Africa [Hardcover]

John Reader (Author), Michael Lewis (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2001

Thirteen/WNET and National Geographic Television have joined forces to create a television event for Fall 2001 - Africa: Land of the Sun - and 8-hour film series showing the majesty and wonder of this remarkable land. The series will be shot on location by some of the world's best filmmakers, and will be produced in a theatrical style to underscore the epic nature of Africa's history, the splendor of it's landscapes, and the beauty and power inherent in these portraits of places, people, and animals. Scientific evidence suggests that the first humans emerged on the continent of Africa. There, our ancestors learned to stand upright, find food, and survive against predators. They developed languages and cultures and migrated to settle all the habitable land of African and eventually the entire world. Despite this primal connection, Africa remains a mysterious land; a place associated with famine, slavery, frightening diseases, and incomprehensible tribalism. An equally common image is that of a giant safari park. For millions of African-Americans, Africa is a distant homeland, placed beyond the bounds of memory by the breach of slavery. This series and its companion book will capture the geographic life story of Africa - how life evolved and flourished there, adopting a unique and complex vibrancy over time in response to the environment. This is an ecological portrait of Africa, its peoples, flora, and fauna. The series will show, for the first time, a consolidated image of Africa by presenting its diverse regions and complex history within the context of its geography - its natural wonders and ecological challenges. In doing so, the series tells one of the greatest stories on earth: the story of human evolution and human survival against remarkable odds.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Two books on Africa with the same title and familiar themes, yet how different they are in content and approach! In a companion book to the eight-week PBS series that began on September 9, 2001, Reader (Africa: A Biography of the Continent) attempts to document in detail and with informed commentaries every aspect of the continent's evolution and its results. This ambitious and encyclopedic work describes and explains the African savannah and the continent's deserts, forests, mountains, lakes, and coasts. He does this with elegance and a rare admiration of Africa's role in human evolution and history. The land, its people, abundant wildlife, intriguing plants, and challenging climate all receive equal attention and emerge as intricate and indispensable parts of one grand natural scheme. Reader's tone is that of a devout evolutionist, and his style is fluid, simple, and clear.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Reader, in Africa: a Biography of the Continent (1998), wrote a powerful, scholarly account tracing the origins of the first Homo sapiens and their subsequent migrations throughout the world. He returns to the theme that "we all belong to Africa" in his latest title, a sweeping, lushly illustrated companion volume to an upcoming PBS series scheduled for broadcast in September. Divided into sections devoted to geographical regions (savanna, desert, mountains, coast, etc.), the text, illustrated with Michael Lewis' stunning photos, offers glimpses into regional ways of life, always noting how people have adapted to local climate and land. Although the author ends each chapter with a profile of a contemporary individual, his fascination for evolutionary processes shows throughout the book; readers looking for portraits of urban African life may be disappointed. But providing an all-inclusive overview of a continent's people and cultures is an impossible task, and Reader and Lewis offer a beautiful, lively, and opinionated volume, dense with information, while remaining accessible to a wide age range. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: National Geographic; 1St Edition edition (September 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0792276817
• ISBN-13: 978-0792276814
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 1 x 12.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #407,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding introduction to Africa, September 29, 2001

By 

Ed Gibbon www.congocookbook.com - See all my reviews

This review is from: Africa (Hardcover)

This is an excellent book for anyone who might find Reader's earlier book "A Biography of the Continent" too much of a good thing. "Africa" explores many of the same themes and issues, but the information is arranged differently and there are more illustrations; this book is aimed at the educated lay-reader. Still it is an important and outstanding book. Reader is a good writer and his research and grasp of a myriad of disciplines related to his subject is impressive.

The story is told by geography: Savanna, Desert, Rain Forest, Mountains, Sahel, Great Lakes, Coast, Southern Africa. Being a "companion" to the PBS/NGS TV series there is some (but not much) focus on the people who appeared in the television documentaries. Mostly Reader tells the stories behind the story; his history of Africa is as much about the environmental, geographical, and physiological as merely chronological. For example, Reader tells why bananas and plantains are so important in African history; what makes camels so invaluable in the Sahara, how sickle cells and malaria are related, even the advantages and disadvantages of walking upright. Of course there is some in-this-year-such-and-such happened, but that is kept to a minimum. This "Africa" is not only an outstanding introduction to Africa, it should also be of interest to any Africanist.

The photographs by Michael Lewis are good enough to be a book of their own; they combine with Reader's well organized and informative text to make "Africa" an excellent portrait of the continent. Reader's "Biography of the Continent" is also highly recommended.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A concise yet comprehensive look at a fascinating continent, December 15, 2001

By 

JLind555 - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Africa (Hardcover)

"Africa" is the companion volume to the recent PBS series of the same name, and like the series, is organized into eight parts, each one focusing on a particular geographical region of the continent. In clear, concise language, John Reader gives us the historical and geographical background of each area, the current economic and social structure, and the problems affecting the particular region. The photographs are mind-blowing; they are so gorgeous that they almost dominate the excellent text. The one disappointment, for one who has also seen the PBS series, is that the book doesn't follow the individual stories of people in depth as the PBS production did; however, no one who hasn't seen the TV production will miss it, and it in no way detracts from the overall value of the book. This is one book about the "dark continent" that does the continent, and its people, proud.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Slow shipping, but quality book, September 27, 2010

By 

Student02 - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Africa (Hardcover)

This book would have cost me triple at my campus bookstore, so I decided to use Amazon to order this book! The quality of the book was great (even better than the new ones in the bookstore), but it did not come with a dust jacket like it stated in the description. Also there was no need to spend that extra money for quick shipping, because the book took FOREVER to get to my house...I ordered it before classes started and was delayed in reading chapters due to the late shipping. Book was great, but due to the time in shipping I would think twice about ordering from Amazon or this seller again (especially if it was a textbook for school ).