Melchior Mbonimpa (born 1955) is a Burundian-Canadian writer.Didier Pilon, "Melchior Mbonimpa, la chance d’être en vie". ONFR+, February 29, 2020. He is most noted for his novel Les morts ne sont pas morts, which won the Prix Christine-Dumitriu-Van-Saanen from the Salon du livre de Toronto in 2006."Prix Christine-Dumitriu-van-Saanen". Association des auteures et des auteurs de l'Ontario français. He was previously a finalist for the same award in 2002 for Le totem des Baranda,"Esther Beauchemin reçoit le prix Christine Dumitriu van Saanen". Ici Radio-Canada Ontario. and in 2004 for Le dernier roi faiseur de pluie."LU professor finalist for book award". Sudbury Star, September 27, 2004.
A professor of philosophy in the department of religious studies at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario, he has written both novels and non-fiction work on African politics."Melchior Mbonimpa, auteur et enseignant à Sudbury". CBON-FM, February 26, 2019. In 2019, he was named one of the 25 most important Black Canadian personalities in Franco-Ontarian culture by Ici Radio-Canada.
Le totem des Baranda was selected for the 2021 edition of Le Combat des livres, where it was defended by filmmaker Tanya Lapointe.Jenny Lamothe, "Sudbury author Melchior Mbonimpa ‘astonished’ his 20-year-old novel picked for Combat national des livres". Toronto Star, April 15, 2021.
Works Fiction Le totem des Baranda (2001, Prise de parole) Le dernier roi faiseur de pluie (2003, Prise de parole) Les morts ne sont pas morts (2006, Prise de parole) La terre sans mal (2008, Prise de parole) La tribu de Sangwa (2012, Prise de parole) Diangombé l'Immortel (2015)Paul-François Sylvestre, "Roman finement ciselé et coloré". L'Express, February 17, 2015. Au sommet du Nanzerwé il s'est assis et il a pleuré (2020)Vicki Gilhula, "Sudbury Francophone author Melchior Mbonimpa’s 7th novel set in his native Africa". Sudbury.com, September 16, 2020.
Non-fiction Idéologies de l’indépendance africaine (1989) Hutu, Tutsi, Twa (1993) Ethnicité et démocratie en Afrique (1994) Défis actuels de l’identité chrétienne (1996) La Pax Americana en Afrique des Grands Lacs (2000)
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