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September 9, 2007 11:25 AM

I'm looking for a great (introductory) book on the history of the African continent.

I recognize that any request such as this should warrant clarification. I'm also aware that any condensed history of an entire continent is impracticable, broad, and inadequate -- in short, asking the impossible. Nonetheless, I'm seeking recommendations of books that might be useful to someone who, like many I'd imagine, is entirely unfamiliar with the history, ancient and recent, of this large continent. Excellent introductory historical and political works in other words. Thanks in advance for the replies.

posted by inoculatedcities to Society & Culture (8 answers total)

"Into Africa," by Marq de Villiers and Sheila Hirtle, might be up your alley..
posted by greatgefilte at 11:43 AM on September 9, 2007

Africa: a Biography of a Continent by John Reader is frequently recommended but I couldn't get into it. It might be different for you. History of Africa by Shillington seems to be a standard "intro to africa" text book. I found it more readable than Reader (although very intro textbook-ish).
posted by R343L at 11:55 AM on September 9, 2007

I read much of A History of the African People by Robert W. July for a second year history course in university. It's a dawn-of-man to decolonization overview.
posted by good in a vacuum at 1:08 PM on September 9, 2007

I would also recommend "Africa: a Biography of a Continent" by John Reader. But feel free to skip a few chapters in the middle, and the long intro on geology is probably worth skipping, too.
posted by schrodycat at 1:37 PM on September 9, 2007

This question immediately brought to mind a history of Latin America that I read: The Penguin History of Latin America.

Penguin doesn't seem to have an exact equivalent for Africa, but here are two books I found that look similar (I haven't read either of these):

A Short History of Africa (6th ed.) - Roland Oliver and J. D. Fage

The Penguin Atlas of African History (rev. ed.) - Colin McEvedy
posted by splendid animal at 1:45 PM on September 9, 2007

I concur with greatgefilte: I found John Reader's book, well, unreadable. It was a disappointment. Remember that Africa is one biiiig continent. Perhaps you should start with regional histories using something like the Penguin Atlas as a guide.
posted by Lockjaw at 2:02 PM on September 9, 2007

The McEvedy atlas is excellent, with lots of readable explanatory text, and would make a good beginning. Like Lockjaw, I think you should take an interest in a particular region (West Africa is where I started—the empires of Ghana and Mali make for a riveting story) and work out from there. Continents don't really have histories.
posted by languagehat at 6:41 AM on September 10, 2007

Instead of trying to absorb African history as a whole, you might want to start with a more compact subject and branch out from there. While this book covers less territory than what you're asking for, it's very readable and will likely spark your interest in African history.
posted by Ustrasana at 11:15 AM on September 10, 2007