Deranged as I am

Set on the island of Anjouan, Comoros, Deranged As I Am tells the story of a humble docker. With his ramshackle cart and patched-up clothes, he spends his days trying to find enough work to feed himself. This whirlwind of a novel takes place over just a few days, yet Zamir’s poetic and energetic prose transports us to the docks, its noises, colours, and smells, and the dynamism of his language along with his powerful mix of genres, and the cleverness of his verbal invention perfectly serve this tragicomedy that makes us feel both joy and pity. Yet this lively and often darkly humorous prose does not draw away from the more serious themes of class, poverty, and exploitation that Zamir explores. A rich and significant text that questions literature and language itself, Deranged As I Am confirms the very original place Zamir occupies in French literature.

‘His parting exclamations—“Devilish devilry! What a farce! What a masquerade!”—bring the novel to an end, underlining its initial framing as a tragicomic misadventure. However, in its intricate exploration of exploitation and poverty, the tone hints at something much darker than what Jérôme Garcin calls “an island fable.” It is Rabelaisian slapstick for everyone else. For Deranged, life.’ —Areeb Ahmad for ASYMPTOTE JOURNAL