Moïse Tiemtore

Twelve-year-old Simon has lost everything to the civil war that has devastated his country. "Black Lion," the ruthless rebel leader of the People's Revolutionary Army, has killed Simon's family and burned down his house. As an expert in weapons and battle strategies, he has formed a rebel group that wants to take power by force with the help of child soldiers. Simon is kidnapped and turned into a child soldier. Traumatized and plagued by nightmares, Simon plans to escape with his comrades while special forces of the African Union prepare an attack on Black Lion.

After a brutal attack, a young nomad named Sira refuses to surrender to her fate without a fight and instead takes a stand against Islamist terror. A feminist counterpoint to current reporting from the Sahel region.