Africa Books

In Jesus of Africa, Diane Stinton seeks to capture images of Jesus in Africa according to images and words used by Africans. In doing so, she hopes to use the voices of Africans to support and critique the images brought forth and to evaluate their appropriateness for deepening the Christian faith in the African context. One important note is that in her research, Stinton focuses on the missional churches as opposed to indigenous-founded churches. Stinton carries out her research through literature review and extensive field research (interviews and focus groups) in Kenya, Ghana and Uganda in the years 1998 and 1999. Stinton's presentation of her findings is academic, appropriate for theologians, professors, students or missionaries.

Jesus Of Africa: Voices Of Contemproary African Christology reviews both the theologies of French and English-speaking African scholars and clergy, and also relates how African lay people regard Jesus Christ. Thoughtfully written for scholars, students, and mission professionals especially, Jesus Of Africa is a unique theological work covering the origins and modern-day revelance of Christian teachings in Africa, as well as models of contemporary African Christologies including Jesus as Life-Giver, Mediator, Loved One, and Leader. An in-depth evaluation that draws directly upon the testimony, faith, and experiences of people living in Africa today.

In this excellent book you find courfol and spectacular photographics from a varied country with a great amount of natural beauty.
Combined with the insightful text reading this book really inspire you tonce visit the magic country of Ethiopia

This is a fantastic book...great pictures, informative cultural and historical information and very readable--a delight for the armchair traveler as well as the serious scholar who may be planning a trip to that region or has an interest in learning more about the region for whatever reason.

This entertaining read is a follow up to the equally wonderful Safari. The reader follows Reggie the bear, as he travels through Egypt with his owner. The handwritten diary/scrapbook account is accompanied by vivid illustrations in the true book art fashion. Anyone who truly appreciates beauty and art will thouroughly enjoy this book.

What a fun book! I was charmed by Reggie the bear's personality in "Safari: My Trip to Africa," his first book, and now I'm thoroughly endeared. Favorite moments: Reggie imagining himself as one of King Tut's treasures, forever gilded in gold ("Although the possibility of one day being loved to death does cross our minds from time to time," he notes, "bears, for the most part, give little thought to the idea of an 'afterlife.'"); his observations on the Rosetta Stone ("...arguably the single most important thank-you note ever written...."); and his tips on haggling at a Cairo bazaar (including, "Never put your bear up for trade--Not even in jest!"). Throughout the book, Reggie's grumbly, informative, teddy-bear's perspective sheds new light on the fascinating sights, history, and animals of Egypt. Like the movie "Toy Story," the beautiful visuals will delight young children and the words will entertain teens and adults.

I have been a professional hunter since 1994 and having worked and lived in countries like Botswana, Tanzania, Republic of the Congo, and Mozambique and having been in Bell's environment, albeit many many years later, his stories and his accounts are absolutely marvelous and it depicts an Africa that once was. His innocent comments on the natives and the abundance of wildlife is an absolute pleasure. Even more delightful, is his casual way of describing how you should go about brain shooting five bull elephant within a matter of seconds...a must for all serious hunters.

I found this book to be well written, informative, and entertaining. Written in the first person, the author makes no attempt to be the hero of the story-line. It is a matter of fact approach to the real life adventures of a man who truly had "Been there, Done that" in the wilds of Africa. The author relates not only the adventures of safari, but also the mundane, and sometimes dangerous aspects of it as well. His somewhat controversial recommendations of suitable calibers for elephant hunting are backed up by hundreds of real life experiences, with sound logic, as opposed to theoretical arm-chair ballistics. I didn't want to put the book down until I had finished it.

A warm multicultural book, that gives an enlightining look at the traditional hand weaving of the Kente Cloth. The book is an exciting celebration of culture by the Ashante people of Ghana and the Ewe of Ghana and Togo. The steady rhythum of rhyming text along with its bright and colorful illustrations are sure to attract the attention of young readers. As an educator I would use this book to introduce colors and weaving activities to young children. The use of rhyme is a great springboard for strenghthening students phonemic awarness. I would give this book 5 stars.

It is easy to read with very beautiful colors. I have three Ewe students from Togo and am hard pressed to find books to reflect their culture. I'm sure that the Ewe in Ghana and Togo are related and my students will be able see some of their culture reflected in the book. Thanks Deborah!

My mom and brother both climbed Mt. Killimanjaro in Sept. 2001. And as a birthday gift to my mom I got her this book. I to have enjoyed looking at the pictuers and also I was in Africa as well but I only have seen the mountain through my mom's and brother's photos.
If you ever have a chance go and climb the moutain it will make you a different person.

What a gorgeous book! The photos and descriptions do a little justice to the real thing, making it much easier to try to explain to others the mulititude of ecosystems along the trail to the summit (brrrr!). Highly recommended!

This book examines the 1895 trip of Batswana Chiefs Khama, Sebele and Bathoen to London to negotiate a deal with Minister of Colonial Affairs Joe Chamberlain that would secure their land against seizure attempts by Cecil Rhodes. It relies primarily on archival sources including correspondence, diaries, papers and newspaper clippings and, to a lesser degree, on oral histories. Once the chiefs arrive in London, the book is organized by day and the author provides copious information about that day whether it is significant or simply a matter of who stayed in bed or who purchased souvenirs. At times, it seems that the main narrative will be overwhelmed by minutiae. Yet, Parsons does a brilliant job of showing how the chiefs and London Missionary Society administrator Willoughby used the temperance issue and the Non-Conformist sensibility in general to build a more sympathetic case for their position. He also demonstrates well how the journalism of the times seemed to drive much of the context and sometimes the actual negotiations.

This book will be a fascinating read for anyone interested in turn-of-the-century Southern Africa or for that matter Britain due to the many excerpts from archival sources. Parson's style is quite accessible to the lay-reader with little previous background in the subject though I would recommend he or she read the last chapter first for a framework. It is particularly important for scholars of the region and of Botswana. It addresses one of the central controversies of Botswana history, i.e., whether Botswana's non-absorption into Rhodesia was the result of the chiefs' visit or the failed Jameson raid. (Parson's comes down in favor of the former.) More generally, it is a revealing look at the agency of African colonial elites.

This book does an excellent job of telling the tale of the visit of three great African kings to England in the late 1890s. Provides an accurate portrayal of King Khama and his interaction with Joe Chamberlain and Cecil Rhodes. An excellent, factual, entertaining story of successful African resistance.

I would most likely want to buy this book if it had some scholarly backing. It looks to have some rather exciting information within it, but since I find no scholar reviewing it, I am held back for the present time. As a scholar myself dealing with Ancient Nubia/Kush, I find this subject relative to my interests.

Well, you're not much of a scholar of this subject if you haven't heard of Laszlo Torok. He doesn't need scholarly backing, he IS scholarly backing.

This is an excellent book to read to children at bedtime or during storytime at school or church. It's a short, easy read and it's full of excellent information about the history and culture of Western Africa. Don't be fooled by the title. This book has nothing to do with black magic; and everything to do with using ones own imagination. The storyline is rooted in reality as the main character enjoys his "travels" to other places; however he always wants to return home to the people he loves. The beautiful photographs in this book make it a great coffee table book as well. I encourage you to introduce the children in your family or neighborhood to Kofi and His Magic.

This book provides readers of all ages with a wonderful look into the life of Kofi, a "magician" from Bonwire. The children I have shared it with love it, and Kofi's magic serves as a reminder for all of us of the power of imagination. The photographs are rich, and the text is soothing. Look no further for a book that will put you in the mood to daydream.

Sidney Allinson's books are surprises. They can start off unassumingly and build up to rip snorting sagas of ceaseless adventure. In his finest work yet, Allinson doesn't even start off slowly. Kruger's Gold grips the reader at once and the pace never slows. As I read this action tale of the struggle a century ago between South Africa's Boers, and England and her "colonials," I was repeatedly struck with the idea this would be and should be a wonderful movie. Allinson's experience as a television producer may have given him that hot-shot cameraman's "eye" or it could simply be that any good yarn so stirringly told lends itself to theatre in the best sense.

On these pages, a segment of history that was soon obscured by two ensuing, bloodier world wars leaps to life. It is really the twilight of an era, with Europeans jostling for power and position and, in this case in particular, South African gold. Allinson fills in the historical perspective while following a Canadian soldier and his colonial troops who, late in the war, have been assigned to find the legendary government cache of gold that departing Prime Minister Paul Kruger was said to have stashed before leaving in 1900 for virtual exile in Europe.

Allinson writes sympathetically of the brilliant Boer commandos fighting to retain their homeland and their way of life. His story is not overly revisionist: the Boers have seized this land from the native tribes, after all, and even the most principled among them want to keep the blacks and "coloureds" in their place, lest their vast numbers overwhelm the white settlers. Even through a more politically correct prism, we must admire the self reliance of these men whose surprise tactics and talented marksmanship enabled them to strike at the enemy, melt away into the bush, and return to attack another day. Many if not most of the men have lost wives and children to the war; yet, while they can be ruthless, they treat surrendered prisoners with a decency and respect that arouses a sense of nostalgia in the reader. Their English counterparts do as well with their own prisoners, for the most part.

The story of the concentration camps where stranded Boer families and prisoners were placed to wait out the war is not as happy a one. Allinson paints a grim picture of these horrors where women and children and some men languished in filthy conditions with poor diets and disease and death dogging every step. A few selfless medical workers do their best, but there are no facilities and their supplies are woefully inadequate. The camps were not England's finest legacy to the history texts.

The romances in the book provide a lusty and pleasing counterpoint. Even the horses get to play a heart-warming role. And throughout the book, Allinson has peppered the story with fascinating historical minutiae, such as the Boer heroine not being allowed to play ragtime music, then the rage, because it was produced by black performers.

Read this book. It is a treat.

KRUGER'S GOLD: A GRIPPING, FAST-MOVING NOVEL SET IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN BATTLEFIELD OF ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO

In 1902, as in 2001, guerrilla fighters were challenging the might of the pre-eminent world power. Then it was the Dutch settlers called Boers fighting Great Britain for possession of South Africa. Today, Islamic extremists attack the U.S. and its allies anywhere and everywhere. The lesson from both: small forces are potent.

This is not a dry military history book, nor does the reader miss anything if, like this reviewer, he or she comes to it more or less ignorant of the Anglo-Boer War. The author, Sidney Allinson, has written the sort of gripping, fast-moving novel that keeps you turning pages long after bedtime. The characters and their loves and hatreds, their ideals and weaknesses, failures and triumphs, would have provided the human material for a thoroughly satisfying novel even if presented in an imagined setting.

The hero is a Canadian serving with the British Army, Lieutenant Harry Lanyard. Given the choice between disgrace before a court martial and leading a particularly hazardous mission, Lanyard takes the latter. With a rag-tag troop of Colonial mounted infantry, Lanyard is ordered to recover a king's ransom in stolen gold bullion - enough money to keep the Boers fighting for goodness knows how many more years. This gold had been looted by the Boer President, Paul Kruger, hence the book's title.

And hence also, the skilful merging of the fictional characters in the foreground of the story with the meticulously researched historical events that provide the backdrop. We are introduced to the tough Boer burgher fighters who adopted the title "Commando", to be handed down through the generations as the hallmark of military excellence. We discover to our chagrin that the war also fathered the concentration camp, a term synonymous with death. Although devised initially by the British as shelter for destitute families whose homes had been torched by one side or the other in this increasingly cruel and desperate campaign, disgraceful mismanagement reduced these camps to death traps.

Meanwhile the action continues: ambush, deception, espionage, mutiny, pitched battles and encounters with snipers - and all the time a forbidden romance struggling to survive across the invisible line separating friend from foe. Lieutenant Lanyard would be a real asset in today's Special Forces, but is this enough to gain his two objectives, Kruger's Gold, and the love of his life, Beth?

Advance copies of this book have stirred great interest among students of the period, some of whom have been brought up on "official" versions of events that omit what is unpalatable about your own side. The truth is that war brings out the best and the worst in mankind and there never was an unblemished battle record. Sidney Allinson pays his respects to Boers, Brits, and Colonials, and avoids any temptation to portray the fighting in terms of good guys and bad. To assist the keen researcher, the author includes a Glossary, Casualty Statistics, and Bibliography.

The book is presented in a handsome jacket carrying a contemporary action painting showing the Royal Canadian Dragoons in close-quarter fighting against the Boers.

Maurice Tugwell, retired British Army Brigadier, Military Analyst, and Author of Herzl Street (Xlibris, 1999)