A young man’s quest to reconcile his deafness in an unforgiving world leads to a remarkable sojurn in a remote African village that pulsates with beauty and violence.
At once a poignant account of friendship through adversity, a hilarious comedy of errors, and a gripping narrative of escalating violence, The Unheard is an unforgettable story from a noteworthy new talent.
(That’s what it says on the back of the book.)
Winner of the Paul Cowan Award.
What people are saying
Deafness would have provided a unique sensory filter for anyone, yet while Swiller might have his particular aural capabilities, he also has literary talents — an eye, a voice, and a narrative talent — in abundance. A story in any other Peace Corps volunteer’s hands might have been hundrum, but in Swiller’s becomes intensified, like the rigors of day-to-day Zambian life, through deprivation.
— Publisher’s Weekly
I thought I knew about the Peace Corps until I read Josh Swiller’s hilarious, troubling, and at times frightening recreation of this time in Zambia. His wit spares no one —- least of all himself — and his generosity of spirit encompasses nearly everyone. His experiences in Africa transformed him, and this book will transform readers.
— Laurence Bergreen, author of Over the Edge of the World
Swiller serves as a compassionate and eloquent narrator…The story that emerges is compelling and astonishing.
— Kirkus Reviews
[Swiller’s] appealing, intelligent narrative serves both as a coming of age story and as a penetrating light into one corner of a tormented continent.
— Washington Post
Several ingredients are crucial in a memoir like this: humor, the ability to see enough details to make the scene come alive and a dispassionate compassion. Swiller has them all.
— Los Angeles Times
Swiller rewrites the familiar African narrative with a purity that makes the tragic beauty of that continent a stunning novelty for readers. We experience the rich, tangible passions of love, honor and revenge in Africa, amplified a thousandfold in the quite world of the deaf.
— New York Observer