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Africa and Africans
Africa and Africans keeps a watchful eye on what has happened in Africa and on what has happened in the rest of the world that shapes how people look at Africa. The world's perception of Africa is an entanglement of myth and reality--both reflecting and changing with the times. This highly informative yet concise volume, written by two authors intimately familiar with Africa, presents the facts about African society--past and present. Readers wishing to explore Africa's historical events and rich traditions will discover that Africans want to keep what they value in their old way of life as they find themselves in an emerging global culture. Titles of related interest from Waveland Holloway, Monique and the Mango Two Years with a Midwife in Mali (ISBN 9781577664352); July, A History of the African People, Fifth Edition (ISBN 9780881339802); and Middleton, African Merchants of the Indian Swahili of the East African Coast (ISBN 9781577663140).
301 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 5, 2017
Myth Busters
I'm going to say it right off the bat. If you are someone who doesn't know much about Africa, but would like to start, you've come to the right book. If you are a teacher or college professor who needs a good introductory book on Africa, this is the one you should turn to. For people who have conflicting images and contradictory "information" about Africa, this book offers a clear, well-written, thoughtful guide to basic information about that vast continent. If you are planning to travel around Africa, let's say---in more than one country---and need background material, this is your book. In short, it is a pleasure and a useful occupation to read AFRICA AND AFRICANS. Though it was first published in 1971 and much has changed in Africa since then, it is a testament to the solid scholarship and perceptive directions taken that it is still one of the best books on Africa that I have seen.
The authors take on all kinds of myths, former and current, about Africa and Africans, not avoiding even racial ones. They demolish most of them. They try to show broad patterns in African geography, economy, politics, and culture, then paint overall African history in broad strokes, instead of going into detail. Isolation from the 'mainstream' of world civilization over many centuries plays a big role in explaining African history. Though north-western Europe was similarly isolated for a long time, there was no Sahara blocking it from rejoining. A reader gets a wide picture and a very solid picture of Africa. There are so many useful aspects of the book that I cannot choose which to describe here. Suffice to say that it was a pleasure to read Bohannan and Curtin's book, which I found in a local book fair twenty years ago and never read, regretfully, until now.
I'm going to say it right off the bat. If you are someone who doesn't know much about Africa, but would like to start, you've come to the right book. If you are a teacher or college professor who needs a good introductory book on Africa, this is the one you should turn to. For people who have conflicting images and contradictory "information" about Africa, this book offers a clear, well-written, thoughtful guide to basic information about that vast continent. If you are planning to travel around Africa, let's say---in more than one country---and need background material, this is your book. In short, it is a pleasure and a useful occupation to read AFRICA AND AFRICANS. Though it was first published in 1971 and much has changed in Africa since then, it is a testament to the solid scholarship and perceptive directions taken that it is still one of the best books on Africa that I have seen.
The authors take on all kinds of myths, former and current, about Africa and Africans, not avoiding even racial ones. They demolish most of them. They try to show broad patterns in African geography, economy, politics, and culture, then paint overall African history in broad strokes, instead of going into detail. Isolation from the 'mainstream' of world civilization over many centuries plays a big role in explaining African history. Though north-western Europe was similarly isolated for a long time, there was no Sahara blocking it from rejoining. A reader gets a wide picture and a very solid picture of Africa. There are so many useful aspects of the book that I cannot choose which to describe here. Suffice to say that it was a pleasure to read Bohannan and Curtin's book, which I found in a local book fair twenty years ago and never read, regretfully, until now.
January 3, 2020
A good read that offers research-based enlightenment despite its age. The book is a well-reasoned, cogent overview of race, economics, history, religion, and more
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews