Black Leopard, Red Wolf

For immense support, guidance, generosity, and sometimes blind faith, I would like to thank Ellen Levine, my wonderful agent; Jake Morrissey, my just as wonderful editor; Jeff Bennett, writer, researcher, assistant, great friend, and fine human being; Jynne Dilling Martin, Claire McGinnis, Geoffrey Kloske, and all the folks at Riverhead; Martha Kanya-Forstner, Kiara Kent, and everybody else at Doubleday Canada; Simon Prosser at Hamish Hamilton; Macalester College English Department; Robert McLean; all the researchers and scholars doing the tireless, sometimes thankless investigative and archival work on African history and mythology, including those badass librarians from Timbuktu; Fab 5 Freddy for putting up that Facebook post that sparked a million ideas; and Pablo Camacho for that absolutely stunning cover. My mother is allowed to read all but two pages of this book.

THE BEGINNING

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HAMISH HAMILTON

UK | USA | Canada | Ireland | Australia

India | New Zealand | South Africa

Hamish Hamilton is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com.

First published in the United States of America by Riverhead Books 2019

First published in Great Britain by Hamish Hamilton 2019

Copyright © Marlon James, 2019

The moral right of the author has been asserted

Cover illustration: Pablo Gerardo Camacho

Cover design: Helen Yentus

Maps by Marlon James

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental

ISBN: 978-0-241-98184-9

This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.