African history Books

Book SynopsisA timely history of the connections between science, segregation, and species in twentieth-century South Africa.Throughout the twentieth century, rural South Africa was dominated by systems of racial segregation and apartheid that brutally oppressed its Black population. At the same time, the countryside was defined by a related settler obsession: the control of animals that farmers, scientists, and state officials considered pests. Elephants rampaged on farmlands, trampling fences, crops, and occasionally humans. Grain-eating birds flocked on plantations, devouring harvests. Bubonic plague crept across the veld in the bodies of burrowing and crop-devouring rodents.In Segregated Species, Jules Skotnes-Brown argues that racial segregation and pest control were closely connected in early twentieth-century South Africa. Strategies for the containment of pests were redeployed for the management of humans and vice versa. Settlers blamed racialized populations

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Book SynopsisHeather J. Hoag is Associate Professor of History at the University of San Francisco, USA. She is one of the founding editors for the International Water History Association's journal, Water History.Trade ReviewServing as a useful introduction to hydrological themes in African environmental history, this book adds to the historical coverage of Africa’s waterscapes by focusing primarily on East Africa, with a chapter on Ghana’s Volta River. However, the Rufiji River region of Tanzania dominates. These sections most clearly demonstrate the author’s themes, notably, the juxtaposition of European scientific knowledge and local ecological knowledge, as well as the recurrent need to gain historical context before embarking on hydrological projects. Overall, Hoag (Univ. of San Francisco) presents a well-documented environmental history and delivers fascinating insights into how both East African and colonial populations have understood and misunderstood the rivers on which they depended. Summing Up: Recommended. All academic levels/libraries. -- J. R. Kenyon, University of Idaho * CHOICE *One of the strengths of this study is its treatment of conflicting goals within colonial and early independence planning regarding the regulation of rivers.Hoag is very effective in her examination of the varied goals and effects of development programs linked to rivers. This is a very original study on a topic that is of paramount importance in understanding changing conceptions and results of development. The book’s organization and wide scope would work well in an advanced undergraduate or graduate course. All inall, this book is highly recommended. -- Jeremy Rich, Marywood University * International Journal of African Historical Studies *[Hoag] offers an overview of modern African history that will be useful to readers interested in the environmental history of water development across the continent. -- Thaddeus Sunseri, Colorado State University * Environmental History, vol 20, no 1 *Heather Hoag has written an eclectic book. One hopes that it will whet the thirst of other scholars to explore vital research questions in Africa’s water history. -- James L. A. Webb Jr., Colby College * The Historian *[This book] provides the most significant historical–geographical treatment of rivers in Africa since W.M. Adams’ enduringly influential study, Wasting the rain: rivers, people and planning in Africa ... [Developing the rivers of East and West Africa] merits a wide readership and the crisp concluding sections with which Hoag wraps up each chapter make it particularly student-friendly, as does the ‘historical glossary’. -- Peter Coates, University of Bristol * European Review of History *Table of Contents1. Introduction: Harnessing Africa's Waters Part One: From the river's edge 2. Unpredictable blessings: Life along the Rufiki River, Tanzania 3. Mapping a Continent: British exploration of the Niger River Part Two: Colonizing Africa's rivers 4. Greening the Fields: Agricultural development during the colonial period 5. Electrifying the Empire: Debates about power production in Africa Part Three: The changing value of rivers 6. The damming of Africa: Converting African water to hydropower 7. Thirsty cities: Urbanization and the changing values of African rivers Epilogue: Managing Africa's Rivers in the twenty-first century Historical glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisCongo is one of the most complex countries in the world, yet it is the most overlooked. It is one of the wealthiest in Africa as a result of its natural endowments, but its people are some of the poorest in the world. Congolese culture is informed by the brutality of war. Over 5 million Congolese died at the beginning of the 21st century because of our demand for the minerals that power our cellphones and laptops. Billions of dollars are being siphoned out of the country while billions in humanitarian aid and peacekeeping are coming in to clean up the mess. Although the country has paid a price for over five centuries, progress has and continues to be made. Wanting to learn more about this incredible land and history, Ryan Gosling and activist John Prendergast went to the Congo to learn first-hand how the prosperity of America and Europe has defined Congolese history for the last five centuries in a multitude of ways. CONGO STORIES introduces readers to the incredible men, w

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Book SynopsisAbamfo Ofori Atiemo is Senior Lecturer and Head of Department for the Study of Religions, University of Ghana, Legon.Trade ReviewThis is a profound, original and timely work, relating human rights to African cultures, traditions and religions as they evolve. Its conceptual and theoretical richness give it a significance far beyond Ghana. -- Paul Gifford, Emeritus Professor of Religion at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UKThis is a wonderfully researched work that takes the history and religious culture of the societies examined into account. -- David Owusu-Ansah, Professor of History at James Madison University, USATable of Contents1. Embedding Human Rights in Local Cultures: An African Imperative 2. Religion and Human Rights: Linking Tradition and Modernity 3. Inculturating Human Rights: The Localization of a Global Culture 4. Does Ghana have a Common Culture? Exploring Historical Processes of National Identity Construction 5. Locating Religion in Ghana: Exploring the Contours of Spiritual Capital 6. Human Rights in Traditional Ghana: Exploring Indigenous Ideas of Human Dignity and Rights 7. Human Rights in Contemporary Ghana: Fruitions and Possibilities 8. Translating Human Rights in Ghana: Rooting a Secular Idea in a Religious Worldview 9. Religion and the Inculturation of Human Rights in Ghana Bibliography Index

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Book Synopsis Acclaimed author E. R. Braithwaite (To Sir, With Love) chronicles the brutality, oppression, and courage he witnessed as a black man granted “Honorary White” status during a six-week visit to apartheid South Africa As a black man living in a white-dominated world, author E. R. Braithwaite was painfully aware of the multitude of injustices suffered by people of color and he wrote powerfully and poignantly about racial discrimination in his acclaimed novels and nonfiction works. So it came as a complete surprise when, in 1973, the longstanding ban on his books was lifted by the South African government, a ruling body of minority whites that brutally oppressed the black majority through apartheid laws. Applying for a visa—and secretly hoping to be refused—he was granted the official status of “Honorary White” for the length of his stay. As such, Braithwaite would be afforded some of the freedoms that South Africa&rsTrade Review“A valuable, even unique perspective.” —Kirkus ReviewsTable of Contents Contents Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve About the Author

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Table of Contents Foreword Acknowledments Chapter 1 – Crusaders Chapter 2 – The Order of St John Chapter 3 – Crusaders in the East Chapter 4 – Eternal Warfare Chapter 5 – The Armoured Men Chapter 6 – An End and a Beginning Chapter 7 – Crusaders in Exile Chapter 8 – An Island Home Chapter 9 – Rhodian Spring Chapter 10 – Death to Dragons Chapter 11 – The Wind and the Sea and the Ships Chapter 12 – From Fire comes Fire Chapter 13 – Siege Chapter 14 – Peace and Power Chapter 15 – By Order of the Sultan Chapter 16 – The End of a Dream Chapter 17 – ‘Two Fine, Large Harbours’ Chapter 18 – Knights and Corsairs Chapter 19 – Opponents Chapter 20 – Attack Chapter 21 – The Territory of the Knights Chapter 22 – Aftermath and City Chapter 23 – Lepanto and Malta Chapter 24 – Seventeenth Century Chapter 25 – More Medical than Military Chapter 26 – Decline… Chapter 27 - …and Fall Chapter 28 – A Phoenix from the Ashes Appendix I – The Order Since the Loss of Malta Appendix II – List of the Grand Masters of the Order Appendix III – A Military Glossary Appendix IV – Select Biography

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Book SynopsisThe book covers major aspects of the 20th Century Civil Rights Movement. It is not the standard text on the topic that is usually found because it uses sources directly associated with those whom led and marched on the campaigns. Too often the men and women who knew were an integral part of the civil and human rights struggle are overlooked by those who write on the subject in the Ivory Tower of academia. This book makes a strong effort to reference the voices of those who knew Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on a personal and professional level. The same goes for Minister Malcolm X; who was not part of the mainstream civil rights organizations yet an integral part of the era who cannot be dismissed.Available in both print and eBook (audio-accessible), The 20th Century Civil Rights Movement: An Africana Studies Perspective: is an important book for our times covering the history of the Civil Rights Movement that leads to the present times. is written in an engaging and accessible style this book will be perfect for college students and the general reader. is written by an author with almost thirty years' teaching experience in higher education and has addressed student questions concerning the Civil Rights Movement he's received over the decades. is based on engagement with sources and writers who experienced working and interacting with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and other key actors in the Civil Rights Movement era. Topics covered: the historical context of the African American experience; catalysts for the movement; the emergence of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr; from the sit-ins to Freedom Riders and Freedom Summer; Minister Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam; white liberals and problematic gradualism; Black Power and the Black Panther Party era; Black women and their contributions to the freedom struggle; the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; and the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement in relation to the present. This book is written for undergraduates and the general reader in order to give an account of those who struggled so that future generations could be free of racialized discrimination. They may not have succeeded entirely in their quest for cultural, social, economic and political justice, but there is no doubt that whatever freedoms enjoyed today are of a consequence to those that gave their lives to the greatest struggle of the 20th Century for freedom from oppression.Table of Contents DedicationAcknowledgmentsPreface Chapter One Historical Context Chapter Two Catalysts for the Movement Chapter Three Emergence and Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Chapter Four Free-to-Feed, Freedom Riders, and Freedom Summer Chapter Five Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam Chapter Six White Liberals and the Problem of Gradualism Chapter Seven Black Nationalism and The Black Power Era Chapter Eight African American Women Leaders Chapter Nine Reflections on the Assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Chapter Ten Legacy About the AuthorTimelineSelected Annotated BibliographyIndex

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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