The Fate of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence by Martin Meredith Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Fate of Africa: A History of Fifty Years of Independence
Book Review: Good overview, but overly ambitious
Summary: 4 Stars
The book covers the history of the countries of the African continent from the end of colonialism in the 1950s to the present day, including the rule of the "Big Men," the rise of radical Islam in the North, South African apartheid, the Rwandan genocide and the AIDS crisis. Arranged more or less chronologically, this book is a whirlwind of the dizzying array of politics and conflicts that unfortunately have characterized the Africa of the last 50 years.
The author aims for breadth rather than depth in this book. I enjoyed this in that I am a casual reader on the subject, and would have been bogged down by too much detail on any one country. However, I did find it confusing that as soon as I got a good feel for, say, Ghana, the author jumps to the Congo or Algeria and it takes me a few pages to readjust. That is why I felt the book was overly ambitious: it would take ten volumes of this size to thoroughly discuss the subject matter. I also thought the list price of $35 (for the hardback) was a bit steep.
The picture the author paints of Africa is pretty bleak. Africa seems locked in a cycle of corruption and violence that shows no sign of ending.
Book Review: A Very Thorough Review
Summary: 4 Stars
This book may be a bit exhaustive for my short attention span, but I've been able to slowly make my way through it chapter by chapter over the past 6 months. The fact that I've continued through it (albeit still a hundred pages from the end) should attest to it being a worthy read. One need not read the entire volume to get something out of it. I started with several areas of particular interest and then went back to start from the beginning. While very long, it really is well-written and accesible. I suppose it's a bit like the continent itself in that way. I recommend it to anyone else who is an Afro-phile. Book Review: A Political History of the Dark Continent
Summary: 5 Stars
Political history is difficult to write. One must present facts as chronology like other kinds of histories, but also one must make plausible inferences about human motives. In "The Fate of Africa," Meredith skillfully welds human will and circumstance into a sharp narrative of the post-colonial and modern periods. The world hoped for plowshares, but Africa made swords.
I have often wondered how privation could be so ubiquitous on such a resource rich continent as Africa. I have puzzled over the outbreaks of messianic, fevered, genocidal violence in several African states. I have questioned the stultifying corruption of African governments. I have been aghast at the superstitious African practices that lead to the intentional spread of AIDS.
I wonder no longer. Meredith's book clarifies and horrifies.
To the European imperialists, Africa was the Dark Continent, and still it is under African tyrants. Read this book, and read it soon.
Book Review: note to editor
Summary: 3 Stars
I have just opened this book and found a pathetic error. I have yet to start reading the book but it recieves a "3" off the bat. In the front of the book, where it has maps of Africa in 1955 and 2005, THE MAP OF 2005 DOES NOT INCLUDE THE COUNTRY OF MALI!!!!!!! IT IS LEFT OFF THE MAP!!!! It's borders are within Mauritania and Mali is not labeled. How does this get past the editors of what is suppose to be the best book written on Africa in ten years! wow.Book Review: An excellent and balanced survey-
Summary: 4 Stars
If you ever wanted an immensely readable book to help you keep your Mugabes and Mobutus straight then this is it. In its 750 pages, this book thoroughly and meticulously charts the history of Africa since independence. If you want to understand why independence alone is not enough to bring about prosperity or even just stability in postcolonial Africa (and other places, like the Caribbean) and how rebel movements are just as prone to the corruption of absolute power as those bad old colonizing Europeans were, then I highly recommend this book. If you still think every problem on earth is caused by the rich people oppressing the poor people, well, you might want to look elsewhere (perhaps a book by one of the Democrats running for office in the US.) At some point Africa will have to take responsibility for it's own descent.