The Moon Will Not Burn Us

₦20,000.00

Set during Guinea-Bissau’s gruelling 11-year war for independence from Portuguese colonial rule, The Moon Will Not Burn Us tells the true story of Joana Gomes, a teenage girl thrust into the conflict after her father’s murder. At just 13 years old, Joana’s quest for justice leads her to join a determined group of female combatants whose efforts prove instrumental in securing victory for their nation. Joana and her fellow female combatants went to help win an 11-year war that finished off a century of colonialism in Africa, personified the struggle between the Soviet Union and the West, and caused a revolution in Portugal. And while the repercussions of their struggle were echoing globally, back in Guinea-Bissau Joana and other women fighters were left to grapple with the personal sacrifices they were forced to make in the name of freedom.

Available on: August 19, 2026 at 12:00 am

Ricci Shryock is a writer and photographer who lives in Dakar, Senegal. Born in a small town in the American Midwest, she moved to Dakar when she was one week shy of her 25th birthday in 2008. Since then has tried to listen as best she can and unlearn certain narratives, so that the stories she is privy to revolve around West African realities being the center, the beginning. Indebted to all the people who have let her into their lives, so many have taught her new ways of seeing. She hopes her stories can allow others to see things differently, too. Her journalism, published in The New Yorker, The New York Times, and other publications — has focused on a variety of topics from human movement to vibrant Senegalese fashion. Her favorite fashion though is that made by her husband, while they raise their two daughters in the vibrant and warm city by the sea.