bailar: dance (verb)
baile: dance (noun)
bienvenido: welcome
buena suerte: good luck
buenas tardes: good afternoon
bueno: good; but also, well
cabrón: bastard
¿cómo?: how? (literal); what? (colloquial)
¿cómo está(s)/ cómo están?: How are you? (singular and plural)
comprendo: I understand
del barco del Chanquete, no nos moverán: (“They won’t make us leave old Chanquete’s boat”): refrain from a popular song from Blue Summer (see below).
desaparecer: disappear
¿dónde está?: Where is?
encantado: Pleased to meet you
errores: errors, mistakes
flores: flowers
hasta mañana: until tomorrow
¿Hay alguien aquí?: Is there anybody here?
hijo de puta: son of a whore
La lluvia no perdona a los que se ponen por debajo de ella: The rain does not forgive those who stand beneath it.
la luna: the moon
La vida es como es: Life is as it is.
mañana: tomorrow
más: more
me gusta: I like
muchacho: boy
muy bien: very good
nada: nothing
el poder: power
planes: plans
poeta: poet
por completo: completely
por favor: please
que te parió: who gave you birth. Understood as part of the insult, “The whore who gave you birth.”
sí: yes
todo: all, everything
trabajo: work
tranquilo / tranquila: calm
Yo hablo: I speak
Yo lo sé: I know it
Cultural References
Blue Summer: An influential Spanish television series of the early 1980s, it was widely broadcast in socialist countries. The story revolves around the freewheeling lifestyle of children and adolescents living on a beach.
FAPLA: People’s Armed Forces for the Liberation of Angola. The national army of post-independence Angola.
Gabriela: A Brazilian soap opera, popular throughout the Portuguese-speaking world; it is based on the novel Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon by Jorge Amado.
japie: Derogatory term for a white South African.
Kianda: The Goddess of the Sea in Angolan mythology; she has mermaid-like features.
Kimbundu: One of the three major African languages of Angola; spoken in the area around Luanda.
kitaba: A paste made from toasted peanuts.
kizomba: A popular Angolan dance.
Marginaclass="underline" Broad, scenic waterfront avenue that follows the curve of the bay in front of downtown Luanda.
Odorico Paraguaçu: Comic character on Brazilian television; he is the mayor of a remote town called Sucupira.
ngonguenha: Mixture of cassava root flour with water and sugar.
nyet: No. (Russian)
Pioneers: Socialist organization for children, similar to the Boy Scouts.
quiteta: A type of edible shellfish.
Roque Santeiro: Outlaw character in a famous Brazilian soap opera of the same name; Luanda’s largest market was named after this fictitious character.
Sinhozinho Malta: All-powerful landowner in the Brazilian soap opera Roque Santeiro.
Sucupira: See Odorico Paraguaça above.
Trinità: Star of Italian spaghetti Westerns.
tuga: Derogatory term for someone from Portugal.
Acknowledgements
The translator thanks David Brookshaw and Ondjaki for their help in finalizing the translation.
About the Author
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ONDJAKI was born in Luanda, Angola in 1977. He is the author of five novels, three short story collections and various books of poems and stories for children. He has also made a documentary film, May Cherries Grow, about his native city. His books have been translated into eight languages and have earned him important literary prizes in Angola, Portugal and Brazil. In 2008 Ondjaki was awarded the Grinzane for Africa Prize in the category of Best Young Writer. In 2012, The Guardian named him one of its “Top Five African Writers.” In 2013, he was awarded the José Saramago Prize for his novel Os Transparentes.
About the Translator
ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR
STEPHEN HENIGHAN’s previous translations include Ondjaki’s Good Morning Comrades. He is the author of a dozen books of fiction, reportage and criticism, including the short story collection A Grave in the Air and the essay A Green Reef: The Impact of Climate Change. He teaches at the University of Guelph, Ontario.