The Art of Losing

A powerful and moving family story about history, immigration and identity, spanning three generations and some seventy years across the two shores of the Mediterranean Sea.

Winner of the International Dublin Literary Award

'Remarkable . a novel about people that never loses its sense of humanity' – The Sunday Times

'Zeniter’s extraordinary achievement is to transform a complicated conflict into a compelling family chronicle.' – The Wall Street Journal

Naïma has always known that her father's family were from Algeria – but up until now, that has meant very little to her. Born and raised in France, her knowledge of that foreign country is limited to what she has learned from her grand parents' tiny flat in a crumbling French sink estate: the food cooked for her, the few precious things they brought with them when they fled.

On the past, her family is silent. Why was her grandfather Ali forced to leave? Naïma’s father, Hamid, claims to remember nothing. Now, Naïma will see Algeria for herself, will ask the questions about her family’s history that, until now, have had no answers.

Spanning three generations across seventy years, The Art of Losing tells the story of how people carry on in the face of loss – the loss of a country, an identity, a way to speak to your children – a story of colonization and immigration, and how we are a product of the things we have left behind.

Translated from the French by Frank Wynne

This book is supported by the Institut français (Royaume-Uni) as part of the Burgess programme.

Contributor: Frank Wynne (Translated by)

Translator: Frank Wynne

UK Delivery:

• Free delivery on all orders of £10 or more.
• £1.49 delivery fee on orders below £10.
• UK orders are shipped via Royal Mail 2nd Class.

International Delivery:

• Flat rate delivery charges vary by country.

Dispatch and Delivery Times:

• All orders are shipped from our warehouse in Northampton, UK within 48 hours of receipt during working hours.
• UK mainland orders typically arrive within 3-5 working days via Royal Mail 2nd Class.
• International estimated delivery times:
• Europe & Channel Islands: 7 to 10 working days
• USA: 7 to 15 working days
• Rest of the World: 9 to 21 working days

View our full delivery infomation here.