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Mohand-Said Ait-Taleb is an enigma. Living in France but ravaged by memories of the war in Algeria, he has withdrawn into his own world, away from his wife and children. When his son Xavier discovers articles by Albert Camus describing the appalling conditions his father grew up in, he starts to piece together the story of his life.
Xavier retraces the steps of this dignified, illiterate and strong-willed man: from Kabylia – where starving children, like Mohand-Said, fought with dogs for scraps – to the metal factory in Normandy, where his father would spend the rest of his days, consumed with providing for his family. It is there that Xavier discovers his love of books. When he breaks with conservative family traditions and confesses his attraction to men, Xavier will find which doors slam closed and which will open.
A Man With No Title is a beautiful and moving tribute to a father, to the immigrants condemned to undertake the hardest work for meagre reward, and to the power of literature to transcend class.
‘A beautiful and achingly tender tribute to a father’ Leïla Slimani
Xavier Le Clerc is a celebrated French Algerian novelist and poet. His third novel Un homme sans titre received wide critical acclaim in France, where it was awarded four literary prizes, including the prestigious Prix du Livre La Tribune. Born Hamid Aït-Taleb in Kabylia, Algeria, Le Clerc changed his name in his early thirties due to discrimination. He now lives with his husband between Paris and London.