From Exclusion to Reintegration: The Case of Street Children in Bernard Ilunga Kayombo’s Quand les enfants crient misère

The present study seeks to explore the challenges faced by street children in Kayombo’s novel Quand les enfants crient misère (2008). The paper establishes that children are found in the street mainly due to abuse and neglect by parents, as well as the breakdown of traditional African family support system. However, these disinherited children were able to reintegrate into the social fabric of their communities and families due to the resilience, tenacity, a collective enterprise essentially carried out by the children themselves. Their success was also due to the careful patronage of a Catholic nun, Sister Consolatrice, who was able to listen and take new initiatives.