The scars of Western democracy?
Imperialistic colonization and foreign domination are a stain on the forehead of democracy.
But since when monopolization of ethical thoughts under the pretext of urban development and building a nation fed by foreign interests paved the way to progress and national prosperity?
This book might appear as anti- European propaganda, but it is not.
The severe tone of the book is not to be ignored, and I admit the arguments lack historic foundation, nevertheless, the scars of African sufferings are still bleeding, and there is a powerful lesson to learn from this book.
Feel-good, anti-European propaganda
Shillington blames Europe for all of Africa's ills but he fails to put forth a good case arguing why we should agree with him. The views presented in "History of Africa" are compatible with the current trend in academia, but these interpretations are controversial nevertheless, and should be treated as such. That is why it is disappointing to see an argument without depth or verification. The format is just as telling: it mimics a textbook. "History of Africa" gives a matter-of-fact overview, complete with his dressings of bias, which are presented as irrefutable truths. No counterargument is ever addressed.
Picture a one-sided thesis about Africa as an exploited land, where the continent is portrayed as unable to progress thanks to outside intervention...but wait, this is not Shillington's "History of Africa"; first you must take away all of the supportive details and footnotes - if they were ever there to begin with - leaving only tiny fragments of the original thesis to be sprinkled throughout an encyclopedic article about Africa...THAT mishmash is Shillingon's "History of Africa. His point of view is presumably borrowed from some of the texts in his diminutive bibliography.
It is worth noting that "History of Africa" contains an impressive collection of images. Accentuating the positive, perhaps one could even say the text should be thought of as the cliff notes to select works. Still, this is dumbed-down education at its finest.
State-Of-The-Art African History
Here is the best one-volume history of this misunderstood continent, one which highlights Africans' agency and creativity. Now in a third edition, it has more useful features than any competitors. Numerous superb illustrations present images ranging from rare to famous. The maps are even better, allowing readers to locate places, peoples and developments precisely. And the text displays Shillington's mastery of all the latest scholarly work on the continent. His sober, balanced approach is sometimes dry, but the style is always readable. Publisher and author claim that "History of Africa" is both a high school and college text, but plentiful (not excessive) detail makes it a challenge for all but the most advanced secondary students. More direct quotations from oral and written sources would improve the book, but this is a minor problem remedied by using supplementary materials. Lastly, the cost is reasonable, less than half the average for comparable surveys of Western Civ or US history. This volume will satisfy the curiosity of the general public too.
concise and thoughtful, without being superficial
I had the good fortune to be introduced to this book by reading it aloud as a volunteer for Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic. Shillington builds a lucid case that the decline of the Egyptian civilization coincided with a shift away from trade and toward imperial domination -- which failed over long distances. Each chapter provides a clear perspective and a compelling read. High praise for a textbook!
A Good Analysis of Africa
Shillington provides a good survey style textbook on African history from antiquity to the modern period. He covers in great detail and quality of the relationship between Africa and Islam as well as the nature of slavery and apartheid. He covers the slave trade in quite a bit of detail, explaining the value of the African as a marketable commodity. He also explains the origins of apartheid as a colonial parting gift that became entrenched racist national policy for more than fifty years. Shillington's survey is quite appropriate for a high school African history class, an undergraduate African history survey or introduction or even as a first book for a graduate African history course. The topics covered here are obviously from an Africanist point of view although there is a minimum, if any, level of bias on Shillington's part.
(10 reviews)
