There’s “too much Africa in South Africa”
That what a Dutch writer Adriaan Van Dis told an Italian newspaper when asked about what South Africa is like now.
Lit
Africa’s supposed red earth
The Stadsschouwburg of Amsterdam, an iconic theater in the city, organizes a festival on the continent that consists mostly of the work of white artists.
To sanitize and trivialize a decade of mayhem
Another book argues Zimbabwe's land reform is a success. But does it adequately deal with the processes by which that “success” was achieved?
Nigerians don’t talk like that
Will Ferguson wrote a novel about Nigeria's 419 scams. He also won an award for it. Do we think it's a good read?
What’s Best for American Policy in Africa
Would former US Assistant Secretary for Africa, Susan Rice, have been a good choice for Barack Obama's Secretary of State?
Race politics in Ghana
Historian Jemima Pierre argues that Whiteness serves as a reference point for Ghanaians’ notions of beauty, Blackness, and power, but Ghanaians remain blind to this.
S is for Samora Machel
We asked about a dozen Africa Is a Country contributors what their favorite books of 2012 were. Here are their picks.
We write what we like about Steve Biko
What does it mean for a dead man to live through us, as we chant his name and claim him?
Literary Sudans
The online retrospective, “Literary Sudans," is intended to highlight the two Sudans as sites of literature and culture.
Why does South African history continue to be written primarily by white scholars?
The striking minority of black contributors in South African historiography is a scandal more than a decade after the end of apartheid.
The Trouble with the Nigeria Prize for Literature
Should we care that Africa's richest book prize is paid for by a company with unethical business practices?
Jakes Gerwel and “the intellectual home of the left”
The fate of the University of the Western Cape, set up for coloureds, radicalized by black consciousness and from where the ANC prepared to govern.
Chinua Achebe reflects on Biafra, but for whom?
Achebe's "There Was a Country: A Personal History of Biafra" reopens old wounds about the civil war.
The Geopolitics of Hunger
Former UN envoy Jean Ziegler on Third World hunger: "We Let Them Starve."
Nollywood–Nigeria’s Mirror
The Nigerian poet and critic, Odia Ofeimun, on how Nollywood depicts traditional culture and religion.
The women at the doorway
The photographer Aida Muluneh's work explores Ethiopia via identity, personal journey, and family nostalgia after a 30-year absence.
Michael Jackson in Tamale
A review of a new memoir by Ghana's new President, John Dramani Mahama.
The fear of being a terrible writer
A South African writer gets invited to the Farafina Creative Writing Workshop in Lagos, Nigeria. Her main takeaway: writing is an act of faith; an ancient form of prayer.