Maalika: My Life among the Afar Nomads in Africa

by Valerie Browning, John Little

Amazing book about life among the Afar

Genres: Nonfiction, Africa

263 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2008

Reviews

[Cat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hats off to this remarkable woman. This book is made all the sweeter for me because some good friends of mine have set up and continue to work on a sustainable health and agricultural project for the Afar people of Northern Ethiopia

[Danny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring and shocking biography of Valerie Browning, an Australian aid worker living and working amongst the Afar nomadic tribes of Ethiopia in one of the most God forsaken places on the planet.

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The most revolting human trait is to sit in the corner and stuff yourself full without sharing. It’s vulgar. It’s inhuman.” Valerie Browning.

As the world watches on, countries like Ethiopia, Tanzania and the people of Afar suffer in incredible poverty; dying from easily treatable diseases such as measles, tuberculosis and other diseases that people like us in the west do not even think about any longer. Valerie Browning, a Christian Australian nurse, went to Africa just after she finished her nursing training and what she did and what she saw is simply remarkable. When she returns to Australia she shakes her head in utter disbelief that people can live with such wealth while young children and their families in Africa live and die in squalor amidst war and turmoil. All this while nations such as Australia keep cutting back their foreign aid budgets. Like Jesus did, Valerie lives and works with the impoverished and marginalised and expects nothing in return.

Maalika is an inspiring read which should embarrass us all.

[Sal · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a registered nurse with aspirations of working in Africa one day, I couldn't put this down.

[Mirjana · Rating 2 out of 5]

An Australian friend recommended me this book,so I had high expectations.
On the end I was depressed and disappointed. What is the point in despising western world,it's values etc., and then trying to get primitive people change their ways to resemble western ways you author is despising so much?
Author is contradicting herself all throughout the book, trying to justify to herself the way of life she chose.
I lived in South Africa for almost 20 years, and know that decent African people take pride in keeping their home clean and neat, even if they are poor. African people learn by example, not by preaching.
Did Maalika really need her mother to come from Australia to tell her to prepare food on the bench, not on filthy floor?! And she is a nurse who spend her life teaching Afar people how to prevent and cure cholera?!

[Marc · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very impressive autobiography of an Australian nurse who has lived for many years with her Afar husband in his nomadic community in the horn of Africa. (Afar nomads move among Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti without worrying too much about national borders.) The author, Valerie Browning, originally went to Ethiopia with a Christian aid organization as a young nursing graduate and effectively just stayed there. She became embedded in the Afar culture and the wider culture of the horn, in which through hard work and common sense she built a strikingly effective medical/health-aid NGO staffed almost entirely by locals. A very well told story about an amazingly hard-working human deeply impregnated with common sense. Similar, perhaps, to Mother Theresa, and as committed a Christian, but with no interest in evangelizing.

[Susannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amazing, inspiring and compassionate story of one woman's tireless dedication to making the world a better place. Well written with humour and unflinching honesty. Australian nurse Valerie Browning lives in the desert of northern Ethiopia. Valerie adopted the Afar way of life and they have become her people. She is married to Ismael, clan leader of the nomadic Afar tribe. She brings education and life-saving medical aid to the nomads. To the Afar, she is known as 'Maalika' or 'Queen'.

[Sarah Salleh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maalika is the story of Valerie Browning. Valerie is given the title of Maalika which means queen by the Afar people of Ethiopia for all her humanitarian efforts. She is indeed a queen. She marries an Afar man and instead of migrating back to her homeland Australia she stays and makes a life in Ethiopia.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated Valerie's story and learning more about the struggles around Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti, and especially about the Afar people. Valerie is obviously has a calling on her life to do what she does - I know I couldn't. I cried during parts of her story... some truly traumatic experiences.

[Camilla Hikarda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the content as it’s an area I work in but the writing style was at times quite poor so I struggled to get into it. In saying that, she’s an amazing woman and her story deserves to be written. The basic writing style probably adds to the authenticity. I really enjoyed learning more about the Afar culture.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me angry about the treatment of people of Afar by many NGOs who are supposedly providing health, education and food assistance. I couldn't put the book down. We take for granted things such as clean water, sanitation, health care, compulsory education, comfortable housing and plentiful food. Valerie Browning, her husband Ismael and their health workers are amazing people.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not an easy read however was an interesting and inspiring story. It me feel sad at times,made me feel angry at times and I take my hat off to Valerie Browning who gave it her all to help the Afar people.

[Nina Sithakarn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely story of very dedicated woman.

[Ali Newcombe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book really good insight into Ethiopia.

[Catriona McKeown · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting story, full of compassion and what it means to sacrifice for the cause/people you believe in.

[Sarah loves books 😻😻😻 · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Mike Graham · Rating 2 out of 5]

Valerie Browning is an impressive person with an important message. You learn some things about life in Afar, but not as much as I'd hoped, since most of the book is about her various exploits. This is not anything resembling an anthropological or ethnographic study, so if you want to a detailed account of the Afar way of life, you probably need to look elsewhere. This would all be fine, but the narrative structure of the text leaves much to be desired and almost feels stream of consciousness at times, making it somewhat difficult reading in the end.

[Christopher Walker · Rating 1 out of 5]

Such a waste of a book. The pages of an autobiography, ghost-written or otherwise, should be used to reflect on the meaning of that life, but Browning does not venture in that direction. She is a difficult, obstinate woman who has done a lot for a small community in Africa, but I do not think she has learnt the lessons of her own life, and does not know how to impart wisdom through the written word.

[Kim]

I didn't like this book. I didn't like Valerie. I found her too naive and unable or unwilling to learn from experience. Yes she has lived an amazing life and done amazing things but, with many of the choices she made and lack of research, she's lucky to be alive.

[Idris Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm speechless. All MAALIKA's life is no less than any prophets' life. Every reader will understand how this book; her biography; has no words to express how MAALIKA has sacrificed her whole life for the sake of humanity.

[Megan Clemance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read. Honest. Tells it how it is. Human. Amazing lady; an amazing people.

[Issy · Rating 5 out of 5]

IM SO IN LOVE

Anything with John Little in it is amazing <3

[Cara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valerie, is the kind of adult we should be telling our kids about. This is the kind of person I would celebrate.

[Sarah Christie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really insightful book, I did not expect it to be as engaging as it was and was a really well rounded view as to how the western world can help in areas of Africa.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and completely agree with the critique of existing development models and in particular the modus operandi of the big development and aid agencies. Valerie Browning's work with the Afar development structures is a model for work with pastoralist people. Valuable insights into the changing nature of Afar society.