One of India’s most beautiful regions. One of its bloodiest conflicts. And one man stands in the path of the rising storm. Kohima, 2007. A young man has been gunned down in cold blood—the latest casualty in the conflict that has scarred the landscape and brutalized the people of Nagaland.Easterine Kire’s novel traces the story of one man’s life, from 1937 to the present day. The small incidents of Mose’s youth, his family, the routines and rituals of traditional village life paint an evocative picture of a peaceful childhood, now long-vanished. The coming of a radio into Mose’s family’s house marks the beginning of the changes that would connect them to the wider world. They learn of partition, independence, a land called America. Mose and his friends become involved in the Naga struggle for Independence, and are caught in a maelstrom of violence that turns neighbor against neighbor and tears communities apart.Bitter Wormwood gives a poignant insight into the human cost behind the political headlines.“Once opened [the book is] tough to close, so congenial are the leading characters and so riveting the events in their lives.” —Cairns Media Magazine
