"This book is the first-person account of a unique and multifaceted story.
It is a reflection on the human condition.
It is the story of a childhood deeply rooted in the aristocratic origins of Mandingo society during the colonial period, with its traditions, myths, imagination, and values, transmitted by families and lineages, through the words of a mother who embodies all the ancestral wisdom, and of a wife who is endearing and dignified. This is the story of a young man enrolled in the School of the Revolution who would eventually become a leader engaged in the work of building the new nation born of Guinea's independence, conquered in 1958.
It is the story and analysis of the brutal and violent ruptures of 1984-1985, already set against a backdrop of ethno-political conflicts driven by the political and administrative elites of a still fragile nation, tearing itself apart, with its share of physical and moral suffering, exclusion, and exile.
It is the story of the construction of the maturity of a technocrat who reached the summit of national and African decision-making bodies on public policy; the story of his involvement in international relations, fostering meetings with historic leaders of liberation movements and Pan-Africanism.
It is an analysis of the hopes of the democracy rebuilt in 2010... and its renewed disappointments. It is, finally, the story of Mamadi Camara's future, of the future of his entire generation. A future that continues...for a long time to come.
Bailo Télivel DIALLO
Former Guinean Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research