Secular
AFRICA Author John Reader
This incredible book won the Alan Paton Award in 1998. John Readers’ panoramic survey of the history of Africa, traces the development of this huge continent from its earliest formation, through all the civil wars and genocide which mark it today. He explores the complex, widely differing societies from the great inland estuaries of the Niger and Okavango, to the rain forests of the Equator and the deserts of the north, the devastating impact of European exploration and the emergence of independent countries in the 60’s.
The breadth of this material is awe-inspiring, he has the ability to make you turn every page with anticipation and the authority to make you believe what you read.
THE BRIGHT CONTINENT Author Dayo Olopade
Here is an exciting new voice offering a fresh portrait of Africans thriving in the face of adversity, showing the way forward for development on the continent and beyond.
Anne-Marie Slaughter said:
“The bright continent will change your view of Africa. It’s that simple – a lively and enjoyable read”.
The author reports 1st hand on the explosion of commercial opportunities and technological innovations that are improving outcomes for families, children and the environment in Africa now.
A great read for anyone interested in Africa today.
DICTATORLAND Author Paul Kenyon
A vivid, heart-breaking portrait of the fate that so many African countries suffered after independence.
The dictator who grew so rich on his country’s cocoa crop that he built a thirty-five-storey-high basilica in the jungles of the Ivory Coast. The austere, incorruptible leader who has shut Eritrea off from the world in a permanent state of war. In Equatorial Guinea, the paranoid despot who thought Hitler was the saviour of Africa and waged a relentless campaign of terror against his own people. The Libyan army officer who authored a new work of political philosophy, The Green Book, and lived in a tent with a harem of female soldiers, running his country like a mafia family business.
And behind these almost incredible stories of fantastic violence and excess lie the dark secrets of Western greed and complicity the insatiable taste for chocolate, oil, diamonds and gold that have encouraged dictators to rule with an iron hand, siphoning off their share of the action into mansions in Paris and banks in Zurich and keeping their people in dire poverty.
“This is the breathtaking account of how a handful of men were handed a continent of rich lands and poor people. Paul is a brilliant writer and reporter who’s been there and tells a story of unparalled greed and western complicity in vivid detail. It’s Africa’s ruin, but our story too.’’ Michael Buerk
SOBUKWE Author Thami Plaatjie
“True leadership demands completed subjugation of self, absolute integrity, honestly and uprightness of character, courage and fearlessness and above all a consuming love for one’s people.” Robert Sobukwe’s speech at Fort Hare University in 1948.
“I became engrossed in the search for any written material on Robert Sobukwe and would engage in long conversations about his thoughts, principles and life. His intellectual fortitude was something I came to admire unreservedly and the more I delved into his life story and political journey, the more I became convinced that his story had not been fully told. I took it as my life’s mission to accomplish the telling of it and to share with the world the true story of a political colossus, an intellectual giant and a formidable fighter for the freedom of his people.”
So wrote Thami Ka Plaatjie about Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe. This volume is the first part of his life mission. It is not a biography even though it offers fascinating and significant insights – many hitherto unknown – of Sobukwe’s life. Rather, it is a testament to a man of towering intellect, deeply held principles, unwavering courage and unforgettable personal charm and the authority he continues to have, even years after his passing.
For anyone interested in the history of South Africa this is a MUST read – it was brilliant, extremely well researched and beautifully written. Without doubt, the best book I have read on Robert Sobukwe.
AFRICA: A Modern History Author Guy Arnold
‘It is difficult to imagine a better source for reading up on Africa’s history.’ Gordon Brewer, Scotland on Sunday.
“In 1945, only four African countries were independent; by 1963, thirty former colonies created the Organisation of African Unity. Despite formidable problems, the 1960’s were a time of optimism as Africans enjoyed their new independence and prepared to tackle their political and economic problems in their own way. By the 1990’s, however, dictatorship by strongmen, corruption, civil wars, genocide, widespread poverty, and the interventions and manipulations of Africa to the position of an aid ‘basket-case’, the world’s poorest and least-developed continent.
In Africa, A Modern History, Guy Arnold brings a lifetime’s thought and experience to these momentous years, and asks if twenty-first-century Africa can promote its own recovery and renaissance.”
Here is the first book I have ever read on Africa. It is a 1200 page mine of information covering the period 1945 – 2015. For anyone interested in the continent of Africa, this is a must and definitely worth selling your bed for!
HISTORY OF AFRICA Author Kevin Shillington
In a single volume, HISTORY OF AFRICA offers an illustrated and critical narrative introduction to the history of the continent from earliest times to the present day. In this revised edition the author draws on the most recent and up-to-date research to convey something of the wealth and depth of Africa’s long and fascinating past.
Beginning with the evolution of mankind itself, HISTORY OF AFRICA traces the history of the continent through the millennia of the ancient world to the centuries of medieval and modern Africa. It explores that early emergence of farming when the Sahara was still a region of open savannah pastures and flowing rivers: the kingdoms of Ancient Egypt, Aksum and Meroe, the medieval Sudanic Empires of Ghana, Mali and Songhay; the spread and impact of Islam, the role of trade and traditional religion in the growth of kingship; the development of Africa’s wide range of pastoral, agricultural and hunting societies.
HISTORY OF AFRICA takes a deliberately African viewpoint of the European involvement in Africa, illustrating, for example, the seldom-acknowledged contribution of Africans to the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade. After a carefully constructed critique of the colonial period, the author examines the problems of post colonial Africa in their proper historical perspective, and presents a more positive view of contemporary Africa.
The clear and simple language, the wealth of carefully chosen illustrations and the special drawn maps have all been designed to make this book an essential text for all students and an accessible account of the continent for the general reader.”
This book is unbelievable – so full of facts and a brilliant read for anyone who wants to have a history of Africa, right from the beginning up to 1994.
FIRST PRESIDENT Author Heather Hughes
John Dube is most remembered today as the founding President of the African National Congress in 1912, yet it is the sheer breadth of his achievements that impresses. Inspired by the struggles of African Americans for political and social equality, he became the leader for African’s rights in South Africa through the first half of the 20th century. He also was the founder of The Ohlange Institute near Durban and the newspaper ILANGA LASENATAL both of which are still in operation. In addition, he was a Congregational Church minister and farmer.
In this splendid biography, Heather Hughes traces the story of his life.
Andre Odendaal wrote:
“First President is indispensable for anyone wishing to understand the intellectual and political history of S.A.”
ALBERT LUTHULI Author Scott Couper
This is a must read for all who are interested in South African history, the story of one of the greats of our history. Luthuli has long needed a serious biography, consigned as he was to the sidelines by the A.N.C. because he was at odds with his movement. He refused, because of his strong personal faith, to give his support to violence. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1960.
The Luthuli family have a treasured item now in the custodianship of the Luthuli Museum in Grantville. It was Albert Luthuli’s Bible, thoroughly worn and frayed through use. It was his deep faith, his Congregational Church background which helped shape the life of this great man, imbedded within him the primacy of democracy, education, sacrificial service, multiracialism …and all his life he was “bound by faith”.
A moving biography of one of our fathers, the 1st president of the A.N.C., Nobel Peace Prize winner, a moral heavy weight and a wonderful servant leader.
MANDELA Author Anthony Sampson
The life of Nelson Mandela from the personal and the global perspective is one of the epic stories of the 2oth century. It is also one of the most inspiring. 20 years ago, Mandela was almost a forgotten figure languishing in jail on Robben Island, today he is one of the most admired leaders on earth.
By giving Sampson unprecedented access to 27 years worth of unpublished correspondence from prison, as well as to other unpublished writings including his original autobiography, Mandela has enabled the author to write the finest biography on himself.
When I met Dr. Kaunda, two years ago, I thanked him for looking after our father, Nelson Mandela, for us. This is a MUST read for everyone on the life of Nelson Mandela.
OUTLIERS Author Malcolm Gladwell
Why do some people achieve so much more than others? Can they lie so far out of the ordinary? Malcolm Gladwell looks at everyone from rock stars to scientific geniuses to show that the story of success is far more surprising and inspiring than we ever imagined. It puts a fresh perspective on success … and is certainly a compelling book and a mind-changing one.
LEADERSHIP Author Rudy Giuliani
Honest and compelling, wise and inspirational, LEADERSHIP is full of powerful stories and personal anecdotes that reveal both the character and principle that have sustained Rudy Giuliani through an extraordinary career.
On September 11, the world watched as Rudy Giuliani led New York City and the American nation through the tragic aftermath of the World Trade Centre attacks. With a steady hand, the man who had already established himself through two successful terms as mayor of New York, proved his reputation for exceptional leadership.
MUGABE Author Martin Meredith
Robert Mugabe was once hailed around the world as a revolutionary hero. After a fierce civil war against white minority rule in Rhodesia, he merged as the new leader of the country now called Zimbabwe, advocating reconciliation and racial harmony. Hopes were high that Mugabe had the intelligence, political savvy and vision to overcome the legacy of war and forge ahead with economic and social development, it seemed destine for an era to peace and prosperity.
But the honeymoon did not last long. Determined to gain total power through a one party system, Mugabe unleashed an unending campaign of mass murder, corruption, fraud and terror on his own people so that today in Zimbabwe there is only violence and lawlessness, its economy is in tatters and its people starving.
This is a must read for anyone who wants to know what went wrong in Zimbabwe
CRUCIBLE OF FIRE Author Sim Wallis
It is now over 20 years since South Africa gained freedom and Nelson Mandela became our first democratically elected president. At the forefront of the struggle against apartheid were four church leaders, Desmond Tutu, Alan Boesak, Beyers Naude and Frank Chikane. This is a book of their sermons, letters they wrote to President Botha and different interviews which were conducted with them. I found the book challenging and humbling and it gave me greater insight into these four men who led the struggle.
VIRTUAL FAITH Author Tom Beaudoin
Tattoos, body piercing are some of the stereotypical images of Generation X. Look a bit harder, and the images are troubling, even heretical – crucifixes as fashion accessories, music videos with religious and sexual imagery in unashamed juxtaposition, rave masses in which prayer and ecstatic experiences are not what they used to be.
In this book, Tom Beaudoin issues a provocative challenge: What if, instead of dismissing these expressions as heretical or blasphemous we took them as serious expressions of a generation’s search for a religion they can believe in? This book is an invitation to explore Generation X (those born in the 1960’s and 1970’s)
41 A PORTRAIT OF MY FATHER Author George W. Bush
Not since John Adams followed his father, John Adams into the White House nearly 200 years ago have a father and son both served as President of the United States. In this brilliant book, George Bush the 43rd President takes us through the life and leadership of his father, George W.H. Bush, the 41st President.
Intimate, heartfelt and illuminating, 41, is a book only a son – and a President – could write. 41 is a stirring tribute to a great man but above all – an inspiring and much-loved Dad.
THE ELEPHANT WHISPERER Author Laurence Anthony
When the South African conservationist Laurence Anthony was asked to accept a herd of rogue wild elephants on his Thula Thula game reserve in Zululand, his common sense told him to refuse. But he was the herd’s last chance of survival – dangerous and unpredictable they would be killed if Anthony would not take them in.
As Anthony risked his life to create a bond with the troubled elephants and persuade them to stay on his reserve, he came to realize what a special family they were.
With unforgettable characters and exotic wild life, this enthralling book will appeal to animal lovers and adventurous souls everywhere.
DINNER WITH MUGABE Author H Holland
This penetrating, timely portrait of Robert Mugabe is the psychobiography of a man whose once brilliant career has ruined Zimbabwe and cast shame on the African continent. Heidie Holland’s tireless investigation begins with her having dinner with Mugabe the freedom fighter, and ends in a searching interview with Zimbabwe’s president more than 30 years later. She charts Mugabe’s gradual self-destruction and uncovers the complicity of some of the most respectable international players in the Zimbabwe tragedy. Probing the mystery of Africa’s loyalty to one of its worst dictators, Holland explores the contradictions that cloud the life of the man who had embodied a continents’ promise.
This book will give you a portrait of the man behind the monster.
THE SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA Author Thomas Pakenham
In 1880, the continent of Africa was largely unexplored and was known as the Dark Continent. Less than 30 years later, only Liberia and Ethiopia remained unconquered. The rest – 10 million square miles and 120 million bewildered new subjects – had been carved up by five European powers and one extraordinary individual in the name of commerce, civilization, Christianity and conquest.
This remarkable book, The Scramble for Africa, is the first full scale study of these tumultuous times from 1879 – 1912. It is gripping reading and an absolute must for anyone wanting to know AFRICA and how we got to where we are today.