The Bite of the Mango

Eleven-year-old Mariatu lives in a small village in Sierra Leone. There are growing reports of rebels attacking villagers nearby but, for over a year, the villagers avoid attack by hiding in the bush.

One night, Mariatu dreams of palm oil—a sign that blood will be spilled the next day. Sure enough, the following day, Mariatu is captured by rebel soldiers. She prays for death but instead has her hands cut from her body by child soldiers almost as young as her.

Mariatu wakes up on the brink of death but manages to make her way to the hospital. On the way, she meets up with her cousins, Ibrahim and Mohamed, and learns that they too have lost their hands.

At the hospital, Mariatu discovers that she is pregnant. At first, she cannot understand how this has happened but once her aunt talks to her about sex and men, she realizes how she became pregnant.

A month before the rebel attack, Mariatu was raped by Salieu, a family friend, and now she is carrying his child. This knowledge horrifies her and she attempts to take her own life. Mariatu’s aunt stops her, but Mariatu is left depressed and desperate.