kingsleycriquets
Leïla Chaibi is a young Algerian girl whose childhood is overshadowed by the growing war for independence. Living in a small village at the foot of the mountains, she witnesses how the conflict creeps into every corner of daily life-soldiers marching through the streets, neighbors disappearing in the night, and whispers of resistance carried from house to house.
As the war deepens, Leïla is forced to grow up quickly. She helps her mother tend to the wounded in secret, hides messages for the moudjahidines, and learns to read the difference between the silence of safety and the silence before violence. Torn between fear and courage, she watches as her family, her village, and even her own sense of self are tested by betrayal, loss, and sacrifice.
The story follows her journey from childhood to early adolescence, where survival means more than simply escaping bullets-it means holding on to dignity, to memory, and to the dream of freedom.