Nothing about human behaviour surprises Gurnah, and in reading his wise new novel with its gentle and beautiful ending, we the readers become a bit less judgemental, and more ready to understand what it means to struggle, to dare, to love – what it means to be human

Elif Shafak, New Statesman, Book of the Day

A rich, engaging experience … Beautifully done … The reader can only rejoice at Gurnah's skill in giving us the whole of a life in such nimble scenes

Financial Times

Nobody writes about the world we call postcolonial like Abdulrazak Gurnah. His novels are uncompromising, but also stubbornly humane. They come at their subjects with open eyes, and we need what they see

Juan Gabriel Vásquez

Another glittering tapestry of a novel from a master storyteller of our times

Irish Times

A storyteller of understated brilliance … A poignant portrait of love, friendship and betrayal … Powerful, affecting and provocative, Theft is a vital addition to Gurnah's remarkable body of work, a novel steeped in heartbreak and loss but one that ultimately refuses despair

Guardian

In typically poised, elegant and unshowy prose … Gurnah is a sharp, stealthy observer himself. There's a steely alertness to his gaze that makes the shady courtyards and sweaty rooms of Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar - and the feelings of their people - solid and luminous. He lays bare this confined space with crafty, slow-burn patience

Spectator