHARP AND ENTERTAINING' _TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT_ 'EXUBERANT ..._ DEALING WITH THE DEAD_ IS OFTEN DAMNING, FREQUENTLY HILARIOUS AND ALWAYS COMPASSIONATE' _FINANCIAL TIMES_ Abruptly deceased at the age of twenty-four and trapped forever in flared purple trousers, Liwa Ekimakingaï encounters the other residents of Frère Lachaise cemetery, all of whom have their own complex stories of life and death. Unwilling to relinquish their tender bond, Liwa makes his way back home to Pointe-Noire to see his devoted grandmother one last time, against all spectral advice. But disturbing rumours swirl together with Liwa's jumbled memories of his last night on earth, leading him to pursue the riddle of his own untimely demise. A phantasmagorical tale of ambition, community and forces beyond human control, _Dealing with the Dead_ is a scathing satire on corruption and political violence by one of the foremost chroniclers of modern Central Africa. 'AFRICA'S SAMUEL BECKETT' _ECONOMIST_ TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH BY HELEN STEVENSON