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Jacaranda by Gaël Faye review – the limits of forgiveness after Rwanda
Gaël Faye’s Jacaranda is presented as an ambitious family saga about the long aftermath of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, asking whether healing and forgiveness are possible after mass atrocity. The novel follows Milan, a French-Rwandan boy raised in relative comfort in Versailles, as his mother’s silence and the arrival of an injured cousin expose him to a history his family has concealed.
Milan first visits Rwanda in 1998, where he reconnects with cousin Claude and encounters survivors, campaigners and orphaned young people whose lives have been shaped by genocide. Through figures including Eusébie, Sartre and Milan’s younger relative Stella, the story explores intergenerational trauma, the roots of the Hutu-Tutsi divide, belonging and the search for truth; the jacaranda tree becomes a recurring symbol of shelter and remembrance.
In short
- A family saga confronts Rwanda’s genocide and its enduring consequences.
- Milan uncovers painful secrets linking France and Rwanda.
- The novel examines memory, belonging, justice and forgiveness.
Explained simply
Rwanda's 1994 genocide saw around 800,000 people killed in a systematic campaign by Hutu extremists targeting the minority Tutsi population. The violence lasted 100 days and left deep scars in Rwandan society that continue to shape the country decades later. For many survivors and their families, the aftermath raises difficult questions about how to live with such trauma.
Gaël Faye's novel follows Milan, a boy of French and Rwandan heritage who grows up sheltered in the Paris suburb of Versailles, largely unaware of his family's connections to Rwanda. When his mother's silence about the past and the arrival of an injured cousin force him to confront what happened, Milan travels to Rwanda for the first time in 1998 to meet survivors and relatives he never knew. Through these encounters, he begins to understand the history his family concealed.
The book explores what happens after genocide: how trauma ripples through generations, whether forgiveness is possible, and what it means to belong when history divides people and families. It asks whether understanding the past can bring healing, or whether some wounds run too deep for reconciliation.