Customer Reviews

Into the House of the Ancestors: Inside the New Africa

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This is an interesting review of various African Countries. The author is a freelance journalist who travelled to Various African Countries including but not exclusively the following Nigeria,Ghana,Mali,Zimbabwe,South Africa,Mozambique,Rwanda and Somalia. It is a story of ordinary people doing extraordinary things and succeeding in spite of harrowing conditions,wars and negligent governments.He tells the story of a new Africa by interviewing teachers,traditional healers,Chiefs,AIDS workers and human rights campaigners. He also tells the terrible story about the collapse of health and educational institutions and the practise of Child soldiers using Sierra Leone as a reference point.He gives a brief historical perspective of the issues giving readers not familiar with Africa and those familiar a good terms of reference to undeerstand the problems. I reccommend this book wholeheartedly.

At first glance "Into the House of the Ancestors: Inside the New Africa" by Karl Maier is a typical book about Africa by a Westerner, i.e., a book by a reporter that has spent a few years reporting on a far-away exotic location. It is that, but it is well done. Maier's book is mostly anecdotal stories of individual Africans, circa the 1990s: a stone-sculptor in Zimbabwe, a medical researcher in Mali, an elderly woman in Ghana, the "only honest man" in Nigeria, all of them doing their best in a changing world. His tone is respectful and basically positive and optimistic, but without being romantic or glossing over the continent's well-documented problems. Like many books about Africa, some of "Into the House of the Ancestors" is devoted the author's theory of why things in Africa are so bad: Maier says the problem is colonialism's replacement of the traditional and indigenous with the modern and foreign. For things to change, the solutions to Africa's problems must come from Africa. Maier believes that in the 1990s Africa began a second revolution that will lead to better things. One can hope. Whether the future proves Maier right or not, these stories are compelling non-fiction reading.

As an objective reader, without a deep knowledge about African history nor Africa's present situation, I found this book to be incredibly rich and interesting. Karl Maier organizes it in 9 different chapters dealing with major issues in today's Africa. From the spreading of the AIDS epidemic to the rehabilitation of children warriors and the after-math of the genocide in Rwanda, the author covers a wide range of subject matters related to Africa. He also presents numerous heroes that contribute to the building of a brighter future for their continent in many different ways: traditional healers, village chiefs, university professors and political activists to cite a few. The one and important default I found in this book, is the confusing style it is written in. Karl Maier tends to drown the reader with a shower of names, and without keeping a cohesive focus. However, the author, being a journalist, offers us both sides of the story. Overall, this book is very instructive, I recommend it for anyone who desires to develop their knowledge of Africa.

Experience the vibrant & volatile life of Africa in it's struggle for a "second revolution". As someone with protesting for when Nelson Mandela was originally incarcerated under her belt, I was absorbed by this penetrating narrative based on interviews with traditional healers, chiefs, business innovators, scientists, generals, doctors, poets & politics. The stories, observations & interviews Karl Maier brings us are woven into a vibrant fabric as fascinating & devastating as any you'd expect while talking to one of the child soldiers.

I really loved this book was that it depicted Africa and Africans in a realistic and non-passive light. Maier showed ordinary Africans actively trying to make a difference in their countries.

He also showed the richness of Africa's past and it's culture, the damage and exploitation done by colonialism, corrupt leadership as well as the problems associated with adopting foreign/western solutions to Africa's dilemna.

As an intimate lover of Africa, Karl's perspective is as compelling as his storytelling. The book brings snapshots of Africans into focus, but the stories are positive ones, of individuals making a difference in their community. One story is of a Nigerian taxi driver who returned a large sum of money left in his vehicle. Another is the fascinating history of the growth of stone carvings in southeastern Africa. Each vignette is well-told and an inspiration for the continent as a whole. After the well-documented cases of tribal conflict and despotic power surges, this book is a refreshing signal of hope for Africa.

This is an interesting review of various African Countries. The author is a freelance journalist who travelled to Various African Countries including but not exclusively the following Nigeria,Ghana,Mali,Zimbabwe,South Africa,Mozambique,Rwanda and Somalia. It is a story of ordinary people doing extraordinary things and succeeding in spite of harrowing conditions,wars and negligent governments.He tells the story of a new Africa by interviewing teachers,traditional healers,Chiefs,AIDS workers and human rights campaigners. He also tells the terrible story about the collapse of health and educational institutions and the practise of Child soldiers using Sierra Leone as a reference point.He gives a brief historical perspective of the issues giving readers not familiar with Africa and those familiar a good terms of reference to undeerstand the problems. I reccommend this book wholeheartedly.

Especially recommended for those with minimal knowledge of Africa, as I was/am. The author seems to know and care about Africa as much as any Westerner could. The book draws heavily on interviews with a range of people to illuminate current conditions in the continent. Also, plenty of historical context is provided, and much of it is pretty ugly where Europeans are concerned. Much light is cast on recent and ongoing civil wars, and struggles against AIDS, poverty, cultural erosion, and so forth. One reservation is that the author, in my view overplays the hope and optimism card; I found this jarred with the scale of the suffering and trouble delineated.

I had reservations at first about reading a book about Africa by a westerner. They are either usually condescending in their tone or so romantic that most people disregard their work as fantasies. Maier, I am glad to say, was neither.

In my opinion, the book is an unbiased look at what is wrong with most of Africa today. Maier suggests bad leadership, the lingering effects of colonization and a disavowal of their past as some of the major culprits. Although the evidence is far from convincing, one cannot easily shrug off his suggestions, which appear to make sense.

Personally, what was more interesting was the stories of Africans, who against all odds, are striving to make their continent a better place. Maier shows us Africa, warts and all, but puts its problems into context, which gives us room for hope.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is remotely interested in Africa. It is a realistic look at the state of the continent today, and it will not leave you despairing at the end, like so many other books that are currently out there.