"The fortunes of Africa have changed dramatically in the fifty years since the independence era began. As Europe's colonial powers withdrew, dozens...
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Jan 09, 2012
Paul
rated it: 
Five stars for this plain, urgent, and very comprehensive account of Africa since the colonial powers packed up and left, or were booted out. And as far as I know, this is the only book which covers all of Africa in the last 50 years. But I think readers should be issued with a warning. You have to ask yourselves if you have a strong stomach. Because make no mistake, this is a horror story, and it has left me with a feeling close to despair. Let me give you some examples chosen at random. From p
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Dec 16, 2009
Nathan
rated it:
There are history books written by historians, and there are history books written by journalists. Martin Meredith is first and foremost a journalist, and this book focuses on telling stories and bringing the expansive personalities of African big men to the fore. Yet Meredith doesn't skimp on the statistics and the "hard facts," although I do wish he had a few more citations. And many of the standard criticisms of history can be leveled against this work: it tells the story of the eli
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Jan 17, 2009
Lawrence
rated it: 
This book could be retitled "The Big Book of A-holes and Those Who Help Keep Them in Power." A well-researched but not technical overview of the state of Africa since independence, the book recites a litany of leaders drunk with personal power and obsessed with satisfying their endless greed while eliminating those who would oppose them and leaving their people in perpetual misery. But it's also a story of western countries, including the US, who insist on overlooking these atrocitie
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Jan 29, 2008
Daniel
rated it:
I went into this knowing little about Africa's history, whether before or after independence; now I have a better idea about the political events that followed the latter. The author, Martin Meredith, focuses on this angle more than any other. Focusing on one state at a time, he establishes the conditions of the state on the eve of independence, then describes the action of the leaders that took power and the subsequent consequences. Given that nearly every leader took full control of executi
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Oct 22, 2011
Darren
rated it:
In the 1950s, former colonies in Africa began to gain independence from their European masters, and an exciting and hopeful chapter of modern history began.
Fifty years later, however, the story of modern Africa has turned out to be mostly one of carnage, corruption, horror and unbelievable suffering.
What went wrong so many times?
'The Fate Of Africa' is a sad yet gripping and thought-provoking overview of how and why Africa suffered terribly, from both internal More...
Fifty years later, however, the story of modern Africa has turned out to be mostly one of carnage, corruption, horror and unbelievable suffering.
What went wrong so many times?
'The Fate Of Africa' is a sad yet gripping and thought-provoking overview of how and why Africa suffered terribly, from both internal More...
Aug 07, 2011
Frank
rated it:
A shockingly comprehensive, well-written, and insightful look at Africa over the past 50-odd years. The author somehow succeeds in covering just about every African country's history while keeping a general narrative of Africa and its troubles always in sight. And this IS overwhelmingly a story of Africa's troubles. Although he notes the many advancements made by the continent, especially the fall of white regimes in Rhodesia, Angola, Mozambique, and, finally, South Africa, and the moderate rise
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Dec 18, 2011
Jericho
rated it: 
A great history reference but gets stuck on the narrative of Africa being so victimized that it neglects the hope somewhere in there and intentionally or not, seems to throw its hands up in surrender. And maybe that's part of the point of the book, but I refuse to believe that an entire continent and its people are doomed to repeat the mistakes of the colonists and corrupt governments over and over again. It's likely unfair of me to judge it based on that since the author specifically points o
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Dec 25, 2009
Rob
rated it:
A magisterial account of Africa's fifty years of independence. I came to the book knowing a fair amount about the initial years of freedom and the downward spiralling of African countries due to the lingering poison of colonialism, emergence of tyrannical rulers and prevalence of corruption, but where Meredith really comes into his own is in his excellent summaries of more recent events.
Many will remember the atrocities of the past two decades from news reports of the time, often bur More...
Many will remember the atrocities of the past two decades from news reports of the time, often bur More...
Feb 20, 2008
Happyreader
rated it:
I had been looking for good post-colonial history of Africa and this was definately it. Exhaustive and a page turner. This book has improved my understanding of current events and makes the events in Kenya and the Sudan tragically comprehensible.
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Aug 20, 2009
Lambeam
rated it:
An important book - explaining why, for example the events of Mogodishu, kept the US and others from acting in Rwanda. It also explains why countries that have huge resources are facing extreme poverty. The author democratically distributes the blame amongst the ex colonial powers, the US and the UN. But he reserves most of his anger for corrupt leaders who have unleashed violence and terror to keep their offshore bank accounts healthy. The problem of Africa it seems is leadership which is w
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Jun 05, 2010
Michael
rated it:
I can't really begin to write anything resembling a review on this one. It's the history of Africa from the mid-twentieth century to today. It gave an excellent and only slightly subjective overview of the events of every country on the capital. I've been thinking about globalization a lot recently. The book really shows how globalization equates to really bad things for Africa. It's also amazing to me how American History classes avoid talking about the awful things America (and the rest of the
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Jun 05, 2010
La pointe de la sauce
rated it:
I wrote this note about 3 years ago right after reading this book:
Africa as a whole has received $500 billion in aid with very little discernable results. Aid fatigue has set in, and western governments have scant enthusiasm for increasing Aid.
The total aid package from the U.S to Africa was a 100th of 1% of its national income. Despite all the concerts and promises in the G8 summits in the UK, a pledge of $6billion of extra aid was made for the whole of Africa, a pitiful amoun More...
Africa as a whole has received $500 billion in aid with very little discernable results. Aid fatigue has set in, and western governments have scant enthusiasm for increasing Aid.
The total aid package from the U.S to Africa was a 100th of 1% of its national income. Despite all the concerts and promises in the G8 summits in the UK, a pledge of $6billion of extra aid was made for the whole of Africa, a pitiful amoun More...
Dec 31, 2009
Kat
rated it:
This book is not for the faint of heart.
Unless of course you're reading it for a class, at which point you really have no choice.
This book is essentially 700 pages of "They were oppressed and sometimes brutally killed before independence. Then they got independence. Then there was oppression and sometimes thousands (or hundreds of thousands) were killed. Human rights were abrogated. Famine. Corruption. Selfish foreign powers making it worse and/or turning a bli More...
Unless of course you're reading it for a class, at which point you really have no choice.
This book is essentially 700 pages of "They were oppressed and sometimes brutally killed before independence. Then they got independence. Then there was oppression and sometimes thousands (or hundreds of thousands) were killed. Human rights were abrogated. Famine. Corruption. Selfish foreign powers making it worse and/or turning a bli More...
Jan 08, 2010
GWC
rated it: 
This book covers African states from independence to the present in a fairly straightforward narrative. Political instability is stressed to the point that a more appropriate title might be "What Went Wrong in Africa". The story is told in a generally matter-of-fact, journalistic style and concentrates on failed states. By concentrating on the coups and dictatorships the book leaves out important and possibly revealing counter-examples. Botswana, for example, enjoyed decades of sta
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Dec 05, 2009
Ebookwormy
rated it:
There are so many excellent reviews here on Goodreads! I will simply seek to contribute my thoughts after reading the book. Meredith's journalistic style makes his excellent historical account more readable, even if his subject matter is extremely difficult to digest. Other books may provide more detail, but this is the only book I've found that gives insightful overviews into what has happened across countries in Africa. I would like to own a copy myself to use as a reference for future consult
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Sep 03, 2008
Mikey B.
rated it:
A Very Powerful Book
This is a history of Africa since the end of the colonial era. The author does not tread lightly on Africa's rulers' since that time. The level of brutality and corruption is exposed and elucidated relentlessly. Crimes against humanity are so common that one wonders why the cycle is so self-perpetuating. Although statistics and trends are analyzed the main focus is primarily on the personalities - history is made by people.
Chapters are well sectioned More...
This is a history of Africa since the end of the colonial era. The author does not tread lightly on Africa's rulers' since that time. The level of brutality and corruption is exposed and elucidated relentlessly. Crimes against humanity are so common that one wonders why the cycle is so self-perpetuating. Although statistics and trends are analyzed the main focus is primarily on the personalities - history is made by people.
Chapters are well sectioned More...
Dec 30, 2008
Sarah
rated it:
Finally, finally finished!! I've been reading this book off and on for over 6 months. Some parts are pretty dense and the names/acronyms of all the leaders and political parties can make my head spin. However, most of the time I had to put the book down in disgust because the leading actors in so much of post-independence Africa are startlingly terrible, and often so is how the rest of the world responds to African problems. One goes into reading this book expecting a pretty bleak picture, b
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Jan 27, 2008
Jeff
rated it:
This is a fascinating and well written overview of African history in the post-colonial era. It is not a happy story, just an accurate one. In general, Africa has gone downhill since the colonial powers left. While the author doesn't hesitate to point out the negative effects that both the colonial powers and the Cold war US/soviet rivalry had on the development of African states, his basic premise is that the Africans have themselves to blame for the sorry state of their nations. Or rather,
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Nov 14, 2007
Talia
rated it:
Martin Meredith's Fate of Africa couldn't have come out at a better time. With so much attention given to Africa with Live 8 mega concerts and wrangling between politicians and hopeful development experts, finally there is a book that gives historical context to the continent. Meredith, a 40-year journalism veteran on African affairs, has written the first comprehensive study of post-colonial Africa's first fifty years. Just under 800 pages, this book is not for the casual reader, but rather for
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Aug 18, 2007
Dan
rated it:
A well written book that details the issues that have surrounded Africa for the last 50 years. Its scary when the history of a collection of countries can be grouped so easily (post colony, one party democracy, big man democracy, etc...), but its important to know that this is the case. Understandably, rwanda and apartheid are given very large sections in the book (towards the end). I did feel that AIDS was covered only slightly, which was unfortunate. Thats more a pan-African problem i supp
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Nov 27, 2010
Margaret
rated it:
I enjoyed the structure of the book. I found it very readable, hard to put down, in fact.
A long sad story.
the role of outside powers, including that of the USA was presented, but almost more as an after thought in so many cases.
For 5 stars, I would have wanted more specifics on the role of the Wold War in shaping Africa's fate.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone wishing to understand more of current problems affecting the diverse countries of this magnificent
A long sad story.
the role of outside powers, including that of the USA was presented, but almost more as an after thought in so many cases.
For 5 stars, I would have wanted more specifics on the role of the Wold War in shaping Africa's fate.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone wishing to understand more of current problems affecting the diverse countries of this magnificent
Sep 21, 2008
Jonathan
rated it:
An incredibly dense account of the last 50 years in Africa. This book is a natural follow-on to "The Scramble for Africa", and shares the same dense, factual writing style with little-to-no commentary. It was hard to keep in memory all of the people, locations, and events that are mentioned throughout the novel. I had to keep referring back to early sections of the book, a quick reference guide at the end would be helpful.
The style is easy to digest (easier than "Th More...
The style is easy to digest (easier than "Th More...
Dec 30, 2011
Brandon
rated it:
For better or worse, this is the finest book of its kind (which is to say, books written for educated laypeople about recent African political history). Meredith is well-traveled and well-read, and the book is shockingly comprehensive with respect to its coverage of different regions on the continent. The narrative hangs together (the chapters on Ghana under Nkrumah and Zaire under Mobutu are especially good), and does reasonable justice to the complexities of African political successes and f
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Aug 10, 2011
Very interesting book which was packed with information (i think that's the longest it's ever taken me to read a book!).
Would probably have been more readable if Meredith had split the book by country, as commenting on all of them simultaneously made it very difficult to keep track of which your focus was on, as they all have such similarly horrific stories. Would still recommend on the basis of the in-depth information though.
Would probably have been more readable if Meredith had split the book by country, as commenting on all of them simultaneously made it very difficult to keep track of which your focus was on, as they all have such similarly horrific stories. Would still recommend on the basis of the in-depth information though.
Aug 05, 2011
a startling book on the recent history of Africa. Not only is the book very vivid but extremely disturbing since it is so clear that the whole of africa, bar only a handful, are suffering emensely under rediculous leaders. the colonial influence is much stronger than i thought but its "marriage" with the worst of african worldview, makes redeeming a continent as something that will require nothing short of a miracle from God!
Jul 30, 2011
A very informative book on the independence movements in Africa and the aftermath, the resemblence in some of the places after independence and the downfall of the nations are eerie. It is chilling to read about the atrocities and the brutality of some of the leaders of Africa and how majority population was ignored or choked to violence. I think this is one of the best compilations of African history and I would say - a must read
Dec 27, 2009
Michael
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I've been taking my time to read this because it focuses more on the political side of Africa (e.g. dictators, governments, coups) at least compared to the book "Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles" by Richard Dowden. This book is more like a history book than a cultural exploration.
I bought it in February and I'm only 1/3 way through.
It's good. Just not a page turning that keeps me up all night.
I bought it in February and I'm only 1/3 way through.
It's good. Just not a page turning that keeps me up all night.
Dec 25, 2008
Jrohde
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Funny - alternative editions of this book switch between the State, and the Fate of Africa
In any case, this is a superb account of the states of Africa since their independence - a sobering but clear history. Only Nyerere comes out pretty decent, if overly idealistic and destructive in his socialist policies.
I would recommend Pakenham's Scramble for Africa to read first - then this book as a follow-on.
In any case, this is a superb account of the states of Africa since their independence - a sobering but clear history. Only Nyerere comes out pretty decent, if overly idealistic and destructive in his socialist policies.
I would recommend Pakenham's Scramble for Africa to read first - then this book as a follow-on.
Nov 27, 2007
Erin
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clueless as i was about virtually all of african history, this was a good (if completely depressing) introduction to the last 50 years or so. meredith's thesis is decidedly that it is bad leaders who have caused africa's problems... and they certainly seem to contribute. but i have a feeling there are other factors involved as well. some are hinted at, others not so much. the way he jumps around from country to country makes it difficult to keep things straight, especially when the stories a
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Jul 26, 2011
Kathleen
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A very interesting book well written and easy to read. This was one of the few books that I could read twice. It covered the many countries in Africa since they gained independence and how the newly formed countries were governed .Mismanagement of resources and .greed have left most of them in poverty with no infrastructure. The story is far from over and one can only hope that things change and democracy will prevail.
