An Algerian Hero

ALGIERS, 1961. With recent riots shaking the city of Algiers to its core, men and women in the Front de Libération Nationale (FLN), Algeria's nationalist movement, are determined to stop at nothing to gain Algerian independence from French colonial rule. One such man drawn into the movement is Karim Brahimi, a teenager. Committed to the cause, he quickly proves to be invaluable in carrying out various duties for the FLN. The personal dangers he encounters along the way, one in which Karim endures water torture inside a prison, only fuels his resolve to fulfill the FLN mission. Working as an operative, Karim also receives support from unlikely sources. Among those who aid him in his clandestine missions are Amandine, a Jewish tailor shop owner; Sebastián, a prominent lawyer of Spanish descent; Mireille, an underground operative in Paris; and Noureddine, a former ALN soldier. Upon Karim's return from Paris, a grave and ever-growing threat is asserting itself in the streets of Algiers-the Organisation Armée Secrète (OAS), extreme right-wing pro-colonialists hell-bent on preserving French Algeria by any means necessary. Following an agreement reached between the de Gaulle-led government and FLN delegation to grant Algerian independence, violence at the hands of the OAS intensifies, wreaking havoc to anyone, and anywhere, at will. An Algerian Hero, a captivating novel with rich historical detail, tells the story of a young man's courage and perseverance in the face of colonial forces.