politalX Politics Store - The Scramble for Africa
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List Price: £14.99
Our Price: £10.49
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
Manufacturer: Abacus
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 960
EAN: 9780349104492
ISBN: 0349104492
Label: Abacus
Manufacturer: Abacus
Number Of Pages: 800
Publication Date: 1992-11-26
Publisher: Abacus
Studio: Abacus
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Very Good
Comment: The Scramble for Africa by Thomas Pakenham is a very good book which deals with the remarkable last two decades in the nineteenth century when Africa was carved up by the nations of Europe. It is an immensely readable book which deals with a number of different areas and time periods but also goes further and deals with individuals and more forgotten examples of European colonisation such as the Belgians in the Congo. All in all a remarkable book which is a pleasure to read.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Great book of a harrowing journey of a continent.
Comment: This is a great book, and like other readers, I think it gave account of every region fairly evenly. Pakenham shows that mistreatment of the native population was endemic across the continent, regardless of the ruling European power. He also managed to avoid romanticizing the situation prior to colonization, bringing to life the personalities of the Kings, Sultans and Chiefs that ruled before the europeans arrived.
Pakenham did however get mixed up with what was British and what was English, as English historians often do.
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Summary: Best history book ever!
Comment: Pakenham gives you the detail without the drudgery; the tale without the tediousness; takes you right into the heart of history but manages to make the ride effortless. His story spans two continents, includes a myriad of characters and covers many years of imperial intrigue in Africa. Yet, he not only stays true to the facts, he also gives you a human story. You can close your eyes and see Leopold or Lobengula or any of the hundreds of actors that claimed this stage of human history. Here is a priceless account of how and why it happened; the partition of Africa in the nineteenth century by several European nations. A must read!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Superb, i finished it at 5am!
Comment: This book covers every issue you could possibly think of in colonial africa in just enough detail to give you a pan-african diorama without getting bogged down in any individual area (each of which deserves a book on their own). The only other example ive read got so bogged down with the Boer war that lesser known colonial hi-jinx such as the Sudan and Uganda were lost within a sea of Zulus. A rarely touched subject, especially relevant with current events in Zimbabwe.
If you can splash out on the Hardback do- the paper used for the paperback is appalling.
Customer Rating:
Summary: An enlightening read
Comment: This is a beautifully written work that provides a fascinating insight into the continent's history, underdevelopment and civil strife. Devoid of sentimentality and full of objectivity, the author conveys the deep message, which explains not only the resilience of the continent but also the ravages that it has been subjected to throughout its turbulent history. Behind the tragedies of the continent are the heavy hands of the ex-colonial masters and the exploitative drives of some business concerns working in partnership with African dictators, psychopaths and administrative kleptomaniacs that have power and are excluding the people in the running of the land. With more piteous prospects than any other continent, Africa mirrors the failures of humanity as well as its hopes and reams.
Other titles that treat this African malaise are DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE , AFRICA UNCHAINED, THE SCHACKLED CONTINENT, TRIPLE AGENT DOUBLE CROSS. Together these titles exposed the personal and collective problems of the people and the personal and collective efforts made, and the means and ways to take the Africa forward despite all the constrains.
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