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  <title><![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]></title>
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  <description><![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]></description>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
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  <read_at>Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
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  <date_updated>Sat Jan 03 14:56:32 -0800 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[I found this book absolutely hilarious. I was literally in hysterics for an entire 20 page chapter - my husband was looking at me in awe as I have not laughed that long or hard in ages, and as he says, &quot;I am a hard audience.&quot;  That being said, it's not a riot throughout, but Boyd develops ...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/41753050">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
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    <body><![CDATA[Boyd's first novel; brilliant mastery of plot and flash-back narrative; memorable turns of phrase (&quot;the opaque, cloudy void of his ignorance seemed to stretch away in front of him&quot;; &quot;As he turned into his driveway and parked his car in the garage the options that were available to him...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/46676441">more...</a>]]></body>
    
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      <review>
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    <name><![CDATA[Jessica]]></name>
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    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
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    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Sep 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Tue Sep 08 07:56:26 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Sep 21 11:09:04 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[A very quick and enjoyable read about British colonialism in an invented African country in the 60s (? guessing, never really says). The main character is highly entertaining as a put-open, pessimistic, mid-level diplomat hoping for an assignment probably anywhere else. He is definitely not the 'goo...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/70462541">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/70462541]]></url>
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      <review>
  <id>42278745</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Ellen]]></name>
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    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
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    <rating>1</rating>
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  <date_added>Wed Jan 07 17:08:59 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Jan 07 17:10:47 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This was William Boyd's award winning first novel so I thought I would give it a try after having LOVED Restless.  This is dated and terrible, not at all funny.  Don't waste your time.  I kept hoping it would get better and it didn't.  If I had known I wouldn't have wasted my time.]]></body>
    
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      <review>
  <id>60170359</id>
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    <id>89235</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Dan]]></name>
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    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Thu Jun 18 08:58:46 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Jul 07 04:38:05 -0700 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[It's good and at times very funny.  But you need to be a fan of Boyd's &quot;fish out of water&quot; books (Stars and Bars, Armadillo, etc.) and be able to like unlikable characters to enjoy.  With these narrators, I don't actually like them but I'm interested in what happens to them.  But, this was...<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/60170359">more...</a>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/60170359]]></url>
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</review>
      <review>
  <id>67861674</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Bob]]></name>
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    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
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  <date_added>Tue Aug 18 05:39:07 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Tue Aug 18 05:42:43 -0700 2009</date_updated>
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    <body><![CDATA[I had an uncle who lived (and was murdered) in Africa, and my graduate school adviser was from Africa, so I might have an interest in a bumbling (are there any other kind?) British functionary in the colonies.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/67861674]]></url>
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  <link>http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/77837.A_Good_Man_in_Africa_A_Novel</link>
  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Apr 22 06:08:20 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Apr 22 06:20:33 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[At times laugh out loud funny as the black humour turns to farce. I loved this book and even warmed to the singularly unpleasant character, Morgan Leafy, as events spun beyond his control.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/53572177]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/53572177]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>40842768</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Kate]]></name>
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  <isbn>1400030021</isbn>
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  <text_reviews_count type="integer">21</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>2</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Sun Dec 21 00:00:00 -0800 2008</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Dec 24 12:07:33 -0800 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Thu Dec 25 21:05:28 -0800 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[a bit trashy, but a book my dad loved at one point. i found it at my grandmother's house with my dad's name in it. a bit crude at points, from gonorrhea to a woman's decaying body in the line. i hope africa isn't as bad as it is described. just an unlucky sob i guess.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/40842768]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/40842768]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>45558369</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Raegan]]></name>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
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  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Mon Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 1996</read_at>
  <date_added>Fri Feb 06 09:13:03 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Feb 06 09:14:30 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[This reads like a sort of Graham Greene type book. How's that for a vaguely worded review? ]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45558369]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/45558369]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>64200065</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Lenah]]></name>
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  <isbn>0140058877</isbn>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.07</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>15</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
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  <recommended_by><![CDATA[]]></recommended_by>
  <read_at>Mon Jul 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Jul 20 06:01:55 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Jul 20 06:02:32 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Love it! funny and witty! and funny and witty!]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/64200065]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/64200065]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>80487810</id>
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    <id>2980517</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Jakes]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Abu Dhabi, 01, The United Arab Emirates]]></location>
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  <isbn>1400030021</isbn>
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  <text_reviews_count type="integer">21</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <small_image_url>http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170901604s/77837.jpg</small_image_url>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1998</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Dec 09 19:35:00 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Fri Dec 11 05:37:54 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[One of the funniest books I have ever read.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/80487810]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/80487810]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>59836573</id>
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  <isbn>1400030021</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781400030026</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">21</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Sat Jun 20 19:06:08 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Jun 15 20:57:25 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Jun 20 19:06:08 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[ Excellent writing and a great story. Another good book by William Boyd.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59836573]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/59836573]]></link>
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      <review>
  <id>50422560</id>
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    <id>947013</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Marsha]]></name>
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  <isbn>1400030021</isbn>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
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  <read_at>Sun Mar 29 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Mar 25 12:04:41 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Mar 29 11:46:26 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[can't get enough of this author]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/50422560]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/50422560]]></link>
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      <review>
  <id>46824070</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Joseph]]></name>
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  <text_reviews_count type="integer">21</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <recommended_for><![CDATA[]]></recommended_for>
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  <read_at>Fri Feb 20 00:00:00 -0800 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Wed Feb 18 20:14:18 -0800 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Feb 21 14:50:53 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Strong literary fiction. Narrative slowly develops, the focus is more on the writing and the slowly revealed intrigue between the characters. Good description of life in West Africa for a British diplomat. Read in three days. Feb 2009.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/46824070]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/46824070]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
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    <id>2086683</id>
    <name><![CDATA[scarlettraces]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[New Zealand]]></location>
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  <isbn>1400030021</isbn>
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  <text_reviews_count type="integer">21</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
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    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Thu May 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun May 24 15:46:06 -0700 2009</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Jul 01 03:11:18 -0700 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[deserves better than 3 stars but everything and everyone was so unpleasant that i found it hard to get through. i want to like my protaganists even just a little bit, please.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57182753]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/57182753]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>38944127</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Scott]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Raleigh, NC]]></location>
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  <isbn>1400030021</isbn>
  <isbn13>9781400030026</isbn13>
  <text_reviews_count type="integer">21</text_reviews_count>
  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>3</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <date_added>Sun Nov 30 10:15:53 -0800 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Jan 11 15:19:56 -0800 2009</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Tagging along on the main character's journey is whimsically frustrating. His life is fully subject to <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/225591.Murphy_s_Law_Law_Series_Book_2_" title="Murphy's Law (Law Series, Book #2) by Lori Foster">Murphy's law</a>. Still an entertaining romp, tho.<br/>]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/38944127]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/38944127]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>12467155</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Henry]]></name>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
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  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>5</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007</read_at>
  <date_added>Mon Jan 14 06:14:13 -0800 2008</date_added>
  <date_updated>Mon Jan 14 06:15:10 -0800 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[One of my favorite books, read first in 90s, reread in 2007.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/12467155]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/12467155]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>8936940</id>
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    <name><![CDATA[Rael]]></name>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
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  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
</book>

    <rating>4</rating>
  <votes>0</votes>
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  <read_at>Tue May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007</read_at>
  <date_added>Sat Nov 10 15:13:48 -0800 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sat Nov 10 15:14:34 -0800 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[Funny, starts slow, but then it cracked me up..]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8936940]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8936940]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>8014298</id>
    <user>
    <id>565243</id>
    <name><![CDATA[Ann]]></name>
    <location><![CDATA[Carthage, Tunisia]]></location>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
  <ratings_count>204</ratings_count>
  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <date_added>Sun Oct 21 06:15:01 -0700 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Sun Oct 21 06:15:34 -0700 2007</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[a fun and easy read.  Some great characters.]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8014298]]></url>
  <link><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8014298]]></link>
</review>
      <review>
  <id>9291445</id>
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  <title>
    <![CDATA[A Good Man in Africa: A Novel]]>
  </title>
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  <average_rating>3.71</average_rating>
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  <description>
    <![CDATA[Morgan Leafy had high hopes when he first headed out to the small African nation of Kinjanja to serve as Her British Majesty's representative. But once there, Leafy's dreams of professional advancement and personal happiness soon fade: this son of an airport catering manager finds himself overtaken on the career ladder by other, newer recruits to the diplomatic corps who come from the right family and attended the right schools. What's worse, the girl of his dreams has just become engaged to someone younger, thinner, and better connected. And if all this weren't enough to make a career civil servant miserable, Leafy is also being blackmailed by a representative of one of Kinjanja's many political parties who has presented him with a puzzling task: get to know the Scottish medical doctor at a local university.  <p> Author William Boyd has written about Africa before, most notably in his bestselling novel <em>Brazzaville Beach</em>. In <em>A Good Man in Africa</em>, Boyd spins a darkly comic tale of political corruption, revolution, sexual misadventure, blackmail, and death. By novel's end, Leafy may not have become a better man--or even a much wiser one--but he has acquired a kind of dignity and gritty courage for which he is well suited.</p>]]>
  </description>
  <published>1981</published>
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    <rating>3</rating>
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  <read_at>Sat Dec 29 00:00:00 -0800 2007</read_at>
  <date_added>Sun Nov 18 19:46:52 -0800 2007</date_added>
  <date_updated>Wed Jan 30 15:47:53 -0800 2008</date_updated>
  <read_count></read_count>
    <body><![CDATA[definitely entertaining!]]></body>
    
  <url><![CDATA[http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/9291445]]></url>
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