Margins
Checkpoint book cover
Checkpoint
2015
First Published
3.47
Average Rating
304
Number of Pages

A novel of suspense and psychological tension set in the world of international humanitarian aid by a founder of Doctors Without Borders. The four men accompanying Maud, a young French idealist, on an aid convoy to Bosnia are very different from the clichéd image of the humanitarian volunteer. One by one, they reveal the secret wounds that have brought them to this conflict zone and, mile by mile, the true nature of their cargo . . .Prize-winning author, Jean-Christophe Rufin offers up a powerful psychological literary thriller that asks vital questions about the role of humanitarian action in today’s world, bringing to light the most fundamental dilemmas of our age. As a new kind of violence insinuates its way into the heart of Europe, this novel asks whether it is more effective to take up arms against the enemy or attempt to counter violence with benevolent acts and enlightenment ideals. “An enthralling, cleverly told novel.”― Elle (France) “This taut thriller is distinguished by its literary polish and moral heft.”― Publishers Weekly “This mix of well-crafted characters, psychological suspense, and the harsh realities of life in wartime results in a nail-biting, challenging literary thriller.”― Kirkus Reviews “As a philosophical novel, Checkpoint is very engaging... Gun battles, explosions, and fights all appear after the first one hundred pages... Checkpoint is about the nature of modern warfare and the various definitions of humanitarianism.”― New York Journal of Books

Avg Rating
3.47
Number of Ratings
1,043
5 STARS
14%
4 STARS
35%
3 STARS
38%
2 STARS
11%
1 STARS
2%
goodreads

Author

Jean-Christophe Rufin
Jean-Christophe Rufin
Author · 21 books

Jean-Christophe Rufin is a French doctor and novelist. He is the president of Action Against Hunger and one of the founders of Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors without borders). He was Ambassador of France in Senegal from 2007 to June 2010. Rufin was born in Bourges, Cher in 1952. An only child, he was raised by his grandparents, because his father had left the family and his mother worked in Paris. His grandfather, a doctor and member of the French Resistance during World War II, had been imprisoned for two years at Buchenwald. In 1977, after medical school, Rufin went to Tunisia as a volunteer doctor. He led his first humanitarian mission in Eritrea,where he met Azeb, who became his second wife. A graduate of the Institut d'études politiques de Paris (Political Sciences) in 1986, he became advisor to the Secretary of State for Human Rights and published his first book, Le Piège humanitaire (The Humanitarian Trap), an essay on the political stakes of humanitarian action. As a doctor, he has led numerous missions in eastern Africa and Latin America. He is former vice-president of Médecins Sans Frontières and former president of the non-governmental organization Action Against Hunger.

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