African Symphony

About the Book

“Written in the 1970s, the author’s African stories have lost none of their charm, immediacy and powers of transformation.”

“Immersing himself in the everyday life of natives and immigrants, men and women of all walks of life, Kupelian was exposed to the primal energies, the ancient customs and superstitions that dominated as much the virgin forests as the fast, sprawling urban jungles.

Kupelian’s first three collections of short stories form a lush, unfettered chronicle of self discovery. Like Gide, Hemingway and Green before him, he constructed narratives of profound insight and sensitivity, working against the metaphysical backdrop of the New Africa.

Kupelian’s heroes represent the spectrum of West African society; from the sand-sand boys and domestic helpers to the president of the republic and civil servants, from the underage murderer and illicit diamond dealer to the primeval fishermen, the sophisticated scholar of ancient Greek and golf club guru, these are the characters that allow Kupelian to depict the daily struggles, but also the complex interracial relations, prejudices and hatred that suffuse the continent.”

About the Author

Raymond Kupelian is the author of three novels and five short story collections. Noted for his gritty explorations of the universal through the prism of the local, and a lucid voice that is at once realistic and searingly sensual, Kupelian has remained at the vanguard of contemporary Armenian literature.

            Some of Kupelian’s most enduring stories were inspired by his twenty- year African sojourn, an experience that situated him in West Africa’s post-independence landscape. In Sierra Leone and Liberia of the 1960s and 70s, where he lived and worked,  the author witnessed the great expectations and crushing disillusionment fallowing the pathos of statehood. Immersing himself in the everyday life of natives and immigrants, men and women of all walks of life, Kupelian was exposed to the primal energies, the ancient customs and superstitions that dominated as much the virgin forests as the fast sprawling urban jungles.

            Kupelian’s first three collections of short stories form a lush, unfettered chronicle of self discovery. Like Gide, Hemingway and Green before him, he constructed narratives of profound insight and sensitivity, working against the methaphysical backdrop of the new Africa.

            Kupelian’s heroes represent the spectrum of West African society; from the sand-sand boys and domestic helpers to the president of the republic and civil servants, from the underage murderer and illicit diamond dealer to the primeval fishermen, the sophisticated scholar of ancient Greek and golf club guru, these are the caracteres that allow Kupelian to depict the daily struggles, but also the complex interratial relations, prejudices and hatred that suffuse the continent.

            Written in the 1970s, the author’s African stories have lost none of their charm, immediacy and powers of transformation. The complete works have been translated into English and Russian.         

            Kupelian’s latest novel, Decadence, relates the rise and fall of African nationalism, as seen through the shattering of collective dreams, the selfishness of the powers that be and the horrid carnage in the wake of independence.

            Now in his sixties, Kupelian lives in Los Angeles.

                                                            Ishkhan Jinbashian

                                                            Translator, Author, Literary-Critic