{"product_id":"9781783608126","title":"When The Walking Defeats You : One Man's Journey as Joseph Kony's Bodyguard","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eWhen The Walking Defeats You\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Ledio Cakaj\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eDeep in the Congo's Garamba National Park in the dead of night, Joseph Kony – the notorious warlord wanted by the International Criminal Court – made a shocking admission. Loosened by home-made wine, exposing a vulnerability he could never show the world, Kony looked George Omona in the eye, 'You need to know that if I had a choice I would not be doing this … I wish I could be a man of books, like you.'\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThree years earlier George was expelled from one of Uganda's best schools, just weeks before he was due to graduate with exemplary grades, destroying his dreams of becoming a teacher. In desperation, his uncle found him a role in Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). George's education and fluent command of English allowed him to rapidly rise through the ranks, eventually becoming one of Kony's bodyguards, before he finally made his escape.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGeorge's story – based on many hours of interviews with acknowledged LRA expert Ledio Cakaj – provides a vivid, personal and fascinating insight into the inner workings of the LRA, and the mind of Kony, its self-appointed prophet.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A unique and compelling account that effectively intertwines the biographical account of George Omona (fictional name)...with the wider narrative of an ongoing conflict.” —\u003ci\u003eLSE Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Cakaj renders George Omona's story of joining the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda with ... an appealing, clear-eyed simplicity.” —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“One of 2016's best books.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Conversation\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Particularly haunting...the book as a whole raises profound questions.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Independent\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A superb narrative of one man's nightmarish descent into a world of depravity.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Spectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Exceptional...an account of how to stay alive, and even find a measure of belonging, at the heart of a paranoid self-propelled death cult.” —\u003ci\u003eTimes Literary Supplement\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Brilliantly weaves the dramatic and often horrifying experience of one man into a gripping story of two decades of the LRA war. A product of vast knowledge of the conflict, \u003ci\u003eWhen The Walking Defeats You\u003c\/i\u003e is sure to become a classic in the literature on conflict in Africa.” —\u003ci\u003eAdam Branch, author of Displacing Human Rights: War and Intervention in Northern Uganda\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A deep and intimate portrait of the daily life of a child soldier. The book deserves to take its place next to books like Ishmael Beah's \u003ci\u003eA Long Way Gone\u003c\/i\u003e and Uzodinma Iweala's \u003ci\u003eBeasts of No Nation\u003c\/i\u003e in the sad catalogue of stories about children at war.” —\u003ci\u003eAndrew Rice, author of The Teeth May Smile but the Heart Does Not Forget\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Cakaj skilfully takes the reader inside the harrowing world of the LRA. Interspersed with stunning photography, and reflections of persons who survived LRA attacks, a multi-layered story comes to life, further unfolding the complexities of such a devastating war.” —\u003ci\u003eErin Baines, University of British Columbia\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“As I read this book, I read my own experiences and what I went through. It is a story that all people should know about: how men, women and children suffer and survive conflict.” —\u003ci\u003eEvelyn Amony, author of I am Evelyn Amony and chair, Women's Advocacy Network\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Of all the books written about the LRA, this is the one that the politicians and diplomats should be reading. Cakaj puts us in the boots of the kids, pawns that nobody on the world stage can be bothered to save, left walking to this day.” —\u003ci\u003eJane Bussmann, author of The Worst Date Ever, or How it Took a Comedy Writer to Expose Africa's Secret War\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Gripping and gleaming with insight. Ledio Cakaj leads the reader into the very heart of one of Africa's least-understood but most enduring rebel movements.” —\u003ci\u003eMatthew Green, author of The Wizard of the Nile\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eWhen The Walking Defeats You\u003c\/i\u003e is that rare achievement: an account of a rebel movement as seen from the inside. Cakaj's meticulously-researched account takes the reader into the heart of one of Africa's most feared organisations, capturing the mundane brutality of life in the LRA.” —\u003ci\u003eMichela Wrong, author of Borderlines and It's Our Turn to Eat\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A gripping portrayal of a rebel fighter's harrowing journey in central Africa. Without pulling punches, Ledio Cakaj provides a human face to the notorious but often caricatured Lord's Resistance Army. An insightful tour-de-force by an author whose deep knowledge about this group shines through on almost every page.” —\u003ci\u003eRonald R. Atkinson, author of The Roots of Ethnicity and editor of The Raging Storm: A Reporter's Inside Account of the Northern Uganda War\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A heartbreaking story, unmasking the everyday complexities of a most gruesome and sorrowful war. Absolutely remarkable!” —\u003ci\u003eSverker Finnström, author of Living with Bad Surroundings: War, History, and Everyday Moments in Northern Uganda\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A remarkable first-hand account of life in the LRA, providing a compelling and convincing perspective on what it was like to be a combatant.” —\u003ci\u003eTim Allen, co-editor of The Lord's Resistance Army: Myth and Reality\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9781783608126\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Zed Books","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback","offer_id":40823063969998,"sku":"9781783608126","price":19.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/getimage_9ea039fc-57e6-46ce-b659-2826187aea1c.jpg?v=1643100293","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9781783608126","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}