Part of the ‘Into and out of Africa’ reading
journey, this ambitious single volume (albeit 700
page) history covers events in Africa since its emergence from colonial rule in
the 1950’s.
While each chapter forms a self-contained
account of a state or region over one of its significant periods, they build up
(roughly chronologically) to form a continuous narrative for the continent.
From the narrative, themes emerge: the successful
efforts to achieve self-rule; the emergence in power of the ‘Big Men’ (often
those who had led the fight for freedom); the same Big Men’s slide into
corruption, the feathering of nests, and in some cases the near bankruptcy of
the country as immense natural resources were plundered for personal gain.
Tribal strife, religious conflict and the conduct of the cold war by proxy also
contributed to the disorder and violence. These all exacerbated the effects of natural
perils such as poverty, drought, famine and AIDS.
Unsurprisingly it is a bleak picture and
Meredith pulls no punches apportioning blame; but he backs up his views with
compelling evidence and mind-boggling statistics. Key events are related in fascinating
detail and black & white photos are provided of the main protagonists, yet the
broad sweep is never lost.
It may have been an ambitious project but it
succeeds magnificently.
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