Africa : Altered States, Ordinary Miracles

by Dowden, Richard

• ISBN13: 9781586487539
• ISBN10: 1586487531
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-03-09
• Publisher: Perseus Books Group

Summary

After a lifetime's close observation of the continent, one of the world's finest Africa correspondents has penned a landmark book on life and death in modern Africa. In captivating prose, Dowden spins tales of cults and commerce in Senegal and traditional spirituality in Sierra Leone; analyzes the impact of oil and the internet on Nigeria and aid on Sudan; and examines what has gone so badly wrong in Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Congo. From the individual stories of failure and success comes a surprising portrait of a new Africa emergingan Africa that, Dowden argues, can only be developed by its own people. Dowden's master work is an attempt to explain why Africa is the way it is and calls for a re-examination of the perception of Africa as "the dark continent." He reveals it as a place of inspiration and tremendous humanity.

Author Biography

Richard Dowden is director of the Royal African Society. He spent a decade as Africa Editor of the Independent, and then another decade as Africa Editor of the Economist. He has made three television documentaries on Africa, for the BBC and Channel 4.

Table of Contents

Map	p. vi
Acknowledgements	p. xi
Foreword	p. xiii
Africa is a night flight away: Images and realities	p. 1
Africa is different: Uganda I	p. 11
How it all went wrong: Uganda II	p. 38
The end of colonialism: New states, old societies	p. 51
Amazing, but is it Africa? Somalia	p. 90
Forward to the past: Zimbabwe	p. 127
Breaking apart: Sudan	p. 158
A tick bigger than the dog: Angola	p. 199
Missing the story and the sequel: Burundi and Rwanda	p. 223
God, trust and trade: Senegal	p. 255
Dancers and the leopard men: Sierra Leone	p. 284
The positive positive women: AIDS in Africa	p. 321
Copying King Leopold: Congo	p. 353
Not just another country: South Africa	p. 380
Meat and money: Eating in Kenya	p. 415
Look out world: Nigeria	p. 439
New colonists or old friends? Asia in Africa	p. 484
Phones, Asians and the professionals: The new Africa	p. 509
Epilogue	p. 543
Further Reading	p. 551
Index	p. 554
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