Showing titles in Africa

For decades, African nations have fought for the return of countless works of art stolen during the colonial era and placed in Western museums. In Africa’s Struggle for Its Art, Bénédicte Savoy brings to light this largely unknown but deeply important history. One of the world’s foremost experts on restitution and cultural heritage, Savoy investigates extensive, previously unpublished sources to reveal that the roots of the struggle extend much further back than prominent recent debates indicate, and that these efforts were covered up by myriad opponents.

This audiobook provides an introduction to one of the most intriguing wars of modern times - a war that saw several innovations, including the use of heliography and indirect fire, and caused the complete overhaul of the great Imperial British fighting machine in its aftermath. It also tells of the first example of the brilliant use of guerrilla warfare by the people who, to this day, have never been outclassed: the Boer commandos.

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is an 1845 memoir and treatise on abolition written by famous orator and former slave Frederick Douglass during his time in Lynn, Massachusetts. It is generally held to be the most famous of a number of narratives written by former slaves during the same period. In factual detail, the text describes the events of his life and is considered to be one of the most influential pieces of literature to fuel the abolitionist movement of the early 19th century in the United States.

The empires of the ancient Sumerians, Akkadians, Greeks, Romans, and Chinese were underpinned by slavery, where one person could be owned by another, and their obedience and labor were forced by the threat of violence or even death. Some of these people were prisoners captured during wars, some were sold into slavery to pay debts, while others were born into slavery. In many ancient empires, slaves accounted for anything from one-third to half of the total population.

Sayyida Salme lived a remarkable life in remarkable times and told the tale more than a century ago in her Memoirs of an Arabian Princess, the first book published by an Arab woman. She was born in 1844 as a princess on the island of Zanzibar, daughter of the great Omani Sayyid Said bin Sultan and his Circassian slave Djilfidan. By the time she published her Memoirs in German in 1886, she had moved from Arab royalty amidst harem politics to the challenges of raising a family as a single mother in a foreign land, with her new Christian name, Emily Ruete.

By the mid-19th century, other European powers became interested not only in the exploration of Africa, but the exploitation of it, especially once the German Empire unified after the Franco-Prussian War. This began a rush, spearheaded mainly by European commercial interests in the form of chartered companies, to penetrate the African interior and woo its leadership with guns, trinkets, and alcohol, and having thus obtained their marks or seals upon spurious treaties, begin establishing boundaries of future European colonies.

Pierre arrives in the Congo in 1902. Within the first month, he becomes sick and nearly dies; makes an enemy of Harou, Leopold's most powerful man in the Congo; and, on the way to his posting, must always keep his gun within reach. Of Rulers and Ruled is an historical novel of one man's heroic struggle against the greed, cruelty, and terror of a corrupt government in colonial Africa. Pierre d'Entremont went to Africa to seek his fortune, and stayed to fight an evil regime.

Ultimately, Hebrews? Africans? Or Does It Matter? offers a profound reflection on the spiritual importance of our history, our cultural identity, and the simply amazing power of embracing the richness of who we really are – not just as strong Black individuals, but collectively, as a strong Black people! If we only knew the power that we already have! The listener will see in this book why whether we are Hebrews or Africans really does matter! Now is the time…

In July 1994, Thomas P. Odom was part of the U.S. Embassy team that responded to the Goma refugee crisis. He witnessed the deaths of 70,000 refugees in a single week. In the previous three months of escalating violence, the Rwandan genocide had claimed 800,000 dead. Now, in this vivid and unsettling new book, Odom offers the first insider look at these devastating events before, during, and after the genocide.

Nelson Mandela is known the world over. The essential story of his remarkable life is not. Peter Hain chronicles a life and legacy of courage, sacrifice, values, and leadership in an insightful and accessible biography. Everyone should know Mandela's extraordinary story. Now they can.

This sobering pamphlet was written in 1788 by an ex-slave ship captain turned clergyman. Famous for writing the hymn "Amazing Grace", John Newton wrote passionately about his memories of the slave trade. His pamphlet helped sway the English Parliament to outlaw this hideous trade. This is a crucial piece of primary historical evidence about the history of a vile blot on Europe's and America's history.

South Africa, 1987. Apartheid. When Leon, a white 19-year-old prison guard working on death row, commits an inexplicable act of violence, killing seven black men in a hail of bullets, the outcome of the trial - and the court's sentence - seems a foregone conclusion. Hotshot lawyer John Weber reluctantly takes on the seemingly unwinnable case. A passionate opponent of the death penalty, John discovers that young Leon worked on death row in the nation's most notorious prison, under traumatic conditions....

A Nigerian native who emigrated to the United States at age 11, Alex Owumi's exploits on the basketball court earned him a college scholarship to Georgetown University. Undrafted by the NBA, Owumi pursued his basketball dream overseas, eventually signing with Al-Nasr of Libya, a state-run athletic club privately funded by the family of Libyan president Muammar Qaddafi.

This book is committed to checking out the gods and goddesses that the people on the African continent worshiped.

Ten million people had been murdered. For 15 years, atrocities had been perpetrated by King Leopold II of Belgium and his Force Publique in the Congo Free State. By 1909, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle could stand it no longer and felt the need to speak out and inform the general public of exactly what was going on. This new edition of his passionate plea for action includes contemporary newspaper reports and an introduction by Tim Dalgleish. His book is a classic in the annals of genocide and remains a shocking portrayal of humanity’s "heart of darkness".

In 2006, the Wall Street pioneer and philanthropist Ray Chambers flicked through some holiday snapshots taken by a friend and remarked on the placid beauty of a group of sleeping Malawian children. "They're not sleeping," his friend told him. "They're in malarial comas. A few days later, they were all dead." This moment sparked Chambers' determination to coordinate an unprecedented, worldwide effort to eradicate a disease that has haunted humanity since before the advent of medicine.

The Mahdist War took place at the end of the 19th century between Sudanese rebels and their Egyptian colonizers. A religious leader claiming to be the Islamic Mahdi, Muhammad Ahmad, raised an army and led a movement to guide not only Sudanese Muslims, but Muslims worldwide. He and the Mahdists envisioned a future in which they would live by the teachings of the Qur’an. However, larger global forces, especially those of global imperialism, would stand in their way. From the Mahdist grassroots movement to independence to reconquest, this is the story of the Mahdist War.

The young life of Daoud Hari—his friends call him David—has been one of bravery and mesmerizing adventure. He is a living witness to the brutal genocide under way in Darfur. The Translator is a suspenseful, harrowing, and deeply moving memoir of how one person has made a difference in the world—an on-the-ground account of one of the biggest stories of our time.

Africans, though fascinatingly diverse, share a common evolution, all of which is characterized by the powerful strides of many names etched in the memories of their people. This audiobook presents these memories with a stimulating detailed account. This book shares the knowledge you need to know about modern Africa. Discover how the continent has come to be what it is today, and learn how other countries influenced events.

At a time when many democracies are under strain around the world, Until We Have Won Our Liberty shines new light on the signal achievements of one of the contemporary era's most closely watched transitions away from minority rule. South Africa's democratic development has been messy, fiercely contested, and sometimes violent. But as Evan Lieberman argues, it has also offered a voice to the voiceless, unprecedented levels of government accountability, and tangible improvements in quality of life.