Book Description

In Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight, Alexandra Fuller remembers her African childhood with candor and sensitivity. Though it is a diary of an unruly life in an often inhospitable place, it is suffused with Fuller’s endearing ability to find laughter, even when there is little to celebrate. Fuller’s debut is unsentimental and unflinching but always captivating. In wry and sometimes hilarious prose, she stares down disaster and looks back with rage and love at the life of an extraordinary family in an extraordinary time. ... Read more

Reviews (106)

Brilliant, funny insight into post-colonial Africa
What makes this book worth reading -- aside from a captivating style and humorous content -- is precisely what separates it from other excellent books about similar subject matter (Godwin's Mukiwa, Dangarembga's Nervous Conditions): the fact that Fuller makes no attempt to analyze, excuse, or explain the racism and insanity of her family history. Rather than rationalizing her parents' racist attitudes, Fuller chooses instead to simply describe in her wry, matter-of-fact voice precisely how the end of the colonial era was experienced by people implicated in it. She does not try to gloss her childhood experiences with politically correct hindsight, and in so doing thrusts the reader into the desperation and the joy of rural African life in the last three decades. Bobo's mother is one of the most memorable and remarkable personalities I've encountered in African literature. The book is worth reading entirely for its hysterical concluding scenes. Fuller's characters are real and human, in all their extraordinary bizarreness!

Having spent many an hour, like Bobo Fuller, poking grass into ant-lion holes in the hot dusty veld, this moving story captivated me and painted a moving portrait of people fighting the cruelty of the African landscape. Myth and reality are intertwined in a witty and beautiful story. Everyone should read this book!

A different perspective
It was interesting to read a book about life in Africa, from the perspective of a white woman brought up in a family who clung fiercely to the notion of white supremacy with every last bit of their strength. I disagree with a previous reviewer, however, who seemed to excuse the racism of the Fuller parents by implying that the historic and political situation they were in "made" them that way. Racism is racism, no matter what the circumstance.

Despite the attitudes of the Fuller parents, their daughter Bobo has documented a well-written account of their life in various African countries, and provides vivid details about the smells, sights, and emotions that the continent evokes for her. Her writing really gives the reader a sense of both the incredible harshness and danger(poisonous snakes, itchy vegetation, scary militaristic governments, etc) of Africa, but also its gentleness and great beauty.

Although I think Alexandra Fuller writes very well, and I appreciate her honest writing about her parents' behavior and attitudes, I couldn't warm to the family. Despite their numerous trajedies and troubles, I found it difficult to feel sympathetic. In contrast, when I read "The Flame Trees of Thika", another memoir of an African childhood by another white woman, Elspeth Huxley, I rooted for her colonial, turn-of-the-century, white-is-right parents, Robin and Tilly, through all their successes and setbacks. They held the same attitude of racial superiority as the Fullers, yet there is something intrinsically more likeable about how they handled themselves on a continent where they were the minority race, political upheaval or no. After reading Fuller's memoir, it was a relief to pick up "Nervous Conditions" by black female Zimbabwean Tsitsi Dangarembga, and read about three-dimensional black Africans. Her book is set in 1960s Rhodesia, for those interested (A. Fuller recommends it herself in the Afterword section of her memoir). Despite my personal reaction to this book, I recommend it to anyone interested in African writing, because I think that Alexandra Fuller's perspective is just as important and valid as that of any other African writer.

Bravo
A wonderful insight into the mind of a child and a precise memoir of life itself. Life isn't straightforward and simple, yet we survive, thrive and love, even in the most difficult situations. Ms. Fuller: You said it all and you said it well.

Just meanders . . .
I read this book for my book club. It just seemed to meander through her childhood, no real plot or climax. Yes, this girl definitely had a different type of childhood, but what makes it that interesting or significant?????

A very different childhood
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller is an extraordinary memoir of growing up white in war ravaged Africa. Alexandra, called Bobo by her family, was born in 1969 in England. Her parents moved the family to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1972. Always suffering from "bad, bad luck", which included losing three children, the family moves from farm to farm within Rhodesia and Malawi.

Fuller's writing style is rich, lyrical and many times, funny. I could picture the land, feel the heat and smell the smoking fish that embodies the Africa she describes. I found myself laughing even as I was shaking my head in disbelief at some of the choices her parents made. Bobo's mother, Nicola Fuller, is racist, resilient, strong and mad as a hatter. In other words, she's the most memorable character in the book.

Of course, to Fuller all of this stress and strife was, while not exactly normal, expected. She was a child, after all, and it's all she'd ever known. As I was reading, I couldn't help but think that American kids really have no idea how hard their life could be.

Overall a captivating read. It left me reminiscing about my childhood and reflecting on how simple and uncomplicated (read boring) it was. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Thomas Wolfe's trusted axiom about not being able to go home again gets a compelling spin through the African veldt in Alexandra Fuller's Scribbling the Cat: Travels with an African Soldier. Fuller (Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight : An African Childhood) journeys through modern Zambia, to battlefields in Zimbabwe and Mozambique with the scarred veteran of the Rhodesian Wars she identifies only as "K." Intrigued by the mysterious neighbor of her parent's Zambian fish farm and further enticed by her father's warning that "curiosity scribbled the cat" ("scribbling" is Afrikaans slang for "killing"), Fuller embarks on a journey that covers as much cratered psychic landscape as it does African bush country. Though she and "K" are both African by family roots rather than blood, she quickly discovers that 30 years of civil war have scarred them--and the indigenous peoples they encounter--in markedly different ways. "K" is a figure of monumental tragedy, a decent man torn by war-fueled rage, a failed marriage, and painful memories of an only son lost to tropical disease. His adopted Christianity offers him only partial absolution, and Fuller details his gut-wrenching confessions of quarter-century old atrocities with compassion and rare insight. Her prose liberally salted with a rich, melange of Afrikaans and local Shona slang, Fuller nonetheless struggles with a narrative whose turns are often unexpected, yet driven by humanity. There's a clear sense that the author's fitful journey into the past with "K" has opened as many wounds as it has healed, and spawned more questions than it has answered. It's that discomfort and frustration that often reinforces the honesty of her prose--and reinforces Thomas Wolfe's adage yet again. --Jerry McCulley ... Read more

Reviews (9)

This painful book is important reading
I don't know what to say; rather, I have too much to say. I didn't grow up in a godforsaken war zone as Fuller did in Africa but I was neck-deep and more in the colonial environment of Panama. This book cut me to the quick. Even without my background, however, the book is a special compilation of pages that very much need to be read. It's an unusual and amazing book; a reminder of how humanity stretches and can be brought to the edge of redemption before it knows it's not quite human any more. This book will be on my end-of-year Best Books list, no question. Even though I still am flumoxed by its contents. Which, I think was the writer's point. In which case, she done just fine.

Perhaps not a book so much about Africa or War, but People.
I wasn't sure what to expect when I picked this book up, but was looking for a change of pace. Unlike most of the readers here, I haven't actually read the other book of hers. It was simply something different.

So the book starts off rather charming. People wandering around Africa (Zambia, I suppose) and just describing the absurdity of the condition. Describing the landscape and the people. I enjoyed that. A refreshing change.

As it continues, we actually begin to notice ... what aren't really flaws in the Author's character so much as, well, as the Amazon reviewer put it, craters. You start to see that both the people (K and the Author) are fairly scarred and unhappy people.

This goes on, and the unhappiness really increases substantially. I found the book to have gone from charming and lighthearted to depressing and rather bleak. This, perhaps intentionally, seems to coincide with the landscape. We start off in Zambia at the downright comical parents' fish farm, and continue to a somewhat bleaker K's home, and then back to the States, thoroughly unhappy and indeed missing everything in Africa, and then it gets really unpleasant -- lost in the African outback, being chased by a pet Lion (!), and so on.

So while it might be hard to finish, as the change is so drastic (although mercifully slow), like other art, it is sometimes painful, and we as readers are compelled to do so.

As another reviewer mentioned, there just isn't a hollywood ending. It ends. There isn't anything tied up or completed, the threads of the book remain, sadly, frayed. That, however, I suppose, is the Author's point.

I'd been trying to decide between 3 and 4 stars for the book, and erred on the side of 4. I'd probably read it again, but I'd make sure to do it at a time when I wasn't looking for anything pleasant or uplifting.

Readers will be both pleased & disappointed
Readers of Fuller's first book, Don't Lets Go..., will likely be both pleased and disappointed with Scribbling The Cat. Fuller has lost none of the poetic earthiness and honesty that makes her work so delicious. Sadly, the story line seems somewhat lacking in substance, given the complexity and gravity of the war. Readers are provided with a only a vague itinerary (Mozambique battlefields) and only the briefest thumbnail sketch of the conflicts' major events. Also missing is the charm of Fuller's own innocence. Unlike her first book, birth and fate are not why she finds herself in precarious circumstances. Rather, it's her own questionable judgment and admitted desire to push the envelope. Nevertheless, the characters are memorable, and once again Fuller brings to life the land in all its sensory glory.

The book reads like a gifted-but-underachieving student's school report. As if she attempted to overcome a dearth of solid research by relying heavily on descriptive talent...B+

no pretty bows
This is another amazing book by Fuller. Buy it. Read it. Soak up all of its unflinching honesty. What a wonderful and refreshing thing that there are no Hollywood endings in this book, or pretty bows that tie everything up all nicely. It's raw and so completely human. And so beautifully written.
Stunning.

Alexandra the Great
What is most striking about a book that contains multitudes of gob smacking passages is Alexandra (Bobo) Fullers excruciating honesty. At every turn in this story of her return to Zimbabwe there is an opportunity for an easier and more palatable course. Bo's hard drinking hellfire willed and most definitely bigoted mother is shown in all of her grace and courage, rather than an easy stereotype of colonialism, which is an almost impossible balance to achieve with one's own parent. Ultimately Bo's decision to enter her own Heart of Darkness with K., a brutal, broken and heartbreaking former soldier of the wars for Independance makes sense if there was no other way to heal the damage and accept the beauty that being from Africa has left her with. The conditions of their travel (hellish heat, corrupt officials and the Furies that lurk at every watering hole and dune) and K.'s sudden outbursts, both intensely savage and tender by turns would make a woman less dedicated to finding the truth at whatever costs catch the first plane out of Africa. For an understanding of what war, any war, actually costs this book is unparalleled. I heard the author speak here in Wyoming recently and I can't stop thinking about what she said about her attempt to heal herself, to make whole what had been broken in herself and in K. She said that what they had done instead was to wrench those wounds open and dig their hands deep inside, gripping the most sensitive, raw depths of each others shame and hurt. By laying open these wounds and exposing their flaws without flinching or turning away they were both given a greater gift. I shrink to say that the result was acceptance or something easy. There isn't anything easy about this book but it is searingly honest and it also bears mentioning really funny in a sort of death may come soon why not crack a joke here, what have I got to lose way. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Peter Godwin grew up in Rhodesia during the end of white rule. While his Rhodesians Never Die is a historical account of that time, Mukiwa is a more personal narrative--a testament to Africa and a memoir as seen through the eyes of a child becoming a young man amidst civil war. Spanning 1964-1982, from when Godwin was a boy of six in Rhodesia to when he returned to Zimbabwe as a journalist covering the bloody transition back to black rule, Godwin personalizes a difficult era in South African history with clarity, intelligence, humor, empathy, and sharp prose. ... Read more

Reviews (34)

A must read for all those interested in Southern Africa!!
I was born in and lived in Rhodesia until the age of 16. I left the country in 1976, and left my heart there. Peter Godwin's recalling his childhood days and high school days could be my own story. After that, we have only one thing in common, an undying love for the land and the people. I have never been back. This book has brought me one step closer to the 'pilgrimage' that I hope to make some day. Mukiwa allowed me to stretch all my emotions. I laughed at all the familiar stories, I pondered the many things I never understood, I cryed with the people of Rhodesia, I was angered at events that should never have happened and finally, I began to see all a little clearer. Read this book and learn. God bless Zimbabwe

Godwin Rocks!
Wow! As a reader from Zimbabwe myself, I found Mukiwa one of the most familiar books I've ever read. In the space of 40 years, much has changed in my beloved country, yet much has not. St. Georges is a very old school which still stands today. When in gameparks and even in rural parts of the country, one often has to face the dangers listed by Godwin, from Bilharzia to crocodiles.

I have always wanted a book to give to my foreign friends and relatives, relating a true impression of Africa, and I'd recommend this book in a heartbeat. It gives such vivid impressions of life in Africa, I can hardly do them justice - you'll just have to read the book yourself. The only problem with the book is that it portrays much of the country as "mud-hut" territory, which it is not. The cities of Zimbabwe remain fairly up-to-date, with the ability of experiencing the wild side of the former Rhodesia. I don't recall if the book mentions it, but Peter Godwin's younger sister, Georgina, is a popular radio dj! Many facts such as this are so vividly familiar to my mind, that this book spelled out a great panoramic view of my country, and to anyone vaguely interested in Zimbabwe (formerly known as Southern Rhodesia), I strongly recommend this book - the parallels are amazingly accurate.

Great read! Sets context for Zimbabwe's current problems!
This book is a great read whether or not you have any particular interest in Zimbabwe. The author's story is inherently interesting and well told. If you are interested in Zimbabwe, however, this book is priceless. It is the best of several books I have read about Zimbabwe. My wife, whose interest in Zimbabwe is much less strong than my own, also read this book and was equally enthralled with it.

close to home
For anyone who spent some of their formative years in Africa this is a truly magical book - the almost osmotic relationship with your nanny, the african words long forgotten and the mood of the times was brought back to life for me in 3d Technicolour and Dolby stereo sound. If nothing else buy this book to remember the appalling terror of the tokalosh....

TFB

Brings back great memories
It is like reliving my childhood again. A truly great read. ... Read more

Book Description

How could Zimbabwe, once hailed as an African success story, descend into such madness?The Battle For Zimbabwe is based on interviews with hundreds of Zimbabweans and takes readers behind the scenes of government and opposition politics, the farm invasions, the presidential elections, the torture and murder of thousands of people, and the unjust enrichment of the ruling elite.

What's really going on in Zimbabwe?To fully understand, readers would need direct experience with events on the ground, and understanding of the country and its history and access to the opinions of the government, the opposition, and ordinary Zimbabweans.Seasoned journalist Geoff Hill provides readers with all this and more, in The Battle For Zimbabwe, an insightful, comprehensive and fascinating account of this extraordinary.

A lively narrative of Zimbabwe's history paves the way for understanding the present situation in a nation once hailed as an African success story.In a blow-by-blow report on events of the recent years, the author takes readers behind the scenes in the governing ZANU-PF party, the land invasions, the rigged presidential elections, the massacre of thousands of Zimbabweans and the ruling elite which has enriched itself at the expense of its suffering people.

In interviews with ordinary citizens of Zimbabwe, ZANU-PF members, opposition supporters, torture victims and exiles, a picture emerges of a country torn apart by its violent past, its oppressed present and its uncertain future.

While politicians in Africa, Washington and London debate a political solution to the problems of Zimbabwe, its people face poverty, starvation and hardship.Dissenters are tortured, imprisoned or forced to flee for their lives; more than 3 million Zimbabweans are living in exile.

Yet shining through the gripping, often harrowing narrative, is the Zimbabwean people's abiding love for their beautiful but tormented land.In the deadly battle for the future, it is their story that is told here.

Thoroughly researched and boldly written, The Battle For Zimbabwe is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand one of the world's great modern tragedies...and what it will take to rebuild the nation. ... Read more

Amazon.com

In 1980, Zimbabwe was the great hope of Africa, a place where blacks were supposed to realize their postcolonial destinies under the enlightened leadership of Robert Mugabe. But now the country formerly known as Rhodesia is an international basket case with a wrecked economy and a dim future. In this disturbing book by Martin Meredith, a British journalist with extensive experience in southern Africa, Mugabe transforms into a villain. "Year by year, he acquired ever greater power, ruling the country through a vast system of patronage, favoring loyal aides and cronies with government positions and contracts and ignoring the spreading blight of corruption," writes Meredith. "Power for Mugabe was not a means to an end, but the end itself." His reign has been so wretched, in fact, that some of the most sympathetic people in Our Votes, Our Guns are the white farmers who once supported apartheid-style rule but decided not to flee when Mugabe came to power. They were promised multiracial harmony; what they got instead was a racist dictator who thought nothing of using violence against them. Admirers of Philip Gourevitch--or, indeed, anyone with an interest in African politics--will appreciate Meredith's depressing but important story. --John Miller ... Read more

Reviews (17)

A moving portrayal of the lies of Mugabe
When Mugabe and his band of guerrilla emerged from the jungle in 1980 and took the reigns of power in Zimbabwe(at that time RHodesia) the wordl breathed a sigh of relief. For a decade the white minority government of Ian Smith had been fighting a losing struggle against Mugabes Marxists. The Rhodesian government had 'declared independence' from England in order to continue the war which England had encouraged the government to negotiate a ceasefire and allow for a majority government.

We all thought that Zimbabwe would now have equal rights for all. This book details what happaned and the horror that Mugabes country has become. Mugabe promised land reform, what he meant was that he would take every inch of white land and reward it to his 'boys'. His followers grabbed the white land and then they did nothing with it and soon a country that had been exporting grain and food was on the brink of national starvation. Mugabe could have devided the land fairly and could have given it to the blacks who had farmed it for years under white rule but instead he gave it to his corrupt 'boys' and ruined the economy.

Next Mugabe became a dictator. He had fought against what he called white dictatorship but he then became a dictator himself, like all communists who promise freedom but only bring slavery to their nations, Mugabe quickly outlawed freedom of the press and civil rights and imprisoned those that spoke against him.

THis wonderful book written by a man who was born in Rhodesia tells the story of idealism gone awry. Her majestys government in England that had orginally called for a settlement now has snactions on Mugabe and opposes him at every turn because England knows the Mugabe is a viscous dictator worse then the white government he replaced. The people are Zimbabwe are starving. They were better off under Smith when at least they had some freedoms and food. Now the country is a disaster and this book is one of the few to expose the truth. A riveting tale, a must read for africa buffs. A balanced account that reveals the suffering of average africans.

A Racist State Exposed
At last, a novel which exposes the evil, racist practices of Robert Mugabe's dictatorship. After all the lies and platitudes, those who emigrated in the early eighties have been proven wise. Meredith clearly has an excellent understanding of events in Zimbabwe and is not deceived by the leftist propaganda engine.
Those who find themselves shocked by events in Zimbabwe should not be, the ZANU PF never embraced democracy as it is envisioned in the West.Populist majoritarian, rule with no minority protection, was always the order of the day in the new Zimbabwe (as in the new South Africa).
Readers should take a warning from this novel and compare the events depicted thein to what is currently happening in South Africa, Zimbabwe's sister state, a country where blantant racial engineering is being excercised at the expense of individual human rights.
It is only a mater of time before history repeats itself.

Decline and Fall of Zimbabwe
This is a super-readable book about the career of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, whose corruption, brutality, and paranoia have wrecked Zimbabwe's democratic institutions and have brought the country to the brink of economic ruin. The book is refreshingly free of cant, and the author has a sharp eye for political grotesqueries, which have abounded in post-independence Zimbabwe. My only complaint (and hence the rating of 4 stars) is the lack of footnotes or any real analysis of the social or economic currents underlying Zimbabwean politics. Instead, journalist Meredith is content to chronicle events newspaper-style.

Chronicling the Third World Tyranny of the Black Hitler
Our Votes, Our Guns chronicles the tyrannical rule of Robert Mugabe, from his heyday as a revolutionary guerilla who was captured an imprisoned to a victorious leader in what was initially to be a coalition government in the 1970's with Ian Smith's Rhodesian white colonials, the various black factions, and Mugabe's ZANU party in unity. Recently he said he could be a "black Hitler ten-fold" in a political speech. By the early 1980's, Mugabe eschewed the idea of a coalition government, opting instead for total consolidation of rule by his party. Mugabe through Machiavellian manipulations managed to scapegoat the political opposition in the public eye. Thereafter, he justified purges ostensibly for the purposes of stifling his contrived threat of a coup d'état. Mugabe's violence obviously only served to foment political opposition-both white and black-and browbeaten white farmers gradually dropped the conciliatory posturing as their farms were confiscated and family members were murdered. In his approach to counter-insurgency, Mugabe boldly proclaimed to his opposition, "We have to deal with this problem quite ruthlessly," with regards to resistance in Matebeland, so "Don't be surprised if your relatives get killed in the process..." Grim reports of Ian Smith's Rhodesian Apartheid regime knocking off guerillas pail in comparison to the horrors unleashed by Mugabe. Millions have been killed as a result of Mugabe's rule.

Robert Mugabe has secured his power base through a corrupt scheme of patronage to cronies while bribing armed cadres of murderous mobs to crush political opposition. Mugabe literally despises whites, but also shows his hatred for black minority opposition in his own nation. Espousing the familiar Afro-Marxist rhetoric of a demagogue dictator, he seemingly justifies any means requisite to purge his nation of the 'evil' vestiges of capitalism and colonialism. Mugabe rules with fanatical zeal and has morbid remarks in reference to his policies of forced famine and mass-murder, which are eerily reminiscent of Pol Pot. He offers no apologies for his cruel measures designed to solidify his rule. He has plundered the nation, stripped it of its productive capacity, and his made zealous efforts to confiscate and redistribute private farmland, which has utterly devastated the economy of Zimbabwe. He has reduced the productivity of a once largely self-sufficient agricultural nation to a destitute backwater republic. Besides utilization of political violence, Mugabe, much like the warlords of Somalia, holds onto power precariously by controlling the distribution of foreign aid and humanitarian relief through his spoils system of patronage. In doing so, he buys support from a loyal cadre of cohorts.

Recently, the fashionable thing amongst the media establishment and policymakers in the West-particularly Leftist cadres in the UK has been to tacitly support and praise Mugabe's efforts for land reform while conveniently ignoring the horrors of his regime perpetrated against both whites and blacks. The mass-media never does specials on ethnic cleansings in Zimbabwe. And unfortunately political correctness of leftist journalists in the West tends to extol leaders like Robert Mugabe (while ignoring his criminal track record as mass-murdering despot.) The one smug thing I really dislike about liberal journalist Martin Merideth is his initial enthusiasm for the good intentions of Mugabe when he first came to power... He acts as if socialism and anti-colonial wars of national liberation are all noble and admirable, but Mugabe simply came along and betrayed the principle. The communist bloc-the Soviets, Chinese, and North Koreans-launched anti-colonial propaganda campaign to fuel insurgent revolutions fusing nationalism with socialism in an effort to build a pro-communist, anti-Western bloc in the Third-World. Robert Mugabe and Nelson Mandela were among their minions. The red crown jewels in this endeavor included Ethiopia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Zaire. The pictures documenting his torture and mass-murder at various web sites are repugnant to the human eye and conscious. Yet those champions of human rights, the UN and IMF, continue to bolster his regime with aid. Meanwhile, in the Western media turn a blind eye to the atrocities when reporting anything on Zimbabwe and only gloss over the need for the West to help arbitrate Mugabe's land reform proposals. Land reform in Neo-Marxist newspeak means confiscation and redistribution of private property. Mugabe's legacy is one of criminal mass-murderer who destroyed his country's economy while murdering and starving 'his people.' He is a murderous thug whose judgment may never come from some tribunal, but will when he meets his maker.

Many outside observers naïvely approach southern African politics and international relations with the idea that fighting is between blacks and whites. They ignore abuses by black revolutionaries against their own blood kin, but why should it be any less acceptable when perpetrated against whites? Nelson Mandella, the media darling, was a violent communist terrorist, but doesn't get exposed by the Western media, but rather is heralded as a patron saint. There is a book by a black clergyman Sipo Mzimela tied to the ANC opposition, which documents the murderous ANC-perpetrated terrorism and corrupt assent of Mandella called Marching to Slavery, which may be found on a used book search since it is conveniently out-of-print. Despite exposing Mugabe, Martin Meredith cannot bring himself to trample the sacred cow of Mandella's fictious legacy as a humanitarian hero in his other book.

An Excellent Overview of Zimbabwe and Mugabe's Dictatorship
While this book does not attempt to address in-depth any particular aspect of Robert Mugabe's rise to power and continued dictatorship of Zimbabwe under the guise of Zanu-PF, the book does provide an excellent historical overview of the currents and processes that have led from pre-UDI Rhodesia to Zimbabwe's current state as the pariah of the African continent.

The book does an excellent job of providing a background into Zimbabwe's current economic crisis, from the land redistribution program that is fraught with corruption to Mugabe's ill-fated intervention in the Congolese Civil War which was motivated primarily by Mugabe's desire to exploit Congo's natural resources.

The book also provides a glimpse into the psyche of Robert Mugabe. We learn that Robert Mugabe is, above all things, a master of political expediency. While paying lip service to Marxist ideolgy, he has used racism and abject violence as means to maintain his grip on power since Zimbabwe's independence in 1980. As Robert Mugabe has often boated proudly during his 23 year dictatorship, he has a "degree in violence."

Last but not least, the book does an excellent job of paying tribute to perhaps Zimbabwe's true heroes, the opposition critics and members of the judiciary who have attempted, albeit unsuccessfully, to check Mugabe's excesses during the last three decades. Five stars. ... Read more

Book Description

Cloth Edition. This collective biography of a father and his two sons illuminates much of the history of both elite and mass politics in colonial Zimbabwe. ... Read more

Book Description

Guns and Guerilla Girls: Women in the Zimbabwean Liberation Struggle is about women guerilla fighters in the Zimbabwean National Liberation war (1965-1980). It provides an examination of the plethora of representations of women who joined the struggle for national independence and contributes to a feminist understanding of Zimbabwe and African history and politics.

Most previously published accounts about women’s roles in the Zimbabwean liberation struggle have tended to focus on their "feminine" or "natural" roles as mothers or alternatively on the post-independence concerns expressed by women in Zimbabwe. Both of these views have ignored and excluded women’s actual experiences of guerilla fighting.

Guns and Guerilla Girls is the first text to both challenge the representations of "women as warriors" and provide a space for women ex-combatants in Zimbabwe to re-present their past and their histories. The text is also original in its aim to create a dialogue within postcolonial discourse in order to facilitate understanding and healing vis-à-vis women’s war time experiences.

The book deals specifically with the case of the Zimbabwean liberation struggle, and provides an in-depth analysis of the different experiences women have of war when they take up arms to fight for their nation and liberation. The text allows women to describe their own history while providing a detailed analysis of the history of the struggle from a gendered perspective. ... Read more

Book Description

The Moral Economy of the State examines state formation in Zimbabwe from the colonial period through the first decade of independence. Drawing on the works of Gramsci, E. P. Thompson, and James Scott, William Munro develops a theory of "moral economy" that explores negotiations between rural citizens and state agents over legitimate state incursions in social life. This analysis demonstrates how states try to shape the meanings of citizenship for agrarian populations by redefining conceptions of the public good, property rights, and community membership.

The book's focus on the moral economy of the state offers a refreshing perspective on the difficulties experienced by postcolonial African states in building stronger state and rural institutions. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Britains Rebel Airforce
This book was a great disapointment. So much of contents seems to have been "culled" from the very good Selous Scouts "Pamwe Chete" and Barbara Coles book on the Rhodesian SAS. Its totally empty of daily information about the Rhodesian Airforce. Fire fights and raids are thin on material. Sorry I paid a lot of money for this book and it was just not worth it. ( Rhodesian Airforce 1967 - 1972 )

A thoroughly researched an informative title
As the son of a former member of the Rhodesian Airforce (my father David Dodds having served up until 1974) I have read this book with great interest. The narrative itself is totally unbiased and factual to the point where at some times it seems too detached from the reality of what it must have been like serving in this highly motivated, yet under-equipped force. For those who did serve, this book is a must-read and takes the reader right from the beginning of the forces inception, through the battles of World War Two, the rapid growth of the 1960's and then the action of the 70's. It continues into the birth of the Airforce of Zimbabwe and how this force had to integrate the former Rhodesian Airforce into a force that was racially diverse enough to suit the new country.

The text may seem too brief to some, and at times the reader is left wishing for more personal accounts of the action - the what was it like to be there? sort of feeling. On the other hand, by its very nature the war from the air was far more detached than the war on the ground. Readers who have read the excellent 'Selous Scouts - Top Secret War' by Lt Col. Ron Reid Daly, will know that it is the personal side of warfare that is so compelling in a book of this nature. The book does not have enough of this type of information.

Sadly, in and effort to appraise the reader of the wider context of the Rhodesian situation, the writers have found it necessary to digress from the narrative to explain events taking place in the region as a whole. At times, for those who lived in Rhodesia or have read books on the general subject this may be irritating, as it takes up space in what is already a brief text. If the book were 20 or 30,000 words longer, then the digressions would not have been such a concern.

On the other hand there are plenty of rare and interesting archive photo's pulled from a whole range of sources. Noteworthy too is the amount of work that has gone into the writing and compiling of the Appendix. Every single plane that served in the force is noted and what its fate was, the serial numbers, the previous serial numbers, what bulkhead cracked and where etc., all these details have been noted.

It was personally interesting for me to see the serial number and information of the Canberra B2 bomber that broke up in flight on 16/11/71 killing it's two crew. My interest in this stems from the fact that it crashed on my uncle's farm southeast of New-Sarum. My father had even been talking to one of the ill-fated crew on the morning of the crash. I now have a small part of the canopy, recovered by myself from the site whilst I was on holiday in Zimbabwe in 1987.

The book does give the reader a good understanding of what it must have been like trying to procure equipment and spares for an airforce unwanted by the rest of the World. It is a testament to the skills of the men who maintained the machines with brilliance and sheer ingenuity, so that so many of them were still flying whilst aircraft of a similar age had become museum pieces.

On the whole though I still heartily recommend this book. It is a worthwhile addition to anyone's military bookshelf. This is especially so as many writers have seemed reluctant to touch the subject of Rhodesia because the subject does not fit in with the Political Correctness of the day. Readers who are interested in more of the history of Rhodesia and Southern Africa may wish to have a look at my brother's book 'The Zulus and Matabele - Warrior Nations by Glen Lyndon Dodds' tracing the history of the Matabele nation and how they broke away from the mighty Zulus. Published in 1998 by Arms & Armour Press, the 100,000 word text is naturally primarily concerned with the Zulus but does trace the entire history of the Matabele nation. Of particular note to students of Zimbabwe's history is the section of the book tracing how the Matabele came into being, how they fought tooth and nail against the Rhodesians at the end of the 19th century, and how they fought again in the Rhodesian Bush War, only to end up fighting for their survival again - this time against the forces of the new Zimbabwe government - a regime intent on crushing any dissent.

An excellent history and tactical overview of the RRAF
A fantastic book I cannot praise enough. Impartial, fair and thoroughly documented. Not to mention a very good read. This book reviews the operational history of the RRAF (Royal Rhodesian Air Force) during its bitter struggle against marxist guerillas. It describes how a small nation with antiquated aircraft put off the inevitable for 15 years against overwhelming odds. The book documents every major operation of the RRAF as well as the tactics it used. It is not a gung-ho white regime book though it documents their failures and their atrocities as well as those of the guerrillas. It also gives an honest and frank opinion of why an air force and military that was so innovative and unquestionably motivative ultimately failed to meet its objective. I recommend this book to those interested in Rhodesia and the history of its military. It would also be a very good book for those interested in Counter-Insurgency Warfare and Close Air Support operations. ... Read more

Book Description

When American-born journalist Andrew Meldrum arrived in Harare in 1980, he planned to stay for only three years-but he quickly fell in love with the country and its people. Newly independent from Britain, Zimbabwe was infused with the optimism of new natio -building. But over the twenty years he lived there, Meldrum watched as President Robert Mugabe gradually consolidated power and the government slowly evolved into violent despotism. The last foreign journalist in Zimbabwe, Meldrum was seized and expelled in May 2003, forced to leave for writing "bad things" about Mugabe's regime.In Where We Have Hope, Meldrum describes what it meant to live through this period of hope and tragedy: how hundreds of people lined up to tell him of horrific massacres; how he once hid from Mugabe's thugs in a cupboard; how he was harassed, arrested, imprisoned, and tried. Ultimately, however, this is a story of the triumph of hope-of doctors, teachers, journalists, and lawyers who refuse to accept the abuses of Mugabe's rule.Where We Have Hope is a moving memoir that will join recent classics as landmark works on Africa in the postcolonial era. ... Read more

Book Description

Mr. Gann provides a detailed historical sketch of Rhodesian tribal society before the Europeans' arrival. He traces the movement of the missionaries and other newcomers, and their contribution to the complex racial society of twentieth-century Rhodesia. ... Read more

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Reviews (2)

comprehensive, but reader be advised
This book deservedly stands as the most comprehensive treatment of Zimbabwean popular music in the latter half of the 20th century. Over the years Rhodesian and then Zimbabwean authorities maintained amazingly complete archives of recordings and various governmental initiatives, even regional festivals, so Turino could draw upon an enviable treasure trove of material. With such a wealth of information the author is able to precisely document productions and events too often dependent in other countries upon fading memories and contradictory stories of authorship, etc. While the book cannot offer an accompanying CD, much of the relevant music is fairly easily available.
Three important points a reader should keep in mind:
1.) The history is engrossing but the writing style is overly dense and turgid. General readers should not take this as a necessary evil of an in-depth research volume by a specialist. There are many examples of clear and engaging writing in ethnomusicology (like the equally comprehensive treatment of Bulgarian music by Tim Rice, May It Fill Your Soul, for ex.), so don't let this one alienate you from others.
2.) The relatively small but influential part of Zimbabwe's population that can be termed middle sectors (for ex., with at least some access to institutional western education) receive unfair treatment throughout the book, especially the accusations singled out for Thomas Mapfumo. Ron Zapolsky details some of this in his book review in the magazine The Beat (v.20, #2, 2001). Turino, despite having lived several months in Zimbabwe, dismisses the very real threats on Mapfumo's life by the corrupt dictatorship of Mugabe; he goes so far as to ridicule Mapfumo's forced move into exile in the U.S. When one reads this one has to ask: and the author, Turino, isn't he in a nice safe university town in the same United Sates? Considering the violence that has only escalated against any opposition in Zimbabwe since this book was published, this chip-on-the-shoulder attitude against members of the middle class (broadly defined) is strange and, unfortunately, skews much of the data and analysis.
3.) For those familiar with the field of ethnomusicology this book confirms a regrettable pattern that has emerged in Turino's writings: a failure to acknowledge obvious intellectual precursors and give them their due.
a.) In his otherwise excellent first book, Moving Away from Silence (on the musical consequences of pan pipe playing when the rural tradition migrates into Peru's sprawling capital city), Turino plainly built upon the contributions of Americo Valencia. Dr. Valencia is one of Peru's foremost ethnomusicologists, who has carefully documented the same pan pipe tradition in many writings, including two books listed in Turino's bibliography. Peruvian ethnomusicologists who have studied here in the U.S. have pointedly criticized Turino's false self-portrayal of "trail blazing" that ignores work by "locals" (in the journal Latin American Music Review, fall/win 1999, and spr/summer 2001).
b.) Unfortunately, the problem is a bit more deeper than ignoring "native scholars." Turino wrote the extensive article on music of the Quechua-speaking people of the Andean highlands in The Garland Encyclopedia (ethnomusicology's first, and so far definitive reference work) where essential contributions on exactly that topic by Andean expert John Schechter are inexplicably missing; Schechter's many articles don't warrant a mention in the bibliography (which is specifically designed to be comprehensive for further research).
c.) Now in "Nationalist, Cosmopolitans...." the reader would imagine that Turino must be the first to elucidate such major issues as using music to create a pan-ethnic national identity and the key role of middle sectors in that project. There are several precursors in the field in this regard, even an article exactly on music and nationalism in Ethnomusicology (the field's flagship journal) that appeared in 1999 just before Turino began writing his book (the article's examples drew on Nicaraguan history, written by ethnomusicologist T.M. Scruggs). This omission is so obvious that a joke has been circulating within ethnomusicology: Scruggs's article on music and nationalism is to Turino's book as the indie film "El Mariachi" is to the big Hollywood production "Desperado," that is, a large movie tycoon utilizes primary ideas of an underfunded indie film but doesn't acknowledge his debt to it.
Such problems at the level of an individual scholar's integrity might not appear to have much direct bearing on the average reader, yet they raise issues of a certain lack of control of the author's ego that does intersect with something important and relevant: this book's demeaning of some of Zimbabwe's most talented and courageous cultural figures. This unfortunate attitude will become apparent to readers of various backgrounds, and astute ones will be able to adjust accordingly and still appreciate the wealth of detail and historical documentation of what will probably remain the most complete book on the subject for many years to come.

Seems important, but too cold, remote
I borrowed this book. The title appealed to me. Well it is interesting and seems important : the importance of true African music (instead of white, alien soul-killing stuff). But it is too cold, only white thinking, the man has no feeling for the black soul, it is a white who writes for whites, and sees African things from far, his own soul not being in touch with the African soul. I could not finish the book, was too boring. I hope to find a book on this subject written by a brother. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Zimbabwe's Crisis In Its Full Context
Even with intense interest and focus on Zimbabwe, few analyses have been able to penetrate to the heart of the matter, moving us beyond the strident rhetoric of all the parties concerned. This detailed examination transcends the restricted view of the crisis in Zimbabwe through the lens of land dispute, to a broader perspective of an even more fundamental failure in governance. The author argues that the crisis in Zimbabwe is not as much a function of a heated confrontation over land, as it is a deeper issue of failed constitutional reform since the country's independence in 1980. The crisis has ensued precisely because the government has failed to move Zimbabwe beyond the negotiated Lancaster House Constitution of 1980, to a document that truly reflects the aspirations of the majority of Zimbabweans.

Expansive, thorough and compellingly argued, this is a 'must read' for all who appreciate the complexities of politics in post-colonial Africa. ... Read more

Book Description

Kaler examines how "modern" contraceptive technologies, such as the pill and the Deop-Provera injection, were embroiled in gender and generation conflicts in Zimbabwe during the 1960s and 1970s. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Family planning with a racist tinge
Modern contraception is normally associated with an increase in women's freedom. Sexually, it put women on a par with men. But in Rhodesia, before majority rule in 1980, contraception triggered quite a different response amonst some of the Africans. Contraception, and indeed the entire rubric of family planning "was mass murder and genocide, a demographic attack on the African population", in one common view.

Talk about cognitive dissonance! How could something generally looked upon favourably elsewhere take on this meaning? In much of her book, Kaler explains. The minority white government employed family planning workers, to separately serve whites and blacks. The workers themselves sincerely tried to help their clientele. But in the government, there was a vocal element urging family planning to be applied to blacks, to reduce their fertility vis-a-vis the whites. Needless to say, such urgings leaked out to the blacks, and were in turn used by revolutionaries as agitprop against Ian Smith's regime. ... Read more

Book Description

What really went wrong in Zimbabwe? The promise of liberation, human rights, democracy, development, and prosperity have been shattered by greed, state-sponsored violence, and tyranny. Yet the discourse on Zimbabwe has been polarized along racial and political lines. There is need for a critical analysis of Zimbabwe beyond these polarizations.

Horace Campbell looks at Zimbabwe’s problems today, including the recent state and ruling party violence against citizens as manifestations of and deriving directly from the masochist, militaristic, and gender-biased conception of liberation which is deeply imbedded in the post-independent state. In his exploration and analysis of Zimbabwe’s experiences, from the transition to independence, to the crisis ravaging the country today, Campbell places issues like Zimbabwe’s involvement in the Congo, executive lawlessness, the land crisis, homophobia, and the politics of intolerance into perspective.

Chapters like "Soldiers in Business," "The Siege of Ikeka," and "The Limits of Military Intervention" provide fresh information on some of the motives behind the military intervention in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the futility of the presence of the Zimbabwean army in the Congo.

Campbell also argues that the politics of emancipation, militarism, and patriarchy are exhausted models of liberation and suggests new models of liberation for economic prosperity, human rights, political tolerance, non-discrimination, peace, and stability.

While this book is a serious and critical analysis of the Zimbabwean situation, it is also a very informative and general read. ... Read more

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Reviews (1)

Good coverage of the topic
Anyone who liked _Thinking in Jazz_, another Paul Berliner book, will probably enjoy _Soul of Mbira_. It takes a similar approach, looking at the history, sociology, tradition and musical nature of the Shona mbira (also known as the kalimba, sanzhi, likembe, or 'thumb piano' - though after you hear Paul's comments on the latter name, you won't want to use it again).

Other musical instruments by the Shona are also covered, but to a much lesser degree. The section on performance is nice, but it is the part which suffers most from 'dancing about architecture' syndrome.

The appendix on 'building and playing your own mbira' is informative, but unless you have access to an anvil and fire, not very practical! It isn't hard to modify the design and make your own anyway, though, it just won't be as traditional. ... Read more

Book Description

The Rhodesian War of 1965–80 is the battle for control of present day Zimbabwe. The former British colony of Southern Rhodesia rejected British moves towards majority rule and on 11 November 1965 the Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith announced his country’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence from Great Britain. That act sparked a series of violent encounters between the traditional colonial army and the African guerilla insurgents of the Patriotic Front. This book examines the successes and failures of the counter-insurgency campaign of Smith’s security forces and the eventual bloody birth of a modern African nation. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Concise and Complete Coverage
I spent almost all of my professional career concerned with the mapping of Africa. And in the course of mapping one scans and extracts a lot of information from various open sources. In the course of this study I became familiar with the social, economic, and military happenings in Southern Africa.
I can say that except for the works of Al J. Venter, a reporter from South Africa, there are very few books with detail on the bush wars conducted by black nationalists in opposition to the minority white rule resulting from colonialism. And often the insurgents had clashed among themselves for ethnic reasons and some blacks remained loyal to the minority governments.
In other cases, when the white rulers gave up and went home as did the Portuguese in Angola and Moçambique the remaining contenders began civil wars backed by the west and by the Communists respectively. In 1976, the Portuguese Army had revolted in protest to the endless bush wars in Africa and overthrew the government. The army had been especially disgusted with the conflict in defense of Portuguese Guinea-(now Guinea-Bissau) located on the shoulder of West Africa, a hot and worthless swamp land which had no economic value and a land where there were few white settlers.
In contrast, the Portuguese ruled lands in Southern Africa had a large settler class, intermarriage was common,for there was no color line there, as there was in English speaking colonies. But still the post independence unrest was such that most of the settlers migrated back to Portugal and some to Brazil. A civil war ensued which is still going on.
On the other hand, the struggle in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, was long and the white regime became an international pariah. The social structure was so unequal that half the land was owned by the whites who composed less than ten percent of the population. But the initial years of the peace settlement were so calm and benign that I feel that it was a positive influence on the South African settlement. Many whites who had fled to SA went back to Zimbabwe but in recent times unrest has broken out again. The socio-economic pie has yet to be fairly divvied up in Zimbabwe.

Excellent and complete
Excellent review for the independence wars of Portuguese african colonies of the 60's and 70's decades. Covers the conflict deeply and describes all forces involved with accuracy. I expected to see something about Cubans in Angola, even in the third book of this series (MAA-242), but there is nothing about them, but in general it's a great book. ... Read more

Book Description

This critical examination of post-war of independence peace settlement and veterans' programs is the first extended study of the complicit relationship between the ruling party and the veterans. It shows continuities in the relationship between President Mugabe's government and guerrilla veterans in the first seven years in contemporary Zimbabwe (1980-1987).As the recent election has demonstrated, Mugabe and the veterans continue to collaborate, using violence and liberation war rhetoric to maintain power through land invasions and political purges. ... Read more