OUR BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS

When the power goes out, all that’s left is darkness, stories, and the electricity sparking between two bodies in this illustrated work by Angolan author Ondjaki that’s translated from Portuguese.

The story begins, “Suddenly the lights went out”—and readers are plunged into the dark of night. The first-person narrator gathers the courage to ask their girl companion questions: “Don’t you think there’s something really beautiful about people?” “What do you think can fit in a person’s heart?” The conversation between the two ebbs and flows, punctuated by the blinking light of a distant airplane, the intermittent appearances of the narrator’s grandmother, and the barely there touches of young lovers. “Kiss me. Just once.” They tell stories, share truths, and spin webs of wishes. A translator’s note provides context: This dreamlike evening takes place in Luanda, the capital of Angola, near the end of a decadeslong civil war that’s referenced in passing by the two main characters. Miller-Lachmann does a remarkable job of making this rich piece accessible to an English-language readership. Ondjaki’s poetic prose draws an achingly potent picture of two young people reaching for each other during a sudden moment of possibility, while the white text on the black pages and Gonçalves’ rough, white-on-black illustrations help create an immersive experience. As the best art does, this collaboration makes a very specific story—two young people, one night—feel universal.

A brilliantly elemental exploration of the light that darkness can bring.