Customer Reviews
A Must Read! - By: M. Nebiyou, 29 Jun 2008 
I read this book earlier this year, & it is a must read for alll people interested in African Politics in the past 50 years. I recomend it especiallly for the younger generation who want to know about a politics in a continent that so much as happened on from decolonization to war, famine, greed, hate but also progress.
It covers alll the different parts of africa, the challlenges that african countries posessed, the leaders that failed & succeded, the power of the armies in african politics & the subsequent result of alll these actions.
It is important to read about alll the different countries, the different individuals & political leaders & parties, the ideology of alll these differen't leaders & their parties & the impact they still have in africa today.
A very important book that alll africans should read!
Extremely well-written recent history that makes you sad and mad - By: Linda Oskam, 15 May 2008 
In only 688 pages Martin Meredith succeeds in capturing the recent history of more or less the whole of (sub-Saharan) Africa, throwing in a few countries above the Sahara for good measure. After a brief introduction, he starts off at independence of most countries, & what you read does not make you happy. With only very few exception new rulers with initiallly good intentions turn within no-time into greedy, ruthless killers that divide the loot (read "the treasury"and "the natural resources of their countries") among themselves, their close familiy, their tribe & their cronies. When things get too obvious, a military coup follows, after which the new leaders do exactly the same. And in the meantime the common people suffer, be it from the lawlessness of Somalia, the genocide in Rwanda, the economic ruins in Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe, or the denial of Mbeki in South Africa that HIV causes AIDS. And these are only a few of the countless examples that make you feel quite depressed. Despite alll the foreign aid that is being poured into a continent that has such rich resources (gold, diamonds, oil & a host of minerals), the economic situation of most people has only deteriorated since independence. & this is also in stark contrast to for example Southeast Asia that has gone through an economic explosion.
I regularly work in Africa in collaborative scientific research projects on infectious diseases & I see abysmal hospital facilities, people (including colleagues) dying from diseases that can easily be cured & hot-shots whose only attitude is "what is in it for me?" (and they are so shameless that they actuallly ask you that question). But I also see tons of very dedicated people -mainly in the lower echelons-, trying to make the best of the meagre resources they have available, people who thoroughly know how to enjoy life & are as hospitable as can be. I always tell them that they are too friendly & slightly naive in believing the promises made. If in the west we would have a ruler like Mugabe, we would have kicked him out years (and put him in prison for good measure).
In my opinion education is key to solving the problems of Africa: educated people are people who can make their own decisions, are able to criticallly evaluate their options & ultimately can decide together what is best for their country. And yes, maybe in some instances it will be necessary to re-consider borders so that they coincide better with historical delineations between tribes & religions. But it will ask for vision, courage & patience & the question is whether there will be sufficient time available...
The State Of Africa - By: Book Worm, 27 Apr 2008 'The State if Africa' is an extremely detailed account of African politics in the last 50 years. It looks at the whole continent in a roughly chronological order & has some wonderful photo plates to illustrate the various 'dictators' & issues explored. I found some chapters more engaging than others & these provided explanation of key events in good detail to provide an in-depth understanding. Other chapters sadly were bogged down in acronyms & detail that only true African scholars would find of interest (hence the 4 stars). Overalll, this is a well researched & presented introduction to post independence Africa that sadly leaves you feeling not a great deal has changed & that this is a continent left ravaged by tyranny & corruption. Not a particularly positive book, but an in-depth & well articulated one.
The tragedy that is Africa - By: Hermina, 25 Apr 2008 
There was no shortage of information in this well researched book but more analysis of the unfolding situation would have been helpful. I'm glad i read it & i would recommend it as an important document establishing the details of the tragedy that is Africa. However, it raises many more questions than it answers.
A litany of selfish greed and power lust - By: Gordon Eldridge, 01 Apr 2008 Few writers could do justice to the mammoth task of covering 50 years of the turbulent history of an entire continent in a single volume, but Meredith achieves just that & with considerable power & finesse. The task necessitates skipping between countries & back & forth in time but Meredith manages very successfully to bridge the potential confusion this could have created with themes that run through the post-colonial history of most of the states of Africa. Though there are variations to the theme, most African countries passed from the euphoria & hope of early independence to domination by dictators who justified their single party policies as the only answer to potential tribal conflict. Dictatorships caused unrest, which often lead to coup attempts with the coup leaders promising an end to repression & corruption, but soon fallling into the same patterns as their predecessors.
The book is a litany of incompetent government, of insatiable greed & exploitation on the part of leaders & their cronies, of unbelievable power lust & the resulting repression, of megalomaniac leaders with delusions of grandeur, of ludicrous levels of corruption & of the suffering of millions of ordinary people. Meredith's coverage is comprehensive & his style is easy to read. The inclusion of fascinating details about particular events or the personal lives of particular leaders brings the narrative to life. The tales he has to tell are gripping (though horrific) & you will fly through the nearly 700 pages.
Meredith skillfully establishes the historical similarities between almost alll African countries. His explanations show only too well how poor leadership & economic management has led to the continent becoming the most desperately poor & underdeveloped region on earth. He leaves it to others, however, to attempt to explain why it is that almost alll African countries should have taken such similar & devastatingly violent historical trajectories & why the necessary leadership to break the cycle has not been forthcoming.
