African history Books

Book SynopsisWINNER OF THE BAILEYS PRIZE BEST OF THE BEST Winner of the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction 2007, this is a heartbreaking, exquisitely written literary masterpieceTrade Review‘Heartbreaking, funny, exquisitely written and, without doubt, a literary masterpiece and a classic’ Daily Mail ‘Stunning. This novel is an immense achievement’ Observer ‘A landmark novel. Adichie brings to history a lucid intelligence and compassion, and a heartfelt plea for memory’ Guardian 'Vividly written, thrumming with life … a remarkable novel. In its compassionate intelligence as in its capacity for intimate portraiture, this novel is a worthy successor to such twentieth-century classics as Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart and V. S. Naipaul's A Bend in the River' Joyce Carol Oates 'Here is a new writer endowed with the gift of ancient storytellers’ Chinua Achebe ‘The character burrow into your marrow and mind, and you come to care for them deeply – something that is all too rare’ Daily Telegraph ‘A sane and compassionate new voice in an often strident world’ Financial Times ‘Adichie uses language with relish. She infuses her English with a robust poetry’ Helen Dunmore, The Times ‘A powerful account of the Biafran War, horrific and tender in equal measure’ Sunday Telegraph 'Absolutely awesome. One of the best books I've ever read' Judy Finnigan ‘I wasted the last fifty pages, reading them far too greedily and fast, because I couldn’t bear to let go … magnificent’ Margaret Forster

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Book SynopsisThe shocking, untold story of how African independence was strangled at birth by America’s systematic interference. Accra, 1958. Africa’s liberation leaders have gathered for a conference, full of strength, purpose and vision. Newly independent Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah and Congo’s Patrice Lumumba strike up a close partnership. Everything seems possible. But, within a few years, both men will have been targeted by the CIA, and their dream of true African autonomy undermined. The United States, watching the Europeans withdraw from Africa, was determined to take control. Pan-Africanism was inspiring African Americans fighting for civil rights; the threat of Soviet influence over new African governments loomed; and the idea of an atomic reactor in black hands was unacceptable. The conclusion was simple: the US had to ‘recapture’ Africa, in the shadows, by any means necessary. Renowned historian Susan Williams dives into the archives, revealing new, shocking details of America’s covert programme in Africa. The CIA crawled over the continent, poisoning the hopes of 1958 with secret agents and informants; surreptitious UN lobbying; cultural infiltration and bribery; assassinations and coups. As the colonisers moved out, the Americans swept in—with bitter consequences that reverberate in Africa to this day.Trade Review'[White Malice] gives us an unprecedented look into the murky underworld of Cold War geopolitics and the motivations of its major players.' -- African Business'White Malice is a triumph of archival research.' -- Africa Is a Country

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Book Synopsis'Lively and amusing [...] an engaging read. Ryan successfully makes this ancient civilisation more immediate and accessible.' - Current World Archaeology _____________________'[Donald] Ryan - who has worked in and on Egypt for decades, as an archaeologist, historian and popular writer - has succeeded in bringing all of his characters to life. This is a great little volume.' - KMT Magazine_____________________'Very readable [...] its originality lies in the clever construction of the content. The variety of characters covered allows for a considerable breadth of information on life for the rich and poor.' - Ancient Egypt Magazine_____________________Spend 24 hours with the inhabitants of the most powerful kingdom in the ancient world.Ancient Egypt wasn’t all pyramids, sphinxes and gold sarcophagi. For your average Egyptian, life was tough, and work was hard, conducted under the burning gaze of the sun god Ra.During the course of a day in the ancient city of Thebes (modern-day Luxor), Egypt’s religious capital, we meet 24 Egyptians from all strata of society – from the king to the bread-maker, the priestess to the fisherman, the soldier to the midwife – and get to know what the real Egypt was like by spending an hour in their company. We encounter a different one of these characters every hour and in every chapter, and through their eyes see what an average day in ancient Egypt was really like.

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Book SynopsisFINALIST FOR THE CUNDILL PRIZE FOR HISTORYNot only deserves the description epic, in its true sense, but the term masterpiece as well' IndependentThis gripping epic tells the story of one of the world's most critical failed nation-states: the Democratic Republic of Congo. Interweaving his own family's history with the voices of a diverse range of individuals charismatic dictators, feuding warlords, child soldiers, and many in the African diaspora of Europe and China Van Reybrouck offers a deeply humane approach to political history, focusing squarely on the Congolese perspective and returning a nation's history to its people.Trade Review‘The research, the devotion, the inventiveness in Van Reybrouck's writing are a gift to everyone, not just fans of African history. This book not only deserves the description "epic", in its true sense, but the term "masterpiece" as well.’ Independent ‘A Big, fat, rich, readable tome … The book is alive with stories, and Reybrouck’s love of the nation and its people comes across strongly’ Independent on Sunday ‘Van Reybrouck brings this excessive history vividly to life … He has not only read through the library he intends to replace, he has dug up new archival material and draws on living memories … The result is a book as rich and resourceful as Congo itself.’ Guardian ‘A piece of luck for English-speaking readers. This is a magnificent account, intimately researched, and relevant for anyone interested in how the recent past may inform our near future … Extraordinary.’ New York Times ‘A vivid panorama of one of the most tormented lands in the world … Van Reybrouck covers all this in engrossing detail … A valuable addition to the rich literature that Congo has inspired.’ Washington Post ‘The English-speaking world has been impatiently awaiting this translation. ‘Congo’ is a remarkable piece of work. Van Reybrouck pulls off the tricky feat of keeping a panoramic history of a vast and complex nation accessible, intimate and particular.’ Michela Wrong, author of In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz ‘A monumental history . . . more exciting than any novel’ NRC Handelsblad ‘[Van Reybrouck] has a beautiful feel for language … His eye for the arresting human detail, combined with a wry appreciation for a peculiarly Congolese form of gumption, keeps you powering through this panoramic survey of 150 turbulent years … Both intimate and immediate … Fascinating’ Spectator ‘A masterful and gripping account … makes you rethink the entire project of modernity’ Yuval Noah Harari, Guardian Summer Reads

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Book SynopsisThis is a story studded with extraordinary achievements and historic moments, from the building of the pyramids and the conquest of Nubia, through Akhenaten''s religious revolution, the power and beauty of Nefertiti, the glory of Tutankhamun''s burial chamber, and the ruthlessness of Ramesses, to Alexander the Great''s invasion, and Cleopatra''s fatal entanglement with Rome. As the world''s first nation-state, the history of Ancient Egypt is above all the story of the attempt to unite a disparate realm and defend it against hostile forces from within and without. Combining grand narrative sweep with detailed knowledge of hieroglyphs and the iconography of power, Toby Wilkinson reveals Ancient Egypt in all its complexity.Trade Review‘A sophisticated and complete account of the world's first nation state' * The Times Books of the Year *‘Wilkinson's stirring and clear sighted account of the ancient world's most enduring civilisation comes as a welcome treat' * Sunday Times Books of the Year *‘I had always presumed, before I read Wilkinson's book, that it was impossible to write a history of Egypt which combined scholarship, accessibility, and a genuine sense of revelation. I was wrong' * Observer *‘A comprehensive, illustrated history focusing on the dark side of the Pharaohs and some harsh political realities' * The List *

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Book SynopsisA dynamic, interactive, mid-weight eurogame for one to four players, following the rise in fortunes of the prestigious University of Sankoré in 14th-century Timbuktu.Tasked by the emperor, Mansa Musa, with spreading knowledge throughout West Africa, players must each manage a prestigious school within the Sankoré Madrasa as this great university is raised around them.By enrolling and graduating your pupils, teaching classes, adding to your curriculum, and filling the great library with books, you will advance knowledge in four main disciplines: theology, law, mathematics, and astronomy. Once construction of the university is complete, the value that the empire places on each discipline will dramatically affect how you score the knowledge you have passed on.In a dedicated solo mode, you will be competing against a distinguished scholar, a passionate, and ambitious academic controlled by an elegant automated system. They may not be as nimble as you, but

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Book SynopsisA riveting and highly readable account of the Congo massacre, peopled by callous monarchs, corrupt adventurers and a handful of genuine heroes.

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Book SynopsisMost of what is written about Africa is framed in terms that have been out of date for years. Too often, it is seen as heading for either disaster or salvation; the realities are more subtle, more complicated than this binary opposition suggests. The continent has over the last century experienced the fastest population growth in the entire history of our planet. This brings pressures environmental and human, but it also changes the logic of Africa's economics. It suggests reasons for hope. Thanks to mobile phones, African retail markets are now becoming integrated; in South Africa, Nigeria and elsewhere, banking is penetrating society; foreign direct investment is higher than ever before. And Africa has 80 per cent of the world's empty agricultural land, which foreigners covet. Yet there is no reason to believe that Africa is heading for political stability. Its so-called 'failed states' are actually here to stay. After two centuries when Europeans and Americans thought of Africa as a continent struggling to catch up, it has arrived. It has developed, but in ways no one foresaw. Season of Rains explains how one billion Africans are changing their continent and changing the world. Stephen Ellis dissects how the postcolonial legacy has been overcome, how Africans are seizing the commercial and political initiative, and why this matters. Africans are reorienting-literally-as they connect to the East. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese, seeking minerals, oil and more, have settled in Africa; conversely the Chinese city of Guangzhou is home to as many as 100,000 Africans. In a series of short, pungently written chapters, Ellis surveys the continent today, offering the reader an indispensable guide to how money, power, religion and indigenous development will shape Africa's coming generations.Trade Review'The timing of [Season of Rains], named after a Cameroonian poem about forecasting the harvest at the first rains, is impeccable. Its publication follows a rash of research celebrating the prospects of an African economic renaissance in years to come, while a combination of global and local circumstances has pushed the continent back up the agenda for the global investment community. - Yet this growing literature on what some like to term a new scramble for Africa, referring back to the colonial carve-up that took place in the 19th century, is often one-dimensional. That is not an accusation that can be levelled at Ellis, who in a succinct 170 pages captures the broad spectrum of political, economic and social foundations that make Africa what it is today.' * Financial Times *'Nuanced and challenging - Ellis' book will not please readers looking for a simple takeaway of straightforward policy recommendations, but his in-depth knowledge makes it essential reading for anyone seeking to understand Africa's evolution.' * Foreign Affairs *'This book is a lucid and brief analysis of Africa in the world. It is a subversive masterpiece, undermining stereotypes of and about Africans. Everyone interested in Africa should read it to give their assumptions an invigorating cold shower and to modify their own policies.' - Sir Edward Clay, former British High Commissioner to Kenya, for the Royal African Society 'Season of Rains brilliantly succeeds in its goal of providing a succinct introduction to a continent which is all too often conceived by external observers in stereotypes inherited from the post-colonial period, or indeed much further back in the history of "the dark continent".' * International Affairs *'[Seasons of Rain] investigate[s] and enrich[es] the intellectual, political and cultural approaches to the African continent, giving substance and structures and offering body to policy-making... in vibrant style, Ellis brings the individual and the global, the personal and the structural, the pre-colonial and the aftermath of the "true postcolonial age" together.' * The Round Table *'One of the most insightful and thought-provoking analyses of Africa of the last decade. Stephen Ellis mercilessly exposes the outdated preconceptions that mould outsiders' interactions with the continent and the yawning gap between what statesmen, diplomats and aid officials would like the continent to be and what it really is. His conclusion is refreshingly upbeat.' * Michela Wrong, author of It's Our Turn to Eat: The Story of a Kenyan Whistleblower *'An outstanding, original and provocative work. - The breadth of Season of Rains is extremely impressive. - its greatest strength is the way it manages to convey a sense of both continuity and change. - a considerable achievement'. * Dr Daniel Branch, University of Warwick *

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Book SynopsisIt is a glorious book: an education and an invitation. There is such life in its pages, and such food!' Nigella LawsonA culinary expedition celebrating cooking from across the African continentAfricana travels the continent showcasing its vibrant and varied cuisines that are rich in flavour, diverse in culture and steeped in tradition.Combining recipes passed down the generations with her own modern and inventive style, food writer and cook Lerato shares her own stories of Africa with a delectable sense of adventure.Discover iconic dishes from Nigeria to Madagascar, Morocco to South Africa. There are over 100 recipes to delight and inspire, Spice Island Coconut Fish Curry, Harissa Leg of Lamb with Hibiscus, Senegalese Yassa, Tunisian Tagine, South African Malva Pudding, and the secret to the perfect Jollof.Bursting with flavour and offering a sense of wanderlust, Africana will bring the magic of the continent to your kitchen.Outstanding new book that will wake up your taste buds.' deliTrade Review‘It is a glorious book: an education and an invitation. There is such life in its pages, and such food!’ Nigella Lawson ‘Outstanding new book that will wake up your taste buds.’ delicious. magazine ‘No plantain will go to waste with this book nearby.’ BBC Good Food Magazine ‘Leaf through Africana and you’ll be sticking Post-it notes everywhere … There isn’t a dish I don’t want to cook.’ Diana Henry, the Saturday Telegraph

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Book SynopsisWith an introduction by author Anne Enright.Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book award, a story of civil war and a family's unbreakable bond.How you see a country depends on whether you are driving through it, or live in it. How you see a country depends on whether or not you can leave it, if you have to.As the daughter of white settlers in war-torn 1970s Rhodesia, Alexandra Fuller remembers a time when a schoolgirl was as likely to carry a shotgun as a satchel. This is her story - of a civil war, of a quixotic battle with nature and loss, and of a family's unbreakable bond with the continent that came to define, scar and heal them.Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, Alexandra Fuller's classic memoir of an African childhood is suffused with laughter and warmth even amid disaster. Unsentimental and unflinching, but always enchanting, Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight is the stTrade ReviewLike Frank McCourt, Fuller writes with devastating humour and directness about desperate circumstances . . . tender, remarkable * Daily Telegraph *A book that deserves to be read for generations * Guardian *Perceptive, generous, political, tragic, funny, stamped through with a passionate love for Africa . . . [Fuller] has a faultless hotline to her six-year-old self * Independent *This enchanting book is destined to become a classic of Africa and of childhood * Sunday Times *Wonderful book . . . a vibrantly personal account of growing up in a family every bit as exotic as the continent which seduced it . . . the Fuller family itself [is] delivered to the reader with a mixture of toughness and heart which renders its characters unforgettable * Scotsman *Her prose is fierce, unsentimental, sometimes puzzled, and disconcertingly honest . . . it is Fuller's clear vision, even of the most unpalatable facts, that gives her book its strength. It deserves to find a place alongside Olive Schreiner, Karen Blixen and Doris Lessing * Sunday Telegraph *

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Book Synopsis'Meredith has given a spectacularly clear view of the African political jungle' – Spectator 'This book is hard to beat... Elegantly written as well as unerringly accurate' – Financial Times The fortunes of Africa have changed dramatically since the independence era began in 1957. As Europe’s colonial powers withdrew, dozens of new states were born. Africa was a continent rich in mineral resources and its economic potential was immense. Yet, it soon struggled with corruption, violence and warfare, with few states managing to escape the downward spiral. So what went wrong? In this riveting and authoritative account, Martin Meredith examines the myriad problems that Africa has faced, focusing upon key personalities, events and themes of the independence era. He brings his compelling analysis into the modern day, exploring Africa’s enduring struggles fTrade Review‘As a narrative of Africa’s political trajectory since independence, this book is hard to beat … Elegantly written as well as unerringly accurate’ * Financial Times *‘Meredith is a sure guide to this colossal, sad story’ * Sunday Times *'You cannot even begin to understand contemporary African politics if you have not read this fascinating book' -- Bob Geldof'As a popular introduction to the subject it could hardly be bettered' -- Piers Brendon * Sunday Telegraph *'A highly readable digest of half a century of woes in the cradle of mankind' * Economist *'A brilliant and vitally important work for all who wish to understand Africa and its beleaguered people' * Booklist *

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Book SynopsisHow Europe Underdeveloped Africa is an ambitious masterwork of political economy, detailing the impact of slavery and colonialism on the history of international capitalism. In this classic book, Rodney makes the unflinching case that African maldevelopment is not a natural feature of geography, but a direct product of imperial extraction from the continent, a practice that continues up into the present. Meticulously researched, How Europe Underdeveloped Africa remains an unshakably relevant study of the so-called "great divergence" between Africa and Europe, just as it remains a prescient resource for grasping the the multiplication of global inequality today. In this new edition, Angela Davis offers a striking foreword to the book, exploring its lasting contributions to a revolutionary and feminist practice of anti-imperialism.Trade ReviewWalter Rodney's magisterial opus is recognized globally as a landmark in African studies, not to mention the history of colonialism and imperialism. Beautifully written and expertly argued, it is that rare book that can be called a classic. It belongs on every bookshelf. -- Gerald Horne, historian and author of The Counter-Revolution of 1776 and Confronting Black JacobinsThis book is a legendary classic that galvanized freedom fighters around the world. -- Cornel West, philosopher, author, critic, and activistWalter Rodney was a pioneering scholar who provided new answers to old questions and posed new questions in relation to the study of Africa. -- Professor Winston McGowanThis classic work of black political thought, political economy, and Africa history inspired scholars and political activists in the struggle against colonialism and its misrepresentations of the past. I applaud this reissue, which should bring Rodney's prescient analysis to a new generation struggling from below, in whose hands, he would have reminded us, is no less than the future of humankind. -- Lewis R. Gordon, Author of An Introduction to Africana Philosophy"Appearing in 1972, HEUA was a genuine tour de force. It fused, as had never been done in a single volume before, African history in the global sense and underdevelopment theory, Marxism and black nationalism, intellectual passion and political commitment. HEUA instantly joined a select pan-Africanist canon that would be read at least as much outside as within the academy, an exclusive category that included the two texts that had greatly influenced Rodney's intellectual development, notably James's Black Jacobins and Williams's Capitalism & Slavery, along with Black Reconstruction, W. E. B. Dubois's magisterial work on the struggle for democracy in the United States during the post-Civil War, post-slavery era. HEUA, however, differed from the above-mentioned works, which were written long after the events they charted occurred. HEUA, by contrast, was more urgent and immediate, having been produced in the heat of battle, which is to say amid the ongoing struggle of Africans against capitalist and neocolonialist underdevelopment. His purpose in writing the book, Rodney explained in the Preface, was "to try and reach Africans who wish to explore further the nature of their exploitation, rather than to satisfy the 'standards' set by our oppressors and their spokesmen in the academic world." -- Michael West * Groundings: Development, Pan-Africanism, Critical Theory, Vol. 4, No. 1, 2018 *A masterpiece. -- Andy Higginbottom * Redline *Rodney's analysis remains as relevant as it was when first published - a call to arms in the class struggle for racial equality. * LA Review of Books *This groundbreaking literary powerhouse performed a vital function in resistance to institutional racism. -- Paul Boateng * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis The revelatory Pulitzer Prize finalist for General Nonfiction, New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestseller, shortlisted for the Financial Times Best Business Book of the Year Award.An unflinching investigation reveals the human rights abuses behind the Congo's cobalt mining operationand the moral implications that affect us all.Cobalt Red is the searing, first-ever exposé of the immense toll taken on the people and environment of the Democratic Republic of the Congo by cobalt mining, as told through the testimonies of the Congolese people themselves. Activist and researcher Siddharth Kara has traveled deep into cobalt territory to document the testimonies of the people living, working, and dying for cobalt. To uncover the truth about brutal mining practices, Kara investigated militia-controlled mining areas, traced the supply chain of child-mined cobalt from toxic pit to consumer-facing tech giants, and gat

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Book SynopsisThe Algerian War lasted from 1954 to 1962. It brought down six French governments, led to the collapse of the Fourth Republic, returned de Gaulle to power, and came close to provoking a civil war on French soil. More than a million Muslim Algerians died in the conflict and as many European settlers were driven into exile. Above all, the war was marked by an unholy marriage of revolutionary terror and repressive torture.Nearly a half century has passed since this savagely fought war ended in Algeria’s independence, and yet—as Alistair Horne argues in his new preface to his now-classic work of history—its repercussions continue to be felt not only in Algeria and France, but throughout the world. Indeed from today’s vantage point the Algerian War looks like a full-dress rehearsal for the sort of amorphous struggle that convulsed the Balkans in the 1990s and that now ravages the Middle East, from Beirut to Baghdad—struggles in which questions of religion, nationalism, imperialism, and terrorism take on a new and increasingly lethal intensity.A Savage War of Peace is the definitive history of the Algerian War, a book that brings that terrible and complicated struggle to life with intelligence, assurance, and unflagging momentum. It is essential reading for our own violent times as well as a lasting monument to the historian’s art.

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Book SynopsisNow filmed as INVICTUS directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela. SHORTLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2008As the day of the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup dawned, and the Springboks faced New Zealand's all-conquering All Blacks, more was at stake than a sporting trophy. When Nelson Mandela appeared wearing a Springboks jersey and led the all-white Afrikaner-dominated team in singing South Africa's new national anthem, he conquered the hearts of white South Africa. Playing the Enemy tells the extraordinary human story of how that moment became possible. It shows how a sport, once the preserve of South Africa's Afrikaans-speaking minority, came to unify the new rainbow nation, and tells of how - just occasionally - something as simple as a game really can help people to rise above themselves and see beyond their differences.Trade ReviewWonderful... Don't wait for the movie. * New York Times *A triumphant conversion... A portrait of South Africa's answer to George Washington... [It] works because Carlin got so close to Mandela and the people Mandela seduced. -- Simon Kuper * Financial Times *Revelatory... A tight, gripping and powerful book that shines a light on a moment of hope, not just for one nation but the whole world. * Daily Express *A fascinating story... Thirteen years on, it is possible to look back with emotion at a moment which suggested that everything was possible. -- Justin Cartwright * Sunday Telegraph *

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Book SynopsisLike its African neighbours, Eritrea attained colonial statehood under a European power, in this case Italy. Yet, during decolonisation, its people were singularly excluded from the right to self- determination, for external reasons: superpower rivalry over the country's strategic position on the Red Sea; a mistaken notion of irreconcilable sectarian differences within Eritrea's population, invoked in order to brand it a society unfit for statehood; and Ethiopia's imperial claim, based on mythical historical connections. The Ethiopian call for Eritrea's return, supported by the UK and the US, sealed its fate at the international level. First, in the early 1950s, the UN General Assembly federated Eritrea as an autonomous unit under Ethiopian sovereignty; a decade later, Addis Ababa annexed it as a provincein neither case was the population consulted, sparking a liberation war.This vital book traces the genesis of the Eritrean independence struggle through hitherto unexplored local sources, both written and oral, analysed against the rather scanty existing literature on this period. Alemseged Tesfai refocuses the narrative on the actions, reactions and expectations of a relatively small nation, in both size and population, as it set out to right an international wrong, imposed by the Great Powers of the day.

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Book SynopsisSouth Africa was born in war, has been cursed by crises and ruptures, and today stands on a precipice once again. This book explores the country’s tumultuous journey from the Second Anglo-Boer War to 2021. Drawing on diaries, letters, oral testimony and diplomatic reports, Thula Simpson follows the South African people through the battles, elections, repression, resistance, strikes, insurrections, massacres, crashes and epidemics that have shaped the nation. Tracking South Africa’s path from colony to Union and from apartheid to democracy, Simpson documents the influence of key figures including Jan Smuts, Nelson Mandela, Steve Biko, P.W. Botha, Thabo Mbeki and Cyril Ramaphosa. He offers detailed accounts of watershed events like the 1922 Rand Revolt, the Defiance Campaign, Sharpeville, the Soweto uprising and the Marikana massacre. He sheds light on the roles of Gandhi, Churchill, Castro and Thatcher, and explores the impact of the World Wars, the armed struggle and the Border War. Simpson’s history charts the post-apartheid transition and the phases of ANC rule, from Rainbow Nation to transformation; state capture to ‘New Dawn’. Along the way, it reveals the divisions and solidarities of sport; the nation’s economic travails; and painful pandemics, from the Spanish flu to AIDS and Covid-19.Trade Review'A remarkable historian whose work on South African history deserves to be read.' -- History Today‘The impressive scale of the work, and its reach into the present, make it uniquely valuable for anyone wanting an overview of how South African history is understood by dominant opinion.’ -- Foreign Policy'Simpson finely traces the political history of South Africa since the beginning of the twentieth century … Armed with fascinating details and anecdotes, he focuses on its contentious politics, from labor strife in the first half of the century to the harshly repressed protests against the apartheid government in the latter half of the twentieth century.’ -- Foreign Affairs'Narrative history at its best. With prodigious detail and eloquent prose, Thula Simpson places Black South Africans at the centre of the country's historical evolution and claims his place at the head table of contemporary historians. A masterpiece!' -- Xolela Mangcu, former Oppenheimer fellow, Hutchins Center for African and African American Studies, Harvard University, and author of Biko: A Life'In this pacy and compelling political history of South Africa, Simpson draws on fresh sources to extend the arc of apartheid and resistance into the current moment. By doing so, he skilfully illuminates the country's current predicament.' -- Saul Dubow, Smuts Professor of Commonwealth History, University of Oxford'This book is history writing at its best.' -- Lindie Koorts, author of DF Malan and the Rise of Afrikaner Nationalism'Covering the period from the aftermath of the South African War to the present, this is the first comprehensive history of South Africa to come out since those surrounding the achievement of democracy and is long overdue. A very readable and invaluable resource for general readers, students and academics.' -- Alan Kirkaldy, Head of History, Rhodes University'Thula Simpson charts key episodes in South African history with a powerful narrative and illuminating detail. His attention to sources and to the role of individuals makes this a valuable reference and teaching text.' -- William Beinart, Emeritus Professor, African Studies Centre, University of Oxford'Two themes stand out in this industriously researched history of modern South Africa. One is the extent to which South African political and social life has been shaped by organised political violence. The second is the persistence of extreme forms of inequality between South Africans, both in terms of power and with respect to livelihoods. These tragic features of the national story continue to shape South African life. For anyone interested in why we are where we are today, this engaging and illuminating book will offer powerful insights.' -- Tom Lodge, Emeritus Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Limerick, and author of Politics in South Africa: From Mandela to Mbeki

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE NONFICTION CROWN AWARD 2024GUARDIAN: BOOKS TO LOOK OUT FOR IN 2024''GRIPPING'' THE TIMESThis is an immersive and revelatory history of the survivors of the Clotilda, the last ship of the Atlantic slave trade, whose lives diverged and intersected in profound ways.The Clotilda docked in Mobile Bay, Alabama, in July 1860 more than half a century after the passage of a federal law banning the importation of captive Africans, and nine months before the beginning of the Civil War. The last of its survivors lived well into the twentieth century. They were the last witnesses to the final act of a terrible and significant period in world history.In this epic work, Dr. Hannah Durkin tells the stories of the Clotilda's 110 captives, drawing on her intensive archival, historical, and sociological research. Survivors follows their lives from their kidnappings in what is modern-day Nigeria through a terrifying 45-day journey across the Middle Passage; from the subsequent sale of the ship's 103 surviving children and young people into slavery across Alabama to the dawn of the Civil Rights movement in Selma; from the foundation of an all-Black African Town (later Africatown) in Northern Mobile an inspiration for writers of the Harlem Renaissance, including Zora Neale Hurston to the foundation of the quilting community of Gee's Bend a Black artistic circle whose cultural influence remains enormous.An astonishing, deeply compelling tapestry of history, biography and social commentary, Survivors is a tour de force that deepens our knowledge and understanding of the Atlantic slave trade and its far-reaching influence on life today.Trade Review‘Gripping . . . a remarkably wide-ranging book taking in everything from science to soft drinks to show how slavery’s insidious hand wormed its way into the very fabric of American life' The Times 'Hannah Durkin lets the enslaved speak for themselves, and they tell a story not only of unimaginable suffering but also of courage and survival' Wall Street Journal 'Devastating and visceral… Durkin’s exhaustive, exhilarating research has created something new – something personal, emotional, almost tangible – from the history of this collective trauma' Literary Review 'Survivors, a comprehensive account of one of the most important parts of American history, is a triumph’ Booklist (starred review) ‘A sweeping history of the survivors of the Clotilda, the last slave ship to land in America . . . Durkin’s in-depth view is based largely on the survivors’ own words and perspectives (some lived into the 20th century and related their stories to various writers, most notably Zora Neale Hurston), and is woven together with her extensive archival research. It’s a stirring saga of resilience that sheds new light on Black life in postbellum America’ Publishers Weekly (starred review) ‘A highly recommended sweeping saga. Based on a rich archive that includes the survivors’ own stories, one of which became the basis for Zora Neale Hurston’s Barracoon, this title provides a human history of enslaved people and a portrait of the postbellum South’ Library Journal (starred review) ‘A welcome history of defiance and survival’ Kirkus Reviews

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Book SynopsisSovereignty and Struggle: Africa and Africans in the Era of the Cold War, 1945-1994 provides students with a deeper insight into African history during the period of decolonization and the Cold War.Trade ReviewThis is a fantastic little book. It is smart, engaging, and thought-provoking in its coverage of sovereignty * and its many possibilities and variationsin Cold War era Africa. I particularly appreciate its efforts to move beyond well-trodden discussions of political and economic developments and to look at the various ways in which sovereignty was marketed, performed, defined, and embraced in 'unofficial' realms like the stage, newspapers, and airplanes. It is very well-conceived and carried out.Nate Plageman, Wake Forest University *The focus on decolonization, the debt crisis, and new cultural expressions and music will help students to appreciate the complex nature of Africa's relation with the external world. Reynolds is able to maintain a strong balance between the impact of the Cold War on Africa and how Africans responded. * Saheed Aderinto, Western Carolina University *Jonathan Reynolds has created another fine work relating to Africa and its peoples. He does an outstanding job exploring the relationship between Africa and the Cold War, and brings Pan-Africanism, women, and music effectively into the conversation. * Kenneth Wilburn, East Carolina University *Table of ContentsMaps and Figures ; Acknowledgments ; About the Author ; Series Introduction ; Introduction ; Chapter 1. A World Set Free? African Decolonization In The Era of Liberation ; Chapter 2. Development and Debt ; Chapter 3. A Tropical Cold War ; Chapter 4. Cultural Epicureanism: Music, Morality, and the African Nation ; Chapter 5. The Decolonization of Distance: Ghana Enters the Jet Age ; Index

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Book SynopsisJames Ferguson examines the rise of social welfare programs in southern Africa in which states give cash payments to their low income citizens. These programs, Ferguson argues, offer new opportunities for political mobilization and inspire new ways to think about issues of production, distribution, markets, labor and unemployment.Trade Review“Half comparative ethnography, half political pamphlet, Ferguson’s impressive narrative is a tour de force questioning, deconstructing and reconstructing classic and contemporary notions of poverty, development and the welfare state in the region and beyond. … With his creative and flexible analysis, he provokes thinking for action beyond narrow ideological boundaries. One could imagine enthusiastic endorsements of his work by Marxist campaigners, World Bank technocrats and traditional leaders alike. This highly original book is likely to leave a lasting mark not only on contemporary anthropological debates around poverty and development, but also policy and activist thinking in southern Africa and beyond.” -- Vito Laterza * Anthropology Book Forum *"The book offers an exciting challenge to many of the default ways of thinking in development and social policy. ... Give a Man a Fish is a remarkable combination of scholarly breadth, intellectual challenge and grounded reflection on the realities of people living with hardship. Avoiding the easy characterisations of left or right, it is a thoughtful, stimulating and ultimately hopeful book, which deserves to be widely read, discussed and acted on." -- Sarah C. White * Journal of Development Studies *"Overall, this is an ambitious, imaginative, and hopeful book. Although the notion that distributive processes must be understood and appreciated is already widely accepted in African studies, Ferguson's achievement is in analyzing the dynamism and implications of these claims and relations within his chosen region’s shifting political economy." -- A. Peter Castro * Journal of International and Global Studies *"[T]he book is beautifully written, and a pleasure to read. Ferguson seamlessly weaves together data, a wide range of social science literature, anecdotes, historical details, and a sprinkling of anthropological theory.... Ferguson’s book is an erudite, enjoyable, and important synthesis of facts, stories and ideas, bridging a wide range of topics around the rise of social grants in Southern Africa." -- E. Fouksman * Basic Income Studies *"James Ferguson’s latest book makes an important contribution to the basic income literature. The book draws its empirical ballast from cash transfer programs in southern Africa, but this is not an ethnographic text; rather, Ferguson leverages the idea of cash transfers and basic income to launch a theoretical meditation on the nature of money, value, society, welfare, justice, and the state. The end product is reflective, thought-provoking, and beautifully written. One is left with the distinct impression that Ferguson is feeling his way into a social theory of the future." -- Jason Hickel * Anthropological Forum *"Like the best kind of anthropology, James Ferguson’s latest book, Give a Man a Fish, invites readers to see the world differently, questions taken-for-granted truisms, and reasserts the significance of lives considered peripheral to the concerns of powerful elites.... In a world of radical inequality and chronic unemployment, few development agents are willing to spend time 'translating' anthropology into action. Ferguson has done this work with the sensibility of an anthropologist." -- Ilana van Wyk * American Anthropologist *Table of ContentsForeword / Thomas Gibson vii Preface and Acknowledgments xi Introduction. Cash Transfers and the New Welfare States: From Neoliberalism to the Politics of Distribution 1 1. Give a Man a Fish: From Patriarchal Productionism to the Revalorization of Distribution 35 2. What Comes after the Social? Historicizing the Future of Social Protection in Africa 63 3. Distributed Livelihoods: Dependence and the Labor of Distribution in the Lives of the Southern African Poor (and Not-So-Poor) 89 4. The Social Life of Cash Payments: Money, Markets, and the Mutualities of Poverty 119 5. Declaration of Dependence: Labor, Pesonhood, and Welfare in Southern Africa 141 6. A Rightful Share: Distribution beyond Gift and Market 165 Conclusion. What Next for Distributive Politics? 191 Notes 217 References 237 Index 259

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Book SynopsisAn epic, sweeping history of the making of South Africa by the bestselling and acclaimed author of The State of Africa.

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Book SynopsisIn this gripping graphic novel, a Jewish journalist encounters an extension of the horrors of the Holocaust in North Africa. In the lead-up to World War II, the rising tide of fascism and antisemitism in Europe foreshadowed Hitler's genocidal campaign against Jews. But the horrors of the Holocaust were not limited to the concentration camps of Europe: antisemitic terror spread through Vichy French imperial channels to France's colonies in North Africa, where in the forced labor camps of Algeria and Morocco, Jews and other "undesirables" faced brutal conditions and struggled to survive in an unforgiving landscape quite unlike Europe. In this richly historical graphic novel, historian Aomar Boum and illustrator Nadjib Berber take us inside this lesser-known side of the traumas wrought by the Holocaust by following one man's journey as a Holocaust refugee. Hans Frank is a Jewish journalist covering politics in Berlin, who grows increasingly uneasy as he witnesses the Nazi Party consolidate power and decides to flee Germany. Through connections with a transnational network of activists organizing against fascism and anti-Semitism, Hans ultimately lands in French Algeria, where days after his arrival, the Vichy regime designates all foreign Jews as "undesirables" and calls for their internment. On his way to Morocco, he is detained by Vichy authorities and interned first at Le Vernet, then later transported to different camps in the deserts of Morocco and Algeria. With memories of his former life as a political journalist receding like a dream, Hans spends the next year and a half in forced labor camps, hearing the stories of others whose lives have been upended by violence and war. Through bold, historically inflected illustrations that convey the tension of the coming war and the grimness of the Vichy camps, Aomar Boum and Nadjib Berber capture the experiences of thousands of refugees through the fictional Hans, chronicling how the traumas of the Holocaust extended far beyond the borders of Europe.Trade Review"Comprehensive and cinematic, Boum's and Berber's incisive graphic novel illuminates a forgotten and essential story of Holocaust refugees in North Africa."—David Kushner, author of Easy to Learn, Difficult to Master and Masters of Doom"Based on extensive archival research, Undesirables powerfully depicts how the experience of Jews and Muslims in both Europe and North Africa was an inseparable part of World War II and the Holocaust."—Daniel Schroeter, co-editor of Jewish Culture and Society in North Africa"Undesirables connects the histories of Jews and North Africans, of antisemitism and racism, of the Holocaust and colonialism in the twentieth century in innovative and surprising ways. It is an eye-opening book in the literal sense of the word."—Michael Brenner, American University, Washington DC and University of Munich"Vivid in word and image, Aomar Boum's and Nadjib Berber's rewarding graphic novel introduces readers to a lesser-known chapter from the Holocaust and the relentless stench of antisemitism. Undesirables powerfully portrays the raw horror of the period in its intelligent and expressive historical account."—Samantha Baskind, Distinguished Professor of Art History, Cleveland State University"Berber's black-and-white artwork has a throwback noir feel, thick with period details.This in-depth graphic history brings a shameful period to broader awareness."—Publishers Weekly"While the willing cooperation of Vichy with Nazis is well known, their activities in North Africa in running their own system of labour, effectively concentration, camps is not.... [Undesirables] is both an accessible and an important addition to our understanding of the history of Jews in North Africa."—Mike Cushman, Jewish Voice for Labour"Undesirables offers opportunities to both reimagine Holocaust experience and appeal to different audiences through the multimodality of the comics form. The volume is an essential tool for prompting conversation on the impact of the Nazi Regime outside of Europe as much as on the role of comics and graphic novels in the historiography of World War II."—Elizabeth "Biz" Nijdam, EuropeNowTable of Contents1. PART I: GERMANY – FRANCE - ALGERIA 2. PART II: THE SAHARAN CAMPS

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Book SynopsisConcise history of Namibia from its origins until its independence.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewHeywood has written a complete and focused account of Queen Njinga…Njinga of Angola seamlessly knits together the complete set of sources on the Queen, which include missionary accounts, letters, colonial records, previous histories of Angola and Dutch West India Company records…Heywood has cleared away the noise of [the] mostly fantastical accounts and assembled as straight a biography as is possible. Indeed, Njinga of Angola, which took nine years of research, sets out to replace interpretation and sensationalism with facts…Heywood preserves all of the complexity of Njinga and her politics in a book that provides the most complete and foundational history of Queen Njinga. -- Delinda J. Collier * Times Literary Supplement *Maintaining independence in the face of colonial encroachment, the seventeenth-century African queen Njinga fascinated Europeans…This fine biography attempts to reconcile her political acumen with the human sacrifices, infanticide, and slave trading by which she consolidated and projected power. * New Yorker *In her biography of this fascinating character, Linda Heywood seeks to blow away the smoke of infamy and adulation. She reveals a figure no less protean in life than her reputation has proved to be in the three and a half centuries since her death—an individual who overstepped boundaries of religion, gender and nationhood…Like its subject, Heywood’s book defies simple categorization, mixing anthropology, gender studies and history…This stimulating biography of a queen and resistance leader offers a timely reminder that gender fluidity is not something unique to the present age. -- David Gelber * Literary Review *Over her decades-long reign in the 17th century in central Africa, Queen Njinga was by far the most successful of African rulers in resisting Portuguese colonialism, argues Heywood. What’s more, as this detailed and engaging study with walk-on parts for Vatican plotters, Dutch traders and Brazilian slavers shows, she rivaled Elizabeth I and Catherine the Great for political nous and military prowess. Tactically pious and unhesitatingly murderous; a ‘subverter of gender norms,’ in the inevitable formulation; a national heroine in today’s Angola; a commanding figure in velvet slippers and elephant hair ripe for big-screen treatment; and surely, as our social media age puts it, one badass woman. -- Karen Shook * Times Higher Education *Queen Njinga of Angola has long been among the many heroes whom black diasporians have used to construct a pantheon and a usable past. Linda Heywood gives us a different Njinga—one brimming with all the qualities that made her the stuff of legend but also full of all the interests and inclinations that made her human. A thorough, serious, and long overdue study of a fascinating ruler, Njinga of Angola is an essential addition to the study of the black Atlantic world. -- Ta-Nehisi Coates, author of Between the World and MeNjinga’s time has come. Heywood tells the fascinating story of arguably the greatest queen in sub-Saharan African history, who surely deserves a place in the pantheon of revolutionary world leaders, male and female alike. -- Henry Louis Gates, Jr.Heywood gives us a biography well worthy of its complex subject: an insightful portrait of the person, smoothly narrated, with an eye for telling details, and solidly historical in its thoughtful probing of the currents in the African and Portuguese worlds Njinga skillfully navigated for more than four decades. This welcome book is a good read and a great story. -- Joseph C. Miller, author of The Problem of Slavery as HistoryHeywood offers a complex and layered narrative that significantly enhances our knowledge about Njinga, the memorable ruler who defied colonial power in seventeenth-century central Africa. In addition to being a tour de force of historical analysis that will mesmerize scholars, this powerful and moving book will delight Njinga’s many admirers, for the African queen occupies a vital place both in the national identity of Angola and in the memory of people of African descent in the Americas. -- Roquinaldo Ferreira, author of Cross-Cultural Exchange in the Atlantic World[Njinga] was powerful, committed, and brilliant in her manipulation of the situations and people around her…A necessary introduction to this pivotal figure in African and world history. -- Jacob Ivey * H-Net Reviews *Historically, various authors have demonized Njinga or downplayed the importance of her reign. Heywood, however, does a beautiful job of clearly depicting her subject and setting the context for her decisions. More than simply providing facts, the author humanizes Njinga, turning her into a sympathetic figure. In the end, it is clear that she is to be appreciated in both African and world history…A great book for any history buff By taking up the mantle to write such a biography, Heywood ensures that Njinga will not be forgotten. -- Sonnet Ireland * Library Journal *Njinga’s consummate skills as charismatic ruler, warrior, and diplomat enabled her to survive and eventually triumph over her foes, securing peace and making her a potent national symbol for modern Angolans. Heywood tells a thrilling story of pitched battles mixed with truces, internecine conflicts, strategic migrations, hair­-raising escapes, and deft international relations, including allying with the Dutch against Portugal…Njinga is among the best biographies of any African. It deserves a wide readership. -- T. P. Johnson * Choice *Heywood [has] meticulously stitched together academic sources, contemporary documents, and details passed down through oral traditions to create a fully fleshed-out portrait of Njinga and her accomplishments. -- Anne Thériault * Longreads *

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Book SynopsisZeinab Badawi is an award-winning broadcaster, journalist, and filmmaker. She is President of SOAS University of London and is an honorary fellow of her alma mater St Hilda's College, Oxford. Born in Sudan, she has worked in the British media for several decades. Zeinab is a recipient of the President's Medal of the British Academy, a Patron of the United Nations Association UK, and is on the boards of the Arts, Humanities and Research Council, MINDS (the Mandela Institute for Development Studies), the International Crisis Group and Afrobarometer. She was previously Chair of the Royal African Society. An African History of Africa is her first book.

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Book SynopsisIn 1841, a twenty-eight-year-old Scottish missionary, David Livingstone, began the first of his exploratory treks into the African veldt. During the course of his lifetime, he covered over 29,000 miles uncovering what lay beyond rivers and mountain ranges where no other white man had ever been. Livingstone was the first European to make a trans-African passage from modern day Angola to Mozambique and he discovered and named numerable lakes, rivers and mountains. His explorations are still considered one of the toughest series of expeditions ever undertaken. He faced an endless series of life-threatening situations, often at the hands of avaricious African chiefs, cheated by slavers traders and attacked by wild animals. He was mauled by a lion, suffered thirst and starvation and was constantly affected by dysentery, bleeding from hemorrhoids, malaria and pneumonia.This biography covers his life but also examines his relationship with his wife and children who were the main casualties of his endless explorations in Africa. It also looks Livingstone's legacy through to the modern day. Livingstone was an immensely curious person and he made a habit of making meticulous observations of the flora and fauna of the African countryside that he passed through. His legacy includes numerable maps and geographical and botanical observations and samples. He was also a most powerful and effective proponent for the abolition of slavery and his message of yesterday is still valid today in a continent stricken with drought, desertification and debt for he argued that the African culture should be appreciated for its richness and diversity. But like all great men, he had great faults. Livingstone was unforgiving of those that he perceived had wronged him; he was intolerant of those who could not match his amazing physical powers; and finally and he had no compunction about distorting the truth, particularly about other people, in order to magnify his already significant achievements.

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Book SynopsisHappy Valley was the name given to the Wanjohi Valley in the Kenya Highlands, where a small community of affluent, hedonistic white expatriates settled between the wars. While Kenya's early colonial days have been immortalised by farming pioneers like Lord Delamere and Karen Blixen, and the pioneering aviator Beryl Markham, Happy Valley became infamous under the influence of troubled socialite, Lady Idina Sackville, whose life was told in Frances Osborne's bestselling The Bolter. The era culminated with the notorious murder of the Earl of Erroll in 1941, the investigation of which laid bare the Happy Valley set's decadence and irresponsibility, chronicled in another bestseller, James Fox's White Mischief. But what is left now? In a remarkable and indefatigable archaeological quest, Juliet Barnes, who has lived in Kenya all her life and whose grandparents knew some of the Happy Valley characters, has set out to explore Happy Valley to find the former homes and haunts of this extraordinary and transient set of people. With the help of a remarkable African guide and further assisted by the memories of elderly former settlers, she finds the remains of grand residences tucked away beneath the mountains and speaks to local elders who share first-hand memories of these bygone times. Nowadays these old homes, she discovers, have become tumbledown dwellings for many African families, school buildings, or their ruins have almost disappeared without trace - a revelation of the state of modern Africa that makes the gilded era of the Happy Valley set even more fantastic. A book to set alongside such singular evocations of Africa's strange colonial history as The Africa House, The Ghosts of Happy Valley is a mesmerising blend of travel narrative, social history and personal quest.Trade Review‘A problem with the depiction of Happy Valley arises when you encounter stories like that of Mary Miller, to whom I am very distantly related. Juliet Barnes hears that Mary ‘lived off lorry-loads of champagne and booze before shooting herself…’ Also that she and her husband were on the edge of the notorious party set in their home near the Wanjohi or ‘Happy’ Valley, a chilly cleft in the Aberdare highlands near where Barnes herself lives today. The gossip is entirely untrue, as Barnes, a white Kenyan whose book thankfully begins to debunk the Happy Valley silliness, discovers. Beautifully written.’'Beautifully told travelogue and historical quest. With family histories woven in, this is a moving, entertaining and enlightening read, and an honest exploration of Kenya’s colonial past.’'Numerous books have been written about Kenya’s infamous Happy Valley, but the latest edition, The Ghosts of Happy Valley: Searching for The Lost World of Africa’s Infamous Aristocrats, offers a fresh, much needed, perspective. This book is highly recommended for those interested in this part of Kenya’s history and wising to understand the current state of things.''Barnes merges travelogue with history, visiting the ruined and reclaimed homes - once opulent abodes with rose gardens - of the wealthy and often ennobled white settlers of Wanjohi Valley, near the Aberdare mountains in west central Kenya. The author's journey to find out from locals where the set lived is determined and admirable.' ‘A problem with the depiction of Happy Valley arises when you encounter stories like that of Mary Miller, to whom I am very distantly related. Juliet Barnes hears that Mary ‘lived off lorry-loads of champagne and booze before shooting herself…’ Also that she and her husband were on the edge of the notorious party set in their home near the Wanjohi or ‘Happy’ Valley, a chilly cleft in the Aberdare highlands near where Barnes herself lives today. The gossip is entirely untrue, as Barnes, a white Kenyan whose book thankfully begins to debunk the Happy Valley silliness, discovers. Beautifully written.’"The author does a good job of presenting the various views, with added insights after visiting the homes and hearing local lore about some of the main players. In the end a well-thought-out blended theory of the motive for Lord Erroll's murder and the possible perpetrators gives yet another twist to this unsolved mystery.... the book is a valuable addition to the library of anyone interested in this period of Kenya's history.""A page-turning exploration of historic houses & Kenya’s notorious ‘Happy Valley’. Truly a book of our time, this is a must read if you want to get under the skin of the last 100 years of Kenya’s social history."'Numerous books have been written about Kenya’s infamous Happy Valley, but the latest edition, The Ghosts of Happy Valley: Searching for The Lost World of Africa’s Infamous Aristocrats, offers a fresh, much needed, perspective. This book is highly recommended for those interested in this part of Kenya’s history and wising to understand the current state of things.''Beautifully told travelogue and historical quest. With family histories woven in, this is a moving, entertaining and enlightening read, and an honest exploration of Kenya’s colonial past.’

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Book SynopsisExam Board: EdexcelLevel: AS/A-levelSubject: HistoryFirst teaching: September 2015First exams: Summer 2016 (AS), Summer 2017 (A-level)Give your students the best chance of success with this tried and tested series, combining in-depth analysis, engaging narrative and accessibility. Access to History is the most popular, trusted and wide-ranging series for A-level History students.This title:- Supports the content and assessment requirements of the 2015 A-level History specifications- Contains authoritative and engaging content- Includes thought-provoking key debates that examine the opposing views and approaches of historians- Provides exam-style questions and guidance for each relevant specification to help students understand how to apply what they have learntThis title is suitable for a variety of courses including:- Edexcel: Option 2F.2: South Africa, 1948-94: From apartheid state to 'rainbow nation'

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Book SynopsisThe Penguin Modern Classics edition of Ryszard Kapuscinski''s The Emperor is translated by William R. Brand and Katarzyna Mroczkowska-Brand, with an introduction by Neal Ascherton.After the deposition of Haile Selassie in 1974, which ended the ancient rule of the Abyssinian monarchy, Ryszard Kapuscinski travelled to Ethiopia and sought out surviving courtiers to tell their stories. Here, their eloquent and ironic voices depict the lavish, corrupt world they had known - from the rituals, hierarchies and intrigues at court to the vagaries of a ruler who maintained absolute power over his impoverished people. They describe his inexorable downfall as the Ethiopian military approach, strange omens appear in the sky and courtiers vanish, until only the Emperor and his valet remain in the deserted palace, awaiting their fate. Dramatic and mesmerising, The Emperor is one of the great works of reportage and a haunting epitaph on the last moments of a dying regime.Ryszard Kapuscinski (1932-2007) was born in Pinsk, now in Belarus. Kapuscinski was the pre-eminent writer among Polish reporters. His best-known book is a reportage-novel of the decline of Haile Selassie''s anachronistic regime in Ethiopia - The Emperor, which has been translated into many languages. Shah of Shahs, about the last Shah of Iran, and Imperium, about the last days of the Soviet Union, have enjoyed similar success. If you enjoyed The Emperor, you might like Norman Mailer''s The Fight, also available in Penguin Modern Classics.''Stunning ... a magical eloquence''John Updike, New Yorker''[The Emperor] transcends reportage, becoming a nightmare of power ... An unforgettable, fiercely comic, and finally compassionate book''Salman Rushdie''Kapuscinski trascends the limitations of journalism and writes with the narrative power of a Conrad or Kipling or Orwell''Blake Morrison

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Book SynopsisA monumental work, decades in the making: the first atlas to illustrate the entire scope of the transatlantic slave tradeTrade Review"A monumental chronicle of this historical tragedy, one that records some 35,000 individual slaving voyages, roughly 80 percent of those made. . . . [This book] is a human document as well as a rigorous accounting. It is filled with moving poems, photographs, letters and diary entries."—Dwight Garner, New York Times"A monumental chronicle of this historical tragedy, one that records some 35,000 individual slaving voyages, roughly 80 percent of those made. The authors remind us that only 4 percent of the captives disembarked in what became the United States, while 95 percent arrived in the Caribbean and South America. Atlas of the Transatlantic Slave Trade is a human document as well as a rigorous accounting. It is filled with moving poems, photographs, letters and diary entries."—Dwight Garner, New York Times"A remarkable resource. . . . The charts raise as many questions as they answer; this is entirely the point."—James Delbourgo, Times Higher Education". . . a ground-breaking project: the Atlas will be indispensable for all those interested in the slave trade."—Jane Webster, Times Literary Supplement". . . a beautifully produced volume . . . The whole is topped and tailed by two excellent essays: a masterly introduction by David Brion Davis and a rousing afterword by David Blight. The end result of all this international, scholarly effort is a remarkable book which is not only a pleasure to have on one's shelves, but a model of scholarly and publishing activity. . . . Here, and in their varied (and complex) work as individual scholars, Eltis and Richardson have revealed themselves to be among the most imaginative, influential and distinguished historians of their generation."—James Walvin, International Journal of Maritime History"This groundbreaking work provides the fullest possible picture of the extent and inhumanity of one of the largest forced migrations in History."—The Global Journal"Beautifully produced, with period images and contemporary quotations, this is in a work of commemoration, but the best memorial, the authors clearly feel, is the historic truth."—Michael Kerrigan, The Scotsman"We are indebted to Eltis and Richardson for opening up new evidence and pointing towards future projects. The importance of this book transcends the story of the slave trade itself."—James Walvin, Family & Community History Vol 14.2Winner of the 2010 R.R. Hawkins Award, given by the Association of American PublishersWinner of the PROSE Award for Excellence in Single Volume Reference/Humanities and Social Sciences category, as given by the Association of American PublishersReceived Honorable Mention for the 2011 Dartmouth Medal for outstanding referenceHonorable Mention in the General Non-Fiction category of the 2010 Los Angeles Book FestivalWinner of the 2011 Anisfield-Wolf Awards in the non-fiction category"A brilliant rendition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database. This atlas is essential to the study of chattel slavery. No student of slavery should be without it."—Ira Berlin, University of Maryland"These magnificent maps—all 189—document almost every conceivable aspect of one of the world's worst crimes. An epic and gruesome drama receives a fitting representation. A superb contribution to scholarship."—Philip D. Morgan, Johns Hopkins University "This is a highly original work and represents a major contribution to historical analysis. There are no comparable works on this topic."—Stanley Engerman, University of Rochester"This is an important project that will add greatly to our understanding about the major, long-term patterns of trade between Africa and the Americas, help to map the African Diaspora, and place the transatlantic slave trade in larger world history context."—Steve Behrendt, Victoria University of Wellington"This is a major work of enormous consequence, without parallel in the literature, deeply researched, highly original, and of immeasurable value."—Harm J. de Blij, Michigan State University

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Book SynopsisEmperor Haile Selassie was an iconic figure of the twentieth century, a progressive monarch who ruled Ethiopia from 1916 to 1974. This book, written by a former state official who served in a number of important positions in Selassie’s government, tells both the story of the emperor’s life and the story of modern Ethiopia.AfterTrade Review“Anyone searching for a quick introduction to Ethiopia’s fascinating history could happily turn to Emperor Haile Selassie as a starting point.” * Focus on the Horn *“Emperor Haile Selassie is a readable, well-organized book that accurately portrays the life of the Ethiopian King of Kings and, through him, the history of the nation. The author is at his best in relating his personal experience and ties to the Emperor—original material that I found fascinating.”“An informative guide, with an insider's perspective, on a pivotal piece of African history.” * Publishers Weekly *

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Book SynopsisThe first international English-language publication of Hampate Ba's acclaimed novel.Trade Review"I think this is perhaps the best African novel on colonialism and it draws very richly on various modes of oral literature." Ralph Austen, University of Chicago "It is a wonderful introduction to colonial rule as experienced by Africans, and in particular, to the rule of African middlemen." Martin A. Klein, University of Toronto "The Fortunes of Wangrin is not only a wonderful novel by one of Africa's most renowned intellectuals, it is also literally filled with information about French colonization and its impact on traditional African societies, African resistance and collaboration to colonization, the impact of French education in Africa, and a host of other subjects of interest." Francois Manchuelle, New York UniversityTable of ContentsForewordOverture1. The Birth2. Diagaramba3. First Confrontation4. The Beginning of a Career5. Where the Calamities of Some. . .6. The Storm Breaks7. The Count's Messenger8. The Trial9. The Donkey Who Drank Honey10. Romo's Son and Beautiful Pugubila11. The Death of a Great Chief and What Came Out of It12. The Ambush13. The Calamitous Bird's Eggs14. A Cumbersome Turban15. Where Each Gets His Due16. The Dream of the Fulbe Shepherdess17. Pretty Much in the Lion's Jaws18. Where Wangrin is Off Once Again to a Good Start19. A Profitable Pledge20. The Reconversion21. An Elephant's Tale22. A Disquieting Arrival23. Pretty Doe of the Markets24. Two Birds with One Stone25. A Narrow Escape26. . . . In Which Romo Keeps His Promise. . .and Wangrin His27. A Souvenir That Bears Wangrin's Trademark28. First Warning: The Hausa Geomancer29. Madame White-White30. Second and Third Warnings: A Fatal Oversight and the Sacred Python31. Madame "Good Offices"32. The Irreparable Loss33. Last Warning: The Dove with a Black Ring Circling Half Her Neck34. Philosopher Tramp35. The Three Bloods and Death36. Adieu

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Book SynopsisThe gripping and definitive account of the Day of Infamy, the attack on Pearl Harbor that led to the United States' entry into the Second World War.Trade ReviewIn this brilliant mix of history and emotion, Craig Nelson has managed to combine grueling research with masterful reporting in order to capture the long and the short, the overview and the detail, of that infamous day in a paradisal land of orchids and jacaranda. It has taken seventy-five years, but now, finally, the Pearl Harbor book has been written -- Jim deFilippi, author of MULES OF MONTE CASSINO and MURKACraig Nelson has completely retold the epic story of Pearl Harbor. Using his skills as a reporter and a literary stylist, he not only deftly paints the fleeting image - an enemy pilot waving as he flies by, a cup of coffee trembling on a table while outside a war commences - but a world roiled in titanic struggle ... This book has a thousand poignant and unforgettable moments. You'll read Pearl Harbor and want to pass it to a friend -- Doug Stanton, author of HORSE SOLDIERS and IN HARM'S WAYWith lively prose and many astute insights, Nelson chronicles the Japanese-American political jockeying before moving on to the action, where he does not disappoint. Battle descriptions are socially acceptable historical porn, so readers' eyes will be glued to the page as Nelson weaves archival research, interviews, and personal experiences from both sides into a blow-by-blow narrative of destruction liberally sprinkled with individual heroism, bizarre escapes, and equally bizarre tragedies * KIRKUS REVIEWS *

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Book SynopsisTelling the history of the development of scientific racism, white nationalism, and segregationist philanthropy in the US and South Africa in the early twentieth century, this book focuses on the American Carnegie Corporation's study of race in South Africa, the Poor White Study, and its influence on the creation of apartheid.Trade Review"Hisorically grounded and politically provocative examination." Race & ClassTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface: Possessions, Belonging, Companionship, or Don't Mind the Gap Introduction 1. Forgeries of History: The Poor White Study 2. The Visual Culture of White Poverty as the History of South Africa and the United States: Repetition, Rediscovery, Playing with Whiteness 3. The White Primitive: Whiteness Studies, Embodiment, Invisibility, Property 4. The Roots of White Poverty: Cheap, Lazy, Inefficient ... Black 5. Origin Stories about Segregationist Philanthropy 6. Carnegie in Africa and the Knowledge Politics of Apartheid: Research Agendas not Taken 7. "I'll Give You Something to Cry About": The Intraracial Violence of Uplift Feminism in the Carnegie Poor White Study Volume, The Mother and Daughter of the Poor Family Conclusion: Race Makes Nation Acknowledgments Appendixes Notes Selected Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisEmpires of the Sea shows the Mediterranean as a majestic and bloody theatre of war. Opening with the Ottoman victory in 1453 it is a breathtaking story of military crusading, Barbary pirates, white slavery and the Ottoman Empire - and the larger picture of the struggle between Islam and Christianity. Coupled with dramatic set piece battles, a wealth of riveting first-hand accounts, epic momentum and a terrific denouement at Lepanto, this is a work of history at its broadest and most compelling.

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Book SynopsisAn expert and fascinating guide to the history, mythology and religion of one of the world's first great civilizations, and a detailed guide to its awe-inspiring temples and tombs, sumptuously illustrated with 750 photographs and images.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"The 2018 Medieval Book of the Year"

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Book SynopsisHaile Selassie I, the last emperor of Ethiopia, was as brilliant as he was formidable. An early proponent of African unity and independence who claimed to be a descendant of King Solomon, he fought with the Allies against the Axis powers during World War II and was a messianic figure for the Jamaican Rastafarians. But the final years of his empire saw turmoil and revolution, and he was ultimately overthrown and assassinated in a communist coup. Written by Asfa-Wossen Asserate, Haile Selassie s grandnephew, this is the first major biography on this final king of kings. Asserate, who spent his childhood and adolescence in Ethiopia before fleeing the revolution of 1974, knew Selassie personally and gained intimate insights into life at the imperial court. Introducing him as a reformer and an autocrat whose personal history with all of its upheavals, promises, and horrors reflects in many ways the history of the twentieth century itself, Asserate uses his own experiences and painstaking research in family and public archives to achieve a colorful and even-handed portrait of the emperor."Trade Review"Today, after centuries of oppression, a billion Africans are finally winning back the substance of their freedom but it is proving a long, vexed and sometimes violent fight. Asfa-Wossen Asserate s masterful, insider s account of Haile Selassie, the African emperor who led Ethiopia s struggle against colonial fascism only to deny liberty to his people, stands as inspiration and warning to an entire continent."--Alex Perry, author of The Rift: A New Africa Breaks Free"

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Book SynopsisTwo thousand years ago, Madagascar was probably uninhabited. An island twice the size of Great Britain, it was home to unique species of flora and fauna that were undisturbed by humanity until the first navigators landed on its shores. Since then, the changes imposed by humans on the wide range of environments to be found in this mini-continent have formed one of the threads of Madagascar's history. No one knows where the island's first inhabitants came from, but there was a strong connection from the earliest period to the islands of South East Asia - today's Indonesia.Austronesians, Arabs, Portuguese, and Dutch sailors and traders successively dominated the sea-lanes around Madagascar, some of the world's oldest long-distance shipping routes. Over the centuries, Madagascar developed its own distinctive language and cultural systems, absorbing migrants from every shore of the Indian Ocean. In the nineteenth century, Britain and France projected a new type of global power that had a major effect on the island, which became a French colony from 1896 to 1960. Throughout this colourful and often turbulent history, the tension between the formation of a highly original culture and the absorption of immigrants, the development of strong social hierarchies, a long experience of slavery and the slave trade, have all had effects that are still felt today. Now home to 17 million people, Madagascar is one of the world's most fascinating and least-known societies.Trade Review'Stephen Ellis and Solofo Randrianja have spent a lifetime studying Madagascar and have written a definitive history. Authoritative and readable, this book is the perfect introduction for those who know little about this vast island and, for those who do, they challenge the accepted versions of its past.' * Richard Dowden, director of the Royal Africa Society *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. Settlement (400-1099) 2. Transforming the Island (1100-1599) 3. Royalty and the Rise of Kingdoms (1600-1699) 4. The Slave-Trader Kings (1700-1816) 5. The Kingdom of Madagascar (1817-1895) 6. The Colonial Period (1896-1959) 7. Sovereign Republics (1960-2006) Conclusion

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Book SynopsisLiberia was in the headlines in 1990 when thousands of teenage fighters, including young men wearing women's clothing and bizarre objects of decoration, laid seige to the capital, Monrovia. In response to the crisis, a West African peacekeeping force, ECONMOG, was sent to stabilize the country and prevent the main warlord, Charles Taylor, from coming to power. Seven years later, however, Taylor was elected President. The country had a fragile peace but the war had spread to its neighbour Sierra Leone. This book traces the history of the civil war that has blighted Liberia in recent years and looks at its roots in the way governments have been established in West Africa during the 20th century.Trade Review'The first half of this outstanding study of Liberia's civil war (1989-97) reviews the conflict's political, economic, military and international features, drawing on a comprehensive array of sources. the second half is a fascinating and profound exploration of what Ellis sees as Liberian's deep spiritual anarchy, manifested during the war in extreme brutality, incidents of cannibalism, and the fighters' bizarre sartorial affections. these things tend to boggle Western minds, as did the overwhelming support among Liberian voters for the unprincipled warlord Charles Taylor in the country's 1997 presidential election. But Ellis' persuasive analysis of Liberian religious ideology and culture does more than make sense of these strange phenomena. It offers rare insight into the political, physical, and spiritual power can be linked and legitimized in the popular imagination-and how each can run amok in the absence of durable institutional checks and balances. A model of lucid writing, thorough research, and penetrating interpretation, this is one of the best books on Africa in recent years.' -Foreign Affairs, Washington, DCTable of ContentsA death in the night; the first of the warlords; lean and hungry years; the mechanics of war; business and diplomacy; a nation long forlorn; men and devils; false prophets. Appendix: war deaths, 1989-1997.

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