Promotions - Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles 2017 -

This work is distinguished by the author's singular ability to frame insightful questions, such as the initial one: is it reasonable to assume and thus undertake a history of what was a colonial state created to serve the interests of British imperialism? This is linked to a concluding question almost 400 pages later, on the political significance of "tribalism" in the postindependent state. This successful effort is further distinguished by the author's related ability "to question" received wisdom, such as the presumed lack of interest in African history in the 19th century and the significance and extent of "the invention of tradition" on the continent in the 20th century. Reid (SOAS, Univ. of London) achieves all this by an admirable mastery of the data and concepts from related disciplines with long-term interest in the continent. The overall result is not only the best study of Ugandan history, but the best book available on this culturally complex and often troubled nation, which Reid demonstrates "is a nation governed by the past...." This book is a model of how a country study can and should be done.Summing Up: Essential. All academic levels/libraries.

This long book on colonial Northern Nigeria is divided into 11 chapters covering the resistance to the British invasion of the Sokoto Caliphate between 1897 and 1903; the nature of British occupation; relations between the British and the emirs; the extension of British power over other areas in the north; reorganization of districts; the establishment of the Native and Provincial Court System; the imposition of taxes; the disbursement of revenues; and economic changes and social policies regarding slavery, health, and Western education. The data is rich, marshaled to correct what the author sees as the "misrepresentation of the nature of the societies and policies in Northern Nigeria before British colonization, and the consequent justification/rationalization of British colonial conquest as contained in studies by Margery Perham, Robert Heussler, S. J. Hogben, A. H. M. Kirk-Greene, H. S. Hogendorn, and other writers" (preface). A successful counter-thesis, the book is a definitive study for understanding colonial Nigeria. The book also contains a eulogy to its late author (d. 1988), a foreword that points to the violent and exploitative nature of British rule, and an impressive introduction that sets the book within a broad historiographical canvas, and that regards the totality of the contributions as "pathbreaking."Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.

Historian de Luna (Georgetown) has produced a stunningly accessible and provocative study of subsistence activities in south-central Africa across nearly three millennia. Surprisingly, the specificity of research focus--the Botatwe-speakers of Zambia and neighboring regions--does not lead to an obscure narrative of a remote past. By examining the vocabularies associated with iron and food procurement and production, the author is able to link technological transformations in material culture with individual human desire for reputation and status, revealing how earlier generations of men created strategies for acquiring political authority and social advancement deemed equally necessary for life after death. As viewed through the lens of historical linguistics paired with archaeological, ethnographic, genetic, and climate research, de Luna's reconstruction of the Botatwe dynamic language and experience offers meaningful insights for such diverse arenas as the study of decentralized political economies, ecological mobility, technological diffusion, and the origins of agriculture. This imaginative and eloquent study will surely become a key theoretical and multidisciplinary reference point for the inventive use of linguistics in future historical analysis.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All academic levels/libraries.

Creating an overview of an African country's history aimed at a general audience is a very tough feat. Dutch journalist Posthumus manages to pull off this task by linking a wide range of entertaining and telling anecdotes with a deep knowledge of the country's political history since independence. Posthumus's wry view of Guinean politics captures the current challenges of recent events since the military coup by Moussa Dadis Camara in 2008. The author clearly knows the major players in Guinean politics, including current president Alpha Conde and his rivals. Another valuable topic is the legacy of the longtime dictator Sekou Toure, whose brutal regime relied on Eastern bloc aid and the systematic murder of alleged and real political enemies. Given how little has been written on postcolonial Guinean politics in English, particularly on the post-Toure period after 1984, this book is extremely valuable for anyone interested in the country. Posthumus also offers an amusing, trenchant consideration of Guinean music from its glory days of the 1960s and early 1970s to contemporary stars today.Summing Up: Highly recommended. General collections; upper-division undergraduates and above.

Ken Saro-Wiwa is best known for how he died. On November 10, 1995, he was executed for treason after a kangaroo court in Nigeria found him and the other members of the Ogoni Nine guilty of crimes they clearly had not committed. His activism as the founder of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), which sought redress for the exploitation of and environmental degradation in the Niger delta, had put a target on his back many years earlier. But Saro-Wiwa wore many other hats in Nigeria: he held many positions in government, owned and operated one of the country's largest publishing houses, was widely renowned as one of the country's most significant literary voices, and created and wrote one of Nigeria's most popular television programs. This short, highly enjoyable book provides a comprehensive perspective on this Renaissance man by situating him in the broader historical context of Nigeria's turbulent 20th century. A great introduction to Saro-Wiwa and his world for anyone with an interest in African studies, literary criticism, environmental history, or case studies in international or human rights law.Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries.

Njinga's life probably is better documented than any other precolonial African woman, and Heywood deploys the evidence well in crafting this fine life-and-times study. Njinga governed the Ndongo-Matamba state from 1624 to 1663, struggling mightily and successfully to maintain her position against internal and foreign enemies. The Portuguese in particular (increasingly powerful in Angola) sought to subjugate, then overthrow her. But Njinga's consummate skills as charismatic ruler, warrior, and diplomat enabled her to survive and eventually triumph over her foes, securing peace and making her a potent national symbol for modern Angolans. Heywood (history, Boston Univ.) tells a thrilling story of pitched battles mixed with truces, internecine conflicts, strategic migrations, hair-raising escapes, and deft international relations, including allying with the Dutch against Portugal. Njinga was both shrewdly flexible and sincerely devout in religion, embracing Christianity while retaining Indigenous beliefs. She was exceptional but not unique, because Ndongo had a tradition of elite women wielding real power; two sisters are also key figures in this account. A plethora of unfamiliar names will challenge some readers, but overall Njinga is among the best biographies of any African. It deserves a wide readership.Summing Up: Highly recommended. Most levels/libraries.

This seminal collection provides rare insight into issues of identity, ethnicity, self-expression, and performance (material culture) from the pre- to postcolonial period in South Africa. Twenty chapters are grouped into four sections. Volume 1 contains section 1, "Mortified, Marooned, Mobilised," and section 2, "Layered Landscapes, Segregated Spaces," plus a theoretically grounding and important preface on how the stereotypes of Africa and its people, art, and identity have been historically and currently misrepresented by others (often postcolonialists outside the continent) within both academia and popular culture. Volume 2 contains section 3, "Significant (Mis)identifications," and section 4, "Archival Biographies." These volumes provide unique and local representations of self from mostly South African authors about South Africa today and in the past, published by a South African university press. In addition, each volume contains large, colorful photographs of contemporary South African artwork and rare historic photographs of ethnic communities from the precolonial period to help readers better understand the complexities of culture and material culture in the region. Map illustrations also accompany many articles. These voices demand representation in libraries and universities in the US.Summing Up: Essential. All academic levels/libraries.