In the Company of Men

Written by Veronique Tadjo

Narrated by Je Nie Fleming

Drawing on real accounts of the Ebola outbreak that devastated West Africa, this poignant, timely fable reflects on both the strength and the fragility of life and humanity’s place in the world.

Two boys venture from their village to hunt in a nearby forest, where they shoot down bats with glee, and cook their prey over an open fire. Within a month, they are dead, bodies ravaged by an insidious disease that neither the local healer’s potions nor the medical team’s treatments could cure. Compounding the family’s grief, experts warn against touching the sick. But this caution comes too late: the virus spreads rapidly, and the boys’ father is barely able to send his eldest daughter away for a chance at survival.

In a series of moving snapshots, Véronique Tadjo illustrates the terrible extent of the Ebola epidemic, through the eyes of those affected in myriad ways: the doctor who tirelessly treats patients day after day in a sweltering tent, protected from the virus only by a plastic suit; the student who volunteers to work as a gravedigger while universities are closed, helping the teams overwhelmed by the sheer number of bodies; the grandmother who agrees to take in an orphaned boy cast out of his village for fear of infection. And watching over them all is the ancient and wise Baobab tree, mourning the dire state of the earth yet providing a sense of hope for the future.

Acutely relevant to our times in light of the coronavirus pandemic, In the Company of Men explores critical questions about how we cope with a global crisis and how we can combat fear and prejudice.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Everand Productions
• Release date: Oct 12, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094432618

Veronique Tadjo

Veronique is an award-winning poet, novelist, and painter and illustrator from the Côte d'Ivroire. She has lived in Paris, Lagos, Mexico City, London and Nairobi.

Reviews for In the Company of Men

[Hadaed Hitlo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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[NoelReneCisnerosPeña · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Novela polifónica que narra el brote de la pandemia de ebola de 2014. Tadjo da voz a aldeanos, doctores, enfermeros, sobrevivientes que vivieron (y algunos perecieron) a causa del brote del virus. La narración es sencilla y conmovedora. La parte final resulta chocante porque explícita lo que hasta antes -salvo en un pequeño apartado al principio donde la voz narradora es la del Boabab- en la que toman la voz el árbol sagrado, el virus mismo y los murciélagos y ofrecen mensajes moralizantes, casi como si se tratara de una fábula.

[Anike · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I like the narration from the point of view of the trees, the bat, and the virus.

[Blessing John · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very well researched and beautifully written. The audio performance is superb as well.

[Kizza Racheal · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In the Company of Men is an insightful book on the Ebola epidemic. It took me back to the COVID 19 pandemic and how ill prepared my country Uganda was and how many lives were lost. But also the book touches on the issue of corruption that stands tall in many government institutions across Africa. Resources that are to be used for the epidemic are channelled to personal pockets and as a result people die.

[Ndeye Diagne · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautifully written! Reminds me of the Corona Virus outbreak! I highly recommend!

[Jenna Vaughn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I appreciated the lyrical personification of the tree, the bats, the virus, and the unique insight into the workers.

[Jan · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Vivid images but little continuity. Rambling stories. Too much baobab tree.

[pharmacdon · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I read this because it won LA Times Book Award for fiction. Usually, award winners are great to read but not this. We get lectured by a tree, bat, and the Ebola virus. Interspersed with chapters on individuals, such as doctors, nurses, family members, and survivors, we get a view of the devastation of the Ebola outbreak in Africa. I usually am interested in such medical issues, but this book didn't do it for me.

[maryreinert · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent book that gives an insight into Ebola from several different perspectives. Beginning with a frantic father sending his daughter away, two boys shooting and eating bats, and the baobab three which has lived longer than all now alive. This has no plot; rather it is a series of short chapters told from the perspective of a doctor, a nurse, a man who takes care of the bodies, a soldier, a grandmother, and a bat.The author makes a strong case for how man has so damaged not only the environment but also the basic humanity of each other. A very thoughtful and insightful book -- discouraging and depressing, but the writing is beautiful and leaves much food for thought.