Africa Books

As a homeschooling mom, I highly value books that inform my child about historical facts, while captivating them with exciting stories. I highly recommend this book as a supplement to any Egyptian studies. Written in "newspaper format", it is a joy to read aloud to my children. Using imaginative headlines and wonderful illustrations and photos, this book has definitely captured my child's attention. The plethora of historical facts presented are accurate and entertaining. I would recommend this book for children between the ages of 5-12.

This is a wonderful book that written in a News form. The information are incredibles. I totally think that this is a great book for anyone who is interest in Ancient Egypt.

This book presented some events from Egypt's history in the form of newspaper articles. It was a very creative way to give children an introduction to Egyptian history. It presented lots of interesting informationa, and also some neat pictures. This book is good at sparking a greater interest in history in children while entertaining them at the same time.

This is a delightful book. It has wonderful color illustrations on every page, and it's loaded with facts and information about the history of Ancient Egypt. It covers a 3000 yr. period, and contains a detailed, colored map of ancient Egypt, articles on pyramid building and the mystery surrounding the death of Tutankhamun, a list of the most important Egyptian gods and pharaohs, and charming colored "ads" for goods and services in use at that time. This informative book should appeal to kids, teenagers and adults alike, who want to learn more about the fascinating realm of ancient Egypt.

Beautifully written, fast-paced, and moving, this book is a winner. Applegate has created a strong, admirable character in Kek, a recent Sudan immigrant to Minnesota, who bravely faces his new and often strange life. An ideal book for class discussions, both young people and adults will also enjoy it as a memorable story. Like many of the best books, it widens my understanding of others while also providing a good story. I'm not surprised it was recommended to me by several friends; I'll be recommending it to many others.

Katherine Applegate's HOME OF THE BRAVE is another novel in verse that will appeal to boys as well as girls. It may help that plenty of middle grade readers already know Applegate from the ANIMORPHS series, but this book has a completely different feel to it.

HOME OF THE BRAVE is about Kek, a Sudanese immigrant who recently arrived in America after witnessing the death of his father and brother. He left his mother behind and wonders every day if she is alive. The poems that explore Kek's emotional state are poignant and accessible to young readers, and the more traumatic scenes are set alongside lighter stories of Kek adapting to life in America and experiencing new things, from snow to washing machines.

This is a kid-friendly story (those who love animals will have an additional connection) that explores a dramatic issue in current events in a manner that is personal, sensitive, and hopeful.

Author Katherine Applegate's novel HOME OF THE BRAVE is memorable and haunting. In spare verse filled with detailed imagery, she introduces us to Kek, an African refugee struggling to come to terms with the loss of his immediate family and his new life in America. On his trip from the airport to the Minneapolis home of his aunt, he spots a tired old cow on a tiny farm. He names the cow, Gol, and she becomes both his link to the past and his hope for the future.

Kek stays in the home of his aunt and his older cousin, Ganwar, who has lost a hand in the fighting in the Sudan. Kek makes new friends: young Hannah (a foster child), an older woman named Lou who owns the cow Gol, and his new ESL teacher, Ms. Hernandez. He refuses to stop hoping that his missing mother will be found, even though his immigration supervisors tell him she is most likely dead.

There are so many things to love about this story. It's very readable and the action moves quickly, so even reluctant readers will find themselves caught in the story. We see America through the heart and mind of a young immigrant. Kek comes alive for us, and soon we are seeing the world through his eyes. He faces both small and large challenges, but he takes action by finding a job on Lou's farm and urging his older, embittered cousin to join him. He helps his friend Hannah reconnect with her lost mother, and ultimately finds a new home for the cow, Gol, when Lou decides to sell her farm.

There are no wasted words in this story. Every page moves the story forward, and every word paints a vivid picture of Kek's world. By the end of the novel, I felt I'd gained a renewed respect for the idea of America as the "home of the brave."

I recommend this story to readers at all levels. Teachers will find many cross-curricular uses for the novel in the classroom. Young readers will enjoy the story on their own as well. The character Ganwar will catch the attention of high school readers, and adults will find this story a rich and meaninful experience. At a time when immigrant issues are much-debated, this novel provides a personal and heart-rending viewpoint that is sure to provoke a thoughtful response.

An outstanding novel, sure to become a classic.

Having been an arrival to this country at age 12, I've always been interested in books that explore questions such as "What is home?" "What does it mean to be a stranger in a new land?" and "How does one begin to belong?"

A novel written in free verse, Home of the Brave is a poignant story about an African war refugee from Sudan named Kek who arrives in the US in the thick of winter in--of all places--Minnesota. His father and brother have been killed, his mother is missing, and he has lost everything about his life that he has ever known. Welcome to America.

From a dry, hot land where he was part of a nomadic herding tribe, Kek has arrived in a freezing cold country where he must not only learn a new language, but also make friends and cultivate hope for his future. Usually the optimist, even Kek feels distraught upon his arrival at his new home
In the course of this tender tale, Kek makes friends--with a neighbor living in foster care, with an old woman who owns a rundown farm, and with an aging cow named Gol (which means "family" in his native language). His relationship with Gol is critical to his sense of belonging--and interestingly, it's one where language is not important.

Through a combination of touching and humorous vignettes (my favorite being the time when he puts his aunt's dishes in the "washing machine," i.e. the laundry!), Applegate allows us to accompany Kek on his journey to find "home." And, isn't that something we all want to find?

Once in a while a children's story comes along that carries you away with lyrical language, an authentic voice, and a story that allows you to make connections much larger than its plot. For me, Home of the Brave did all of the above. I'd highly recommend it as a companion read to Shaun Tan's Arrival, as well as on reading lists that deal with refugees, immigration, and home.

I read a lot of books but this one is definitely one of the most thought provoking. The authorgives a very personal look into her journey of "seeing how the God of hope fits into the sick, needy world around us". The book is a 5 week journey where the reader reads a chapter, reflects on it, journals and is led in very specific applications and then prayer. This book is a journey in understanding the poverty of the world, prayer and how YOU can be the messenger of God's hope and love to a dying and lost world in need of a Savior. Read it and EXPECT to be changed.

This is a wonderful book!!! You really can make a difference in this world! We have become so accustomed to nodding our heads in agreement that action needs to be taken to alleviate the suffering in this world, and sit on our hands waiting for someone else to do it. This book should be required reading for every congregation in America. "If you think you're too small to make a difference, then try sleeping in a closed room with a mosquito." (African Proverb).

This book is really special. It's laid out as a five week read, with each week broken down into five daily readings (along with some space for questions and reflections at the end of each reading). It's about poverty, but in a more general sense than some books. It's not just about one problem (or solution) or one kind of poverty; it's about the general problem of living in a world with people who have real, desperate needs, be they monetary, food-related, housing-related, emotional, spiritual, opportunity-related, physical, or what have you. The five chapters are: Poverty of the Heart (which is about our own attitudes and beliefs), God is Not Silent (what the Bible says about poverty), Understand Poverty, Prayer, and Be the Change (which is about how to take action).

The book stands on its own, but it's also part of an all-church curriculum (kits for pastors, small groups, children, and youth) that's supposed to last 5 weeks and includes a dvd, lessons, sermon suggestions, promotional materials, etc. I haven't seen the kits since they're not out yet, but the book is really great.

First off, this is a very attractive book. It has lots of fun art and lots of pictures and even pictures of the people that the stories are about, which is neat. The pictures really help reinforce the tone of the book, which is about poverty, but is meant to be encouraging. And even though the pictures are of tough things, kids living in poverty, they're really nice pictures and really help to humanize the subjects, instead of just making you feel guilty and presenting you with a world so different from yours you can't identify with it. The writing is really good, too. It's written in a sort of personal reflection type of form, almost like a conceptual journal, which softens the blow of some of the hard stuff being said a little (if you want to take it straight on just replace the "I" with "we" in your head). The way each chapter is broken up helps you to digest the material (this book covers a lot in a short space) and keeps you from being overwhelmed. The attitude of the book is really positive, which is nice, and the stories are really powerful.

Overall, a really great book, and I'm really looking forward to seeing the dvd. Poverty is kind of a hot button topic right now, so this book is very timely. It's a great treatment of the fundamentals of the subject; instead of focusing on just one temporary problem or one limited solution, it goes for the eternal core of the problem and how it relates to ourselves, our faith, and our world. It takes a tough subject and tackles it in a way that anyone could handle. If you have any interest in the subject or want to help someone else understand it better, this would be a great choice. Five stars.

I have some confessions to make.

First off, I'm one of those millions of Christians living in America who donate time and money out of guilt and obligation. I have found peace of mind knowing that when I wrote a check, I could cross that off my list of "Christian things to do." Kind of a, "Whew! I'm glad that's taken care of" sort of attitude.

My next confession is that I'm absolutely paralyzed by the sheer enormity of the needs that exist in the world. I would often think to myself that I SHOULD do something more and would often talk about doing something more but was filled with self-doubt thinking, "what difference is it going to make anyway? I mean really, how is my pittance of a donation going to end poverty or cure aids or feed the World's hungry?"

Here's my last confession. I've held the opinion that I also struggle financially and my family's needs come first before anyone else gets a slice of my financial pie. Afterall, I've worked hard for what I have and I'm not about to put myself in dire straights because someone else didn't put in the same effort.

OK. Now that I've come clean, I have to admit that reading Hope Lives has changed my life and I don't make this statement lightly.

What this book has done for me is open my eyes and revealed to me what God has asked me to do; not from a position of guilt but rather from an expression of love and grace. Truth be told, I'm blessed. I mean truly blessed. Blessed that I live in America, blessed that I have the opportunities that I have and blessed that I've been given the God-honoring privilege to serve him. Through this book, my eyes were opened to the causes of poverty and I can honestly say that my heart has been changed and I'll never quite be the same.

In short, Hope Lives helped me recognize that God is on the move and he's weaving an amazing fabric that I play a small role in helping to weave. He isn't asking me to do EVERYTHING but he has put me in a time and place and has given the means to do SOMETHING. What I do with this opportunity is ultimately up to me.

The cover of Hope Lives refers to a "Journey of Restoration." I assumed "restoration" meant that the poor would be restored to self-sufficiency. What I didn't realize was that I was being restored and the greatest transformation was occuring within me.

I pray that this book does the same for you.

As a longtime reader of the Church Fathers, I found this book delightful. Oden's observations about Eurocentric interpretation of Church history are right on. I highly recommend it.

Thomas Oden writes, "Christianity would not have its present vitality in the Two-Thirds World without the intellectual understandings that developed in Africa between 50 and 500 C.E. The pretense of studying church history while ignoring African church history is implausible." (10) Yet, in his book "How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind," Oden purports that for centuries Western intellectuals have in fact ignored or downplayed the momentous contributions of African Christians to church history and theology. According to Oden, today's Christian mind has its roots in the writings and teachings of the early church leaders from Africa, in the struggles of the early church martyrs from Africa, in the lives of the desert Fathers of Africa, and in the early Christians who fled Africa taking their faith throughout the Mediterranean cities. Oden suggests that it is critical for contemporary African Christianity to learn of its prestigious heritage--to learn that Christianity is a vital, traditional African faith rather than a foreign imposition.

He writes, "The profound ways African teachers have shaped world Christianity have never been adequately studied or acknowledged, either in the Global North or South." (9) This is a story that Oden believes needs to be told throughout African villages and cities and must especially reach the African child. He believes it is a story best told fully by young African scholars. The story of African Christianity conveys extraordinary faith, courage, tenacity and intellect that must serve as inspiration and guides not only for African Christianity but for universal Christianity today.

In its infancy, Christianity spread to Africa. Oden laments that even African theologians have been tempted to fall victim to the stereotypical idea that Christianity developed in and came from Europe. This mindset ignores the vast oral tradition and written evidence indicating that African thought shaped and conditioned nearly every Christian diocese in the first millennium of the faith.

Oden asserts that in Christianity's first 500 years, "the period of its greatest vitality," the African Christian intellect was the model that was sought and widely emulated by Christians of the northern and eastern Mediterranean shores. (29) Oden claims, "The Christian leaders in Africa figured out how best to read the law and the prophets meaningfully, to think philosophically, and to teach the ecumenical rule of triune faith cohesively long before these patterns became normative elsewhere." (29-30) Through the third, fourth and fifth centuries, African Christian ideas were flowing to the other centers of Christianity.

The book is divided into two main parts: "The African Seedbed of Western Christianity" and "African Orthodox Recovery." Oden also includes an Appendix that outlines the challenges of early African research and a literary chronology of the first 1000 years of Christianity in Africa. Oden focuses on seven ways that Africa from the first to the fifth century shaped the Christian mind. These seven ways provide the foundation for his thesis in the book:

1.The Western idea of a university and Christian scholarship was born in Africa, mainly in Alexandria which possessed an unrivaled library and a vast learning community of philosophers, scientists, writers, artists and educators. Influential figures include Clement of Alexandria and Pantaenus.

2.Christian exegesis of Scripture first matured in Africa by writers like Origen, Didymus the Blind, Tyconius and Augustine of Hippo.

3.African sources like Tertullian, Cyprian, Athanasius, Augustine and Cyril shaped early Christian dogma on subjects such as Christology and the Trinity. Many problems of Biblical interpretation and Christian definitions were worked out through African Christians' battles against the major heresies of Gnosticism, Arianism, Montanism, Marcionism and Manichaeism.

4.Early ecumenical decision making followed early African conciliar patterns that provided a practical model for ecumenical debate and resolution. African church leaders like Demetrius of Alexandria, Cyprian of Carthage, Optatus of Milevis and Augustine raised and helped settle issues on penitence, diocesan boundaries, episcopal authority and ordination and on Christian doctrine.

5.The African desert Fathers birthed worldwide monasticism through their patterns of personal sacrifice, ordering of the life of prayer, study, work, radical discipleship and balance of solitude and communal life. Oden elaborates on the example of how the monastic patterns of Antony, Pachomius and Augustine would have lasting influence in Italy, France and all the way to Ireland.

6.Christian neoplatonism emerged in Africa with Africans Philo, Ammonias Saccas and Plotinus being the central figures. Clement of Alexandria was among the earliest to convey the connections and distinctions between logos philosophy and the Christian teaching of God.

7.Rhetorical and dialectical skills were honed in Africa prior to advancement in Europe with Tertullian, Cyprian, Arnobius, Lactantius and Augustine excelling.

According to Oden, the time for Orthodox recovery in Africa is now and urgent for three reasons:
1.rapid numerical expansion of Christianity
2.a new hunger for intellectual depth
3.the perceived might of the Muslim world, and the concurrent exhaustion of modern Western intellectual alternatives.

African Christianity does not have the comfort to invest in the Western idea of ecumenism and unity that equates all ideologies and rejects absolute truth and moral superiority of the historic doctrines. Likewise, a faith devoid of the supernatural is of no use to African Christians who rely on miraculous intervention. Oden asserts that African Christianity is rejecting a "permissive ecumenism" and tolerance for sin in favor of the truths found in its wellspring of classical exegesis that deals with the problem of sin through penitence and humility. (116) Oden sees in the heart of African Orthodoxy a model for a contemporary Christianity revitalized by a corrected perspective on the relationships between tradition and Scripture and between faith and charity inspired by the Holy Spirit.

He presents what is basically the tip of the iceberg of evidence for his thesis. He admittedly limits himself to the task of being a catalyst to ignite African and other scholars to take the initiative to fully develop his ideas. The book is sufficient to whet readers' appetites and pique interest in discovering the rest of the iceberg not seen in this book.

Oden writes, "Among the benefits of reading early African Christian teaching are the courage to face complex tasks, reduced anxiety and the consolation of knowing that suffering can be transcended by hope. Seemingly impossible obstacles do not intimidate." (135) If a lesson for all Christians stands out from early African Christianity, it may be what is articulated by Alan Paton's seminal South African novel "Cry, the Beloved Country:" "there is one thing that has power completely, and that is love. Because when a man loves, he seeks no power, and therefore he has power." Oden has illustrated that African Christianity has been characterized, since it inception to the present, by power sourced in a keen sacrificial love flowing with grace, faith, hope, and courage while remaining anchored in truth and community.

Thomas Oden's "How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind" was not the book I expected when I read the title. It was different, it was more, it was less, it was challenging, and it was and is important.

Oden, recently retired after a distinguished professorial career, is perhaps one of the most renowned Church historians of our day. His four-volume opus on the history of pastoral care is a classic, for instance.

Oden now sees as his life's work, for the remainder of his life, the uncovering of the buried treasure of African Christianity. Of course, what one means by "African" is crucial. Oden wisely steers clear of much modern and post-modern imbalance here. He avoids the Euro-centric approach that diminishes anything African as being simply borrowed from European culture and thinking. On the other hand, he equally avoids an "Africa first" framework that presumes that everything has its roots in Africa.

For Oden, and for "How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind," the "Africa" he speaks of is anything that happened on the African continent and anyone who lived and ministered on that continent. This avoids the endless debate, for instance, about which Church Father was or was not "African." How does one define that? By skin color? And by what amount of pigmentation? By nationality? Why wouldn't any nation in Africa be by definition African? By ancestry?

The ancestry issue coupled with geographical/cultural impact is Oden's most important contribution. In sum, he argues that even if Augustine, for instance, had a father whose ancestry was Greco-Roman, would that mean that Augustine, living his entire life in Africa was not African? Additionally, given that his famous mother, Monica, was almost definitely of Berber (north African) descent, would that not make Augustine African? And just as important to Oden, can we wipe out the impact on Augustine's parents and on Augustine of living in the African geography and partaking of the African culture?

So, for Oden, "African Christianity" is the Christianity of any person who was born and/or lived on the African continent. Thus, for Europeans to claim Augustine, Origen, Tertullian, and others is a robbery of immense proportion in Oden's thinking.

Given this perspective, Oden's entire book is actually a call for others to build upon his small start. It is a call to take seriously the oral and written tradition of material spoken and penned on the African continent. It is then a call to explore the past, present, and future impact of that legacy.

For the past impact, Oden wants to examine how African Christian theology and practical Christianity shaped and interacted with non-African Christianity. For the present and the future, Oden hopes that such increased understanding of the enduring African Christian legacy will validate and encourage modern African Christians regarding their heritage, will open the doors for African seekers to understand that to convert to Christianity is not betraying their heritage, but returning to it, and to encourage all Christians to learn from and with modern day African Christianity.

Some will find in "How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind" more ecumenism than they find palatable. However, one does not have to agree with Oden's entire perspective or agenda to learn from him and appreciate his fair and balanced historical perspective.

For anyone wanting to sort through the current debate in a scholarly way, Oden is the person to read. For anyone wanting to enliven their appreciation of the ancient African Christian faith, "How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind" is the book to devour.

Reviewer: Bob Kellemen, Ph.D., is the author of Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction, Spiritual Friends, and Soul Physicians.

Thomas C. Oden has done a great service for the church by writing "How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind." This book takes in great consideration Africa's contribution to Early Christian History. The book surveys various topics such as Christian intellectual history, the history of literature, Scripture exegesis, philosophy, physics, moral insight, discipline, etc. However, particular attention is given to Africa's contribution to Early Christianity. The book revisits what has been silent and untold in Church History for many centuries by both ecclesiological and secular historians. Oden writes with passion, conviction, yet with an irenic spirit. He states, "Christianity has a much longer history than its Western or European expressions. The profound ways African teachers have shaped world Christianity have never been adequately studied or acknowledged, either in the Global North or South" (p.10). The author posits some serious challenges to all educated Christians to reconsider the past. Early African History is nothing but ecclesiological history. The church cannot fully appreciate her rich history unless she is learned of her great African heritage. Although the book is directed toward Christians, yet non-Christians will profit from it significantly. Those who love the truth simply cannot ignore Oden's important work.

This is a wonderful African tale of a crocodile family and a hunterman. The story allows for children to really evaluate the way that man treats other beings and it teaches a lesson, of humility, graciousness, love and irony. Alot for a little book, huh? I love it and my son loves it!!!

The author is a superb artist. I have been collecting this African artist's one of kind ceramics for a number of years so I was excited to find that he wrote and illustrated a book. My seven year old son loves this book. His first grade teacher read the book in class when they were studying the folk stories of the world. The drawings in the book are worth the price of the book.

I loved this book! One day an author named Baba Wague Diakite came to our school to talk about his book "The Hunterman and the Crocodile." Each classroom got a copy of the book which I read. Soon I discovered that the story was going to be performed as part of the first school play of the year! Even though my class wasn't in it I got to meet Baba-Wague while working on the set since he lives right down the street from my school! And though I had to see it performed four times( because I was asked to do sound) I never got tired of hearing the same same story. I guess seeing "The Hunterman and the Crocodile" come to life gave the meaning of the story even more meaning. I would reccomend this book to anyone of any age.

This is a wonderful children's book. I love it!! We need more authentic authors and illustrators of folk tales from Africa. Where did these drawings come from? They're FABULOUS!!!

This is a wonderfully informative book for kids to learn about the wildlife of Madagascar. The text is easy to read & filled with descriptive info presented in an absorbing manner. Illustrations are provided on each page, and they are quite beautiful. I was pleasantly surprised to find Dr. Patricia Wright's name mentioned in this book, as her research work on lemurs is quite impressive & interesting!

The illustrations in this book are a delight, and add to the story that this author has put together about her work in the rainforests of Madagascar. She depicts both the positive and the challenging (sometimes not so rosy) aspects of living and working in a remote rainforest location. It would be a treat for any young reader you know. Nature loving adults (lemur fans in particular!) will also get a kick out of this one. The stories are heartwarming, and accurate(I have worked at the site that inspired this book).

Learn why Madagascar is famous for wildlife, see the lemurs through the eyes of a gifted naturalist. This is a fantastic combination of gorgeous art, realistic science, and hopeful conservation, by the author of many notable children's books on wildlife in Africa and Australia. Buy it for your children, your grandchildren and for yourself, it is a wonderful book.

This is a wonderful account of what it is like to be a primatologist, searching for the world's most beautiful and rare primates on the most exotic island of Madagascar. The text is engaging and the illustrations, also done by the author, are spectacular. This is a great book for grown ups who want to learn more about lemurs and Madagascar, or for children who want to do a book report. The book provides a hopeful message of conservation.

I had the pleasure of stumbling across this book recently and purchasing it through Amazon; it contains striking pictures of Islamic people & places captured by Peter Sanders, a famous English photographer. The associated descriptions and quotes from Islamic sources for each impeccably selected photograph greatly enhance the high production quality.

In this day and age where the electronic media is replete with images of death, destruction, and violence this book serves as a breath of fresh air, evoking the simplicity and beauty inherent in being near to one's Creator.

Mr. Sanders has a great gift to see the world through a beautiful lens, and to be able to share it with Muslims and non-Muslims alike. He has a well-crafted web site (which I'll fail to mention, respecting Amazon's review guidelines) that contains a mini-photo gallery - as well as info on his forthcoming books in the series which I hope to see available here soon, inshAllah (God willing).

If you're still debating whether to buy this book or not, stop and just click the button; trust me, you won't regret this purchase one bit! :)

The photography of Peter Sanders takes us into a new world of possibilties and challenges us to humanise the "other". A man who straddles East and West, Sanders captures the spiritual depth and universal message of the lived Muslim experience in a way few others have. Each photograph is the starting point for a narrative that ought to be written by those who view them. A blessed and marvelous work!

This book came as a gift from a dear friend who happens to be a Christian from Britain. His note read "I thought you might appreciate this lovely book." Lovely it is indeed. In many ways. A gift that is a challenge to repay.

Great photographers' through their works get us to see and comprehend the world surrounding us. A few among great photgraphers are able to translate to us through their images what we miss or are not able to see inside the people arround us.

Peter Sanders' work gives us glimpses of many insides. It is a look at many parts of the world of Islam. But as you go through the images and the words you see straight into the crevaces of Sanders' yearning. And from his inside you can see much of what it is to be a muslim. A word that means something along the line: one who is willfully submiting in peace, to the Peace.

In these days of many horrors this work is a gift for those who want to know. A gift for searching hearts.

Peter Sanders, one of the first non-Muslim's (Before he entered Islam) to take photo's of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, has put together an excellent pictorial journey through specific countries and places.

While the cover claims, "An Odyssey through the Muslim World", I would choose to call this collection a glimpse into the heart of Peter Sanders.

Mr. Sanders went through his extensive collection of photographs taken from throughout the World, and picked ones that he felt had something to say. He placed a quick commentary and some words of wisdom together with each photograph, and created this book.

Some of the pictures are breathtaking, and some are not so breathtaking. Some of the pictures become breathtaking after reading the commentary; Several pictures made me scratch my head in puzzlement. But after reading Mr. Sander's explanation, I found a new appreciation for the pictures.

I think the book can pass off as an interesting coffee table book. Some people though, will find the photo's and the commentary exceptionaly interesting, and find the book much more then an idle conversation passer.

Anybody interested in exceptional photography (In my limited appreciation of photography) from North Africa and the Middle East will find this book worth the cost.

Peter Sanders is an acquantance of Shaikh Hamza Yusuf; for some people, that might be enough reference to purchase the book.

What a wonderful job Carol Spindel has done describing her year in an Ivory Coast village. So many writers have written about Africa from the perspective of "oppressed" colonialists or uninvolved observers. Ms. Spindel allowed herself to learn from the villagers, to earn their trust and friendship, and to become a contributing part of their circle. In turn, she becomes an effective teacher to readers who hunger to understand.

This book in incredible. I read the book while in the Ivory Coast and can account for it's authenticity. In fact, I have read it over three times as it brings back the culture and the people that are so dear to my heart. Through her incredible writing skills the author brings Africa to life and provides a more complete accurate picture of West Africa. Excellent book, a definite must read.

This is an extraordinarily sensitive portrait of a West African village. The writer really made the effort to know and understand her environment, and it pays off in a warm and tender account of her experience that brings the people and the culture vividly to life. I read this book six years ago, in preparation for a trip to Africa, and the strong sense of place she evokes stays with me still.

Spindel's book humanizes and softens our often bleak view of Africa. The adventures of the American student of West African language and culture remind us that people are not so different as they seem. Furthermore, she reminds us that before European interference, there was gentility and natural wealth in African society.

Highly recommended for those readers who desire another perspective on the continent's people.

I first learned about Madam & Eve when taking the African Politics class at my school. When it came time to do term papers, I ended up exploring the issues in Madam & Eve (which meant I read all the books my prof had - and scared my roommates because I kept breaking into laughter). Madam & Eve is a wonderful comic, very smart and VERY funny. I recommend it to anyone who likes political commentary, as well as a good laugh.

The best of the first five years of South Africa's (and a few other places) favourite couple, Madam & Eve. This book provides a history, a deeper look into and of course, their greatest hits. I've got em all, mostly all signed by the authors and i'm told my collection is getting worth a few hundred dollars now! New edition out every year, get em while you can, you won't be disappointed.

All Madam and Eve comic books are great. They are full of comics about things happening in South Africa, toyi toyi, government, hijacking and problems between white and black people. These books are really funny, but you have to know certain things aboutt the country to understand some of the comics.

If you are a South African, former South African, or anyone, this book is a MUST HAVE! These are some of the best comics on Earth. This is the type of book that you pick up and read in one sitting, even though it is a comic book. This book is actually a wonderful collection of most of the comics past, and includes commentary of how the comic has changed and just tid bits of knowledge from the author. This is a must have for any Madam and Eve fans and for anyone who has never heard of Madam and Eve. You will love this book. I gaurantee it.

It seems that we hear a lot about the Jewish communities in North American and Europe, but we are less familiar with the Jewish Communities of Africa, the Middle East, Caucusus, Central Asia, India and China. These are some of the oldest Jewish communities in the world so they deserve attention.

Blady has compiled a history and study of these communities. First Blady offers some general information on the country and then focuses on the Jewish community in that country. The communities Blady focuses on are Yemen, Iran, Crimea, Kurdistan, Georgia, Afghanistan, Daghestan, Uzbekistan, India, China, Morocco, LIbya, Tunisia and Ethiopia.

I have bought many, many history books from Amazon.com and this is definitely one of the best and most interesting of them all. There are Jews and there are Jews. I grew up in Malaysia (where there are no Jews) thinking that the modern-day Jewish people is a Semitic Middle Eastern looking people since they all originated from Israel.

Then I thought that Jews were in fact all whites after finding out that many white American celebrities were Jewish. Later on, I discovered that there were actually two Jewish "peoples" : the Eastern European variety (i.e. Ashkenazim) and the Spanish/Mediteranean looking variety (i.e. Sephardim).

But after buying and reading this book, I now know that there is no such thing as a Jewish race (in the anthropological sense of the word). The concept of a "Jewish race" as perpetuated by Hitler and other anti-semities had truly fooled people like myself and others who grew up knowing little about Jews.

As Jews became dispersed by persecution and massacres they brought along Judaism with them to almost every corner of the known world. Not all went to Europe to become the ancestors of the Ashkenazim and Sephardim. Many settled in North Africa, the Middle East and Persia, Africa (i.e. Ethiopia)...and even travelled as far as India and China. In all these places, these Jews accepted proselytes/converts and married local women, who added their genetic material (and customs) into those isolated Jewish communities ......so much so that these Chinese, Indian, Ethiopian, Persian, Afghan, Kurdish, Tat, Yemeni, Beber, Bukharan and Georgian Jews become physically indistinguishable from their Gentile neighbours and had very similar customs. In all these places, as the Gentiles became converts to Judaism, they and their descendants became an integral part of the Jewish people. Similaly, the authors inform that a great many Jews in North Africa, Persia, Afghanistan, Kurdistan and Yemen after the Islamic conquests converted to Islam (sometimes by force). No doubt they become absorbed by and contributed their genes to the aforesaid Muslim communities/peoples.

Also, I thought that were only two Jewish kingdoms in history (i.e. Israel and Judah from the Bible). In fact, when Judaism spread with the Jewish dispersion, a number of peoples and kingdoms embraced Judaism. Jewish kingoms in fact existed at one point in time from Berber North Africa in the West to Kurdistan and Western India in the East; and from Khazaria (modern day Russia/Ukraine) in the North to Yemen and Ethiopia in the South. Most of these kingdoms were small except for the Khazar Empire.

The authors definitely deserve more than 5 stars for their research and the compilation of these facts into this truly intriguing book.

This is an excellent book on the 17 "Oriental" Jewish communities in Asia and Africa, namely those of Kurdistan, Crimea, Georgia, Daghestan, Bukhara, Afghanistan, China, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Ethiopia as well as the two communities each in India, Yemen and Persia. As this book is confined only to exotic communities, the larger 'mainstream' and better-known Jewish communities such as the Ashkenazim, Sephardim, Greek-speaking Romaniotes and even the Mizrachim are outside the purview of this book. The terms 'Sephardim' and 'Mizrachim' in this book are used in a technical sense and as such refer only to the Ladino-speaking Jews of Spanish origin and the Arabic speaking Jews of Iraq and Egypt respectively.

The author describes in great detail the physical appearance, customs, religious practices, social status, common occupations of the members of each Jewish community as well as the relationship with and the treatment by their gentile neighbours. The Jews of these exotic communities are very similar in physical appearance, cuisine, lifestyle, customs, and even in language (which is normally a variant of the local language mixed with Hebrew words) with the indigenous peoples who they live among, which challenges the concept of Jews as a race. For example, the Jews of Kaifeng, Malabaris and Beta Israel are physically indistinguishable from the Chinese, Indians and Ethiopians respectively. Even the Krimchaks of Crimea are Caucasians with Mongoloid features not unlike their Crimean Tatar neighbours. This shows that intermarriages between Jews and the locals as well as conversions to Judaism must have been substantial at one point.

Eleven of the Seventeen Jewish communities live in a Muslim milieu. Unlike most books written by Western apologists of Islam, this book describes the persecution and decimation of the Jews by their Muslim rulers/conquerors. On the eve of the Muslim conquests, the Jews must have formed a very substantial part of the population in North Africa and West Asia. In Persia for example, they once numbered in the millions. Jewish Berber tribes such as the Jerava Berbers under El Kahina in Morrocco and the Ureshfani under Fanana in Libya played a prominent role in fighting the Muslim invaders. After the conquests, thousands of Jews were killed and even more escaped annihilation by embracing Islam. This book briefly mentions that many of the ancestors of the Muslim Pathans (the main ethnic element of the Taliban), Tats, Kurds (who played a prominent role in the 1895 and 1915 Turkish-orchestrated Armenian massacres), Yemenis (Osama bin Laden and a fair few of the Al-Qaeda members are of Yemeni origin) and the various Berber groups in North Africa (many of them are now supporters of Islamic fundamentalist movements) were of the Jewish faith.

The Jewish remnants who remained in the Islamic lands during the medieval period were subjected to all kinds of indignities, abuses and not to mention institutionalized contempt. Many a times they were on the brink of extinction. Under Islam, Jews were made to do the most humiliating and repugnant tasks in society. A Jew was not allowed to defend himself when attacked by Muslims and almost all Muslims who murdered Jews went unpunished. The Jew was never out in the street with his wife because he could not intervene on her behalf if she was assaulted. During times of religious violence, everything a Jew owns is snatched from him, his children taken away and he himself would be killed or auctioned off. Sometimes, the Jews were lucky. They were given the choice of converting to Islam and many did while secretly practicing Judaism. The numbers of forced converts to Islam must have been considerable, as there were at least 20,000 Meshedi New Muslims [cum]Crypto-Jews (whose ancestors "converted" generations ago) of Iran who openly returned to the Jewish faith in more recent years after fleeing Iran.

Islamic history is revisionist and subjected to propaganda. On one hand Islam institutionalizes the discrimination of Christians and Jews for rejecting Muhamad as a prophet of God but on the other hand claimed that they were never persecuted. It is like the anti-Semitic Neo-Nazis who say "did 6 million Jews really died" whilst working towards the destruction of the Jewish people. I hope that there would be more such books which give a fair and objective account of the history of the Jews living under Islam. More often than not, Western writers while emphasizing the expulsion of the Sephardim from Spain and the massacres perpetrated by the Crusaders in medieval Germany and the Cossacks in Ukraine, give a distorted account of how Jews lived happily under Islam. What is intentionally concealed is the fact that the religion in which the great Spanish-Jewish philosopher, Maimonides, was compelled to convert to was Islam and not Christianity and that Sabbetai Zevi (the "Jewish Messiah"), a Sephardim in the Ottoman Empire was forced to accept Islam on the pain of death and commissioned to evangelize the Jews for Islam.

This book is a must buy for all those who are interested not only in the history of the Jewish diaspora but also if they are interested in exotic cultures in hidden corners of the world.

As a Jew of Maghrebi (North-West African) and Andulusi descent, many aspects of the contents of this book do not come as a surprise. Especially since I have been in Israel and Ethiopia and could myself be classified as an exotic Jew. Ken Blady's book goes into a great amount detail about the various communities, from many different perspectives. This is the type of book that needs to be taught in every Yeshiva because there are many Jews, even from the regions mentioned in the book, who don't know the history of the Jewish communities from North Africa, East Africa, Yemen, Persia, India, China, etc. I have had this book for several years, and it continues to be a good source of information.

What is enlightening about the book is that many of the stories in out about these communities are being lost in the sands of time, because of the changing of dynamics of the Jewish world, now that there is a state of Israel. I would recommend this book to everyone who has an interest in Jewish history. It is especially important because several of the communities in the book i.e. the Persian/Babylonian/Yemeni/Maghrebi Jewish communities are the oldest Jewish communities outside of the land of Israel.