List Price: $26.99 Details

Save: $12.77 (47%)

$5.15 delivery August 14 - 15. Order within 7 hrs 11 mins. Details

Select delivery location

Only 1 left in stock - order soon

$$14.22 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Payment

Secure transaction

Ships from

American University of Sovereign Nations Books

Sold by

American University of Sovereign Nations Books

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Details

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Ships from

American University of Sovereign Nations Books

Sold by

American University of Sovereign Nations Books

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt. You may receive a partial or no refund on used, damaged or materially different returns.

Read full return policy

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime

FREE delivery Monday, August 14 on orders shipped by Amazon over $25. Order within 16 hrs 11 mins

Select delivery location

Used: Good | Details

Sold by A-Team Books

Fulfilled by Amazon

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Have one to sell?

Sell on Amazon

Other Sellers on Amazon

Added

Not added

$15.26
+ $3.97 shipping

Sold by: sequiturbooks

Added

Not added

$19.25
& FREE Shipping

Sold by: BOOK_DEPOT

Added

Not added

$19.37
FREE Shipping on orders over $25.00 shipped by Amazon.

Sold by: Atasoys

Flip to back Flip to front

See all 2 images

Follow the Author

Peter Godwin

The Fear: Robert Mugabe and the Martyrdom of Zimbabwe Hardcover – March 23, 2011

by Peter Godwin (Author)

4.3 150 ratings

See all formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Kindle

"Please retry"

$9.99

—

Audible Audiobook, Unabridged

"Please retry"

$0.00

Free with your Audible trial

Hardcover

"Please retry"

$14.22

$1.77

Paperback

"Please retry"

$13.39

$12.98

$1.50

Audio CD

"Please retry"

$29.24

—

Kindle
$9.99 Read with Our Free App
Audiobook
$0.00 Free with your Audible trial
Hardcover
$14.22

39 Used from $1.77 15 New from $14.22 2 Collectible from $15.00
Paperback
$13.39

34 Used from $1.50 12 New from $12.98
Audio CD
$29.24

2 New from $29.24

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$14.22","priceAmount":14.22,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"14","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"22","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"%2Fqq7IWHF05pqB39JKUFnKIYcTJaYvgzepR4lx81XmrtOb3Rd4IrwkydaFu3s4RQ7MFV2VGyMywuSZ3Y8C36DfUhPyfUAHb0h9wMdxVMI4nCJLPycect1N6Pkhxa3KJiUjp7x8NMqZu7rjL1zXj7OTdFnccHCAZbcF%2FXDnunk78MAL75hySGRHLIbylnQWAPj","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$9.99","priceAmount":9.99,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"9","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"99","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"%2Fqq7IWHF05pqB39JKUFnKIYcTJaYvgzeMws8xGB4qfMqzUW%2FWNUZCbMW7UvcYvv4ffdBPETGpSOox7XQ17h8qEiGm1vdlFGuOf5VsCOmtkhV9VJDClTG%2BvO0Ba0rcVM0oBPFoG3Wtnt0IwOoKjvbunLC321%2FwZtxh%2FULKXGRkbiKdaetdHCSVITrjCq9TGBe","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

Journalist Peter Godwin has covered wars. As a soldier, he's fought them. But nothing prepared him for the surreal mix of desperation and hope he encountered when he returned to Zimbabwe, his broken homeland.

Godwin arrived as Robert Mugabe, the country's dictator for 30 years, has finally lost an election. Mugabe's tenure has left Zimbabwe with the world's highest rate of inflation and the shortest life span. Instead of conceding power, Mugabe launched a brutal campaign of terror against his own citizens. With foreign correspondents banned, and he himself there illegally, Godwin was one of the few observers to bear witness to this period the locals call The Fear. He saw torture bases and the burning villages but was most awed as an observer of not only simple acts of kindness but also churchmen and diplomats putting their own lives on the line to try to stop the carnage.

The Fear is a book about the astonishing courage and resilience of a people, armed with nothing but a desire to be free, who challenged a violent dictatorship. It is also the deeply personal and ultimately uplifting story of a man trying to make sense of the country he can't recognize as home.

Print length

384 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Little, Brown and Company
Publication date

March 23, 2011
Dimensions

6.25 x 1.5 x 9.5 inches
ISBN-10

031605173X
ISBN-13

978-0316051736
See all details

Frequently bought together

The Fear: Robert Mugabe and the Martyrdom of Zimbabwe

$19.37

Get it as soon as Tuesday, Aug 15

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

Sold by Atasoys and ships from Amazon Fulfillment.

+

$9.79

Get it as soon as Monday, Aug 14

Only 5 left in stock (more on the way).

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

+

When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir of Africa

$21.00

Get it as soon as Wednesday, Aug 16

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

Sold by S & G Books and ships from Amazon Fulfillment.

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your cart.

Try again!

Details

Added to Cart

Some of these items ship sooner than the others.

Show details Hide details

Choose items to buy together.

Lowest Pricein this set of products
Peter Godwin
628
Paperback
$9.79
Most purchasedin this set of products
Lionel Shriver
4,378
Paperback
$16.99
Highest ratedin this set of products
Douglas Rogers
1,561
Paperback
$17.00
This item:
Peter Godwin
150
Hardcover
$19.37
Peter Godwin
1,354
Paperback
$17.99
Alexandra Fuller
1,643
Paperback
$17.00

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. In this remarkable look inside Mugabe's isolated yet restive Zimbabwe, journalist Godwin (When a Crocodile Eats the Sun) and his sister, Georgina, return to their childhood home "to dance on Robert Mugabe's political grave"; that is, to observe firsthand the teetering of Africa's (and the world's) oldest tyrant at the critical moment of the 2008 elections. Although the elections promised an end to Mugabe's nearly 30-year dictatorship, even as the 84-year-old president has clung to power in a campaign of widespread terror. The depiction of the heroic (if "prissy") liberation leader against white-minority rule turned brutal power-monger is at once personal, well-informed, and at times, heart-racing. Godwin and Georgina tour the economically devastated and state-terrorized cities, farms, and diamond mines at considerable personal risk, gathering candid interviews with dispossessed farmers, marginalized elites, and former insiders to cast a light on the workings of Mugabe's dictatorship and psychology, and the "fear factor" crucial to his control. Godwin's skills as a journalist and his personal connection to Zimbabwe combine to create an astonishing piece of reportage marked by spare, stirring description, heartrending action, and smart analysis. (Mar.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Returning to his native Zimbabwe in 2008, Godwin had hoped to �dance on Robert Mugabe�s political grave.� But though Mugabe had been voted out as president, he did not concede power, instead sponsoring a brutal campaign of violence to crush his political opponents and suppress dissent in a land already devastated by hyperinflation and Mugabe�s compulsory land-redistribution program. Chronicling the violence, the suffering, and the chaos; recounting the stories of torture survivors and victims of politically motivated vigilantism; and examining Mugabe�s biography and politics (and placing himself in significant danger in the process), Godwin only occasionally recognizes the Zimbabwe of his childhood. But, finding heroism and resistance in the face of horrific carnage, he discovers a side of the nation that he had not known before. Much more than just the author�s third memoir of Zimbabwe (after Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa, 1996, and When a Crocodile Eats the Sun, 2007), this selection is an important work of witness. --Brendan Driscoll

Review

"The Fear is an important book detailing the violent realities, the grotesque injustices, the hunger, the sadness, and a portrait of Mugabe, the tyrant who is the cause of it all. Godwin is passionate and personal, as well as bold in his travel and scrupulous in his documentation."―Paul Theroux, author of Ghost Train to the Eastern Star

"There is nothing on the subject of Robert Mugabe's terror state that comes even close to Peter Godwin's brilliant account. It took great courage to pursue this horror at close range, as Godwin did. This book will change utterly readers' perceptions of what is happening in this afflicted corner of Africa."―Norman Rush, author of Mating and Mortals

"The Fear is an urgent and essential book: a stunning account of a dictator's determination to destroy his people, and of his people's refusal to be destroyed. Written in the teeth of devastation and despair, without recourse to sentimentality or false hope, it is a heroic account of political heroism -- and it makes for relentlessly gripping reading."―Philip Gourevitch, author of We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will be Killed With Our Families

"A feat of fearless reporting, this shattering story is not only an expose of the horrors of political violence, but a testament to the astonishing courage of ordinary citizens in the face of evil."―Melanie Thernstrom, author of The Pain Chronicles

"Peter Godwin's latest book is the most powerful indictment of Robert Mugabe's regime yet written, marking out the author as one of the sharpest observers of modern Africa."―The Economist

"Given Godwin's steady gaze back toward his home country over the past decade and a half, it is tempting to categorize The Fear as a sequel to his memoirs, but this work is too uncompromising and fierce for that.... the result is his most powerful work to date.... Godwin gives the rest of the world a reason to act. He argues that justice is not only possible in Zimbabwe, it is essential."―Alexandra Fuller, Harper's

"mesmerizing.... When a writer with such powers sets out to break your heart, you had best be prepared to have it broken. But The Fear is far more than a catalog of human rights violations and tragedy, in no small part due to the astonishing courage and determination of the Zimbabweans Godwin interviewed. Even those left cold by the usual run of "inspirational" literature will find these stories stirring."―Laura Miller, Salon

"The Fear is utterly fearless....incredibly vivid and haunting and, sadly, timely."―James Zug, The Boston Globe

"The Fear is a gut-wrenching portrait of Mugabe's enormous political sadism --and the brave, heartbreaking, nearly superhuman resistance to it.... In the hands of a less talented writer, The Fear could have become simply too painful to read. But while Godwin spares us nothing, he writes with such compassion, poetry and ironic humor that you cannot put his book down.... The Fear is a visceral masterpiece. It's illuminating, infuriating and informative. And its implications extend far beyond Zimbabwe --to the northern end of the continent and beyond, where similar struggles are being waged against other tyrannical dictators. The Fear is as important a book as we can read right now. It makes each and every one of us witness."―Susan Jane Gilman, NPR "All Things Considered"

About the Author

Peter Godwin is the award-winning author of When a Crocodile Eats the Sun and Mukiwa. Born and raised in Zimbabwe, he was educated at Cambridge and Oxford and became a foreign correspondent, reporting from more than 60 countries. Since moving to Manhattan, he has written for National Geographic, the New York Times Magazine, and Vanity Fair. He has taught at Princeton and Columbia and received a Guggenheim fellowship in 2010.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Little, Brown and Company; First Edition (March 23, 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 031605173X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0316051736
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.35 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 1.5 x 9.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,768,605 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #115 in Zimbabwe History
- #574 in Historical African Biographies (Books)
- #50,369 in Memoirs (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.3 150 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

Important information

To report an issue with this product, click here.

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Peter Godwin

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Peter Godwin is the award winning author of The Fear, When a Crocodile Eats the Sun, and Mukiwa, all published by Picador. He writes for various publications including the New York Times magazine, National Geographic and Vanity Fair. He lives in Manhattan.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5

150 global ratings

5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Solitudeape

A very hard set of anecdotes to was through

Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2023

Verified Purchase

I've read a few memoirs by Godwin, each with their own pacing and tone. This one was the hardest, possibly too much raw emotion you the point where it was hard for me to follow.
Regardless, is recommend to read this, albeit in small chunks and over a prolonged period, to understand the debauchery of this era of Zimbabwean history.

Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2011

Verified Purchase

As a fellow Zimbabwean living on foreign shores, having read Peter Godwin's The Fear I am at a loss for words. Partly because the subject matter is so bitterly painful, there is no coherent way to respond to the way the grip of power has squeezed out such a horrendous toll of human suffering, but also, no doubt, by the manner in which, despite harrowing detail, all of which he chronicles with a poignant deftness, the author still manages to transport me, with yearning, to this beautiful land. Despite the political savagery that has taken a similar toll on the wildlife, trees, rivers and mountains, Zimbabwe's haggard remnants are still proudly bursting forth. So much so that my childhood memories are keenly awakened and I feel a solid lump of sorrow for Zim's fateful journey. And I, who live in relative luxury many miles away, aware of the hard times being faced by family and friends, have imagined a subtler version of Godwin's account, probably to quieten my own fear of what has become of my home.
They call people like me, one of multitudes of Zimbabweans who live abroad, the diaspora. I knew we were of some assistance to those at home in a way by sending foreign currency and goods from time to time, but reading this book, I fear we have grossly underestimated the conditions faced by our compatriots and our absence and failure to participate is perhaps an indictment against us? I ask myself why haven't we, as a people, well educated, talented, inherently dignified, though of humble bearing, and here I speak not for myself, but the many Zimbabweans I have encountered in my life, why have we not prevented the outrage that is modern day Zim? This has troubled me over the years as I have gone about raising my children and the daily grind of my comfortable western life. But the answer is really not that complicated, it is black and white as documented in this book. The insane trajectory that took my home from it's sunny post- independence to these dark and treacherous days, is one founded on a bedrock
of fear. A groove as deep and ugly as those left by the marauding clear cutters and miners who rob Zimbabwe of its abundant fauna and tear the pristine countryside apart at its seams. I don't despair for Zimbabwe yet. I still have hope. But The Fear has
reminded me to re-examine my good fortune and consider what it is I can do to make this world a better place. This is, I think,
what any good book should do. For some lighter reading on Zimbabwe, go to: The Summoner: (The Dominic Grey Novels) (Volume 1)

108 people found this helpful

Helpful

Dendie

A Truthful Chronicle of the Facts

Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2013

Verified Purchase

Peter Godwin is not just a writer who got his facts from visiting or touring as a journalist. He was born and grew up in Zimbabwe and since leaving the country to attend university in England after serving his mandatory service in the BSA Police in a remote rural area, he has returned time and time again, first to care for his aging parents in Harare and to write about what he has seen and experienced personally, and also for the news media who employed him as a journalist.

The Fear gives truthful and graphic personal recountings of what it is like to survive (if you're lucky) in the Zimbabwe of today, if you oppose the Mugabe government.

The horrific 33-year nightmare rule of Robert Mugabe has plundered the assets and ruined the vibrant economy inherited from the White government of Prime Minister Ian Smith. Mugabe has overseen the systematic slaughter of over 20 thousand plus of the Ndebele people in the south of the country, and caused the starvation of thousands more of the entire population by removing the farms of the very people who grew the food, the white farming community. White farmers who had developed thriving farms over decades, were robbed of them literally overnight and many of them brutally beaten or murdered in the takeover. The farms were divided up and redistributed in plots to blacks who claimed to be "war vets" (many of them who weren't even born during the conflict of the 70's) and today the majority of that land stands fallow and unproductive with subsistent farming, the buildings burnt out or destroyed. Still many more thousands of Zimbabweans have fled the country for jobs in South Africa, and those who remain have been subject to unbelievably cruel tortures, vicious beatings, and murder in Mugabe's dictatorial determination to retain his maniacal rule.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Old Jerms

If you aren't familiar with Mugabe, this is shocking

Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2012

Verified Purchase

I've read Godwin's other book, "When a Chrocodile Eats the Sun" as well as several other books on Zimbabwe and this is the most powerful of all. Graphic and heart-wrenching, it documents how Mugabe stole his country's hopes for peace as he once again maintained control of "HIS COUNTRY" during the 2008 elections. He has crippled his country and betrayed their trust with endless abuses of his power. The abuse that politicians, activists, officials, and reporters endure is well-documented and chillingly described. At times, this is a tough read because you cannot believe that people on this earth are capable of the inhuman treatment of others described. But this is Zimbabwe, this is not a stable country like the U.S. where we have some freedoms to be happy with, using checks and balances on our own system. Mugabe sends a smokescreen of psychological warfare during every election he has had in the last 12 years to keep his people in check and voting for him. Zanu supporters receive beer, food, money in exchange for votes. Torture, hunger, disease, and questions of what happened belong to everyone else. Mugabe of course, takes no responsibility for the bad, only the good, all the while questioning his people's allegience to their country. Apparently, he believes that he single-handedly saved Zim from white rule during their indepencence in 1980 and the people owe him by re-electing him. Anything else would be unpatriotic. What's more, he EXPECTS the west (white rule) to help with loans and business, while spitting on us, blaming the problems of Zimbabwe solely on our targeted sanctions. In 2013 history will repeat itself once again when Mugabe comes up for re-election. The west will once again look the other way, too busy with our own problems to care........I will look for another of Peter Godwin's books then.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

B G

Hard to get through, no resolution

Reviewed in Canada on December 11, 2021

Verified Purchase

I found it hard to believe the author writes for a living. Most of the time it felt I was reading a high-schooler's work. I pushed through in hopes of finding a resolution to the terrible ordeal the people of Zimbabwe were put through but the book ends with everything still going on.

albertrusso

politics

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 12, 2022

Verified Purchase

good study of this dictator

Mike Obermaier

A cold description of an African Nightmare.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 17, 2014

Verified Purchase

I have read two other books by Peter Godwin - "Mukiwa" and "When a Crocodile swallows the Sun". These were brilliant, telling a powerful story each time, and being beautifully written also. This book is more like a fleshed out chronicle or diary so its style is less appealing, although it does convey very powerfully the nightmare of opposition to Mugabe's rule in Zimbabwe. It helps the reader to understand the appalling situation in that benighted country which is what I wanted it for. It is perhaps possible to write an "entertaining" account of a ghastly dictatorship, but that would be to pull the punches. Godwin relates the bald facts here in a journalistic straight delivery, whose very matter-of-factedness makes the horror seem all the more surreal. I would recommend this book, but would add the proviso that it is neither a pleasant nor an easy read.

One person found this helpful

See more reviews

Amazon Music Stream millions of songs	Amazon Advertising Find, attract, and engage customers	6pm Score deals on fashion brands	AbeBooks Books, art & collectibles	ACX Audiobook Publishing Made Easy	Sell on Amazon Start a Selling Account

Amazon Business Everything For Your Business	Amazon Fresh Groceries & More Right To Your Door	AmazonGlobal Ship Orders Internationally	Home Services Experienced Pros Happiness Guarantee	Amazon Ignite Sell your original Digital Educational Resources	Amazon Web Services Scalable Cloud Computing Services

Audible Listen to Books & Original Audio Performances	Book Depository Books With Free Delivery Worldwide	Box Office Mojo Find Movie Box Office Data	ComiXology Thousands of Digital Comics	DPReview Digital Photography	Fabric Sewing, Quilting & Knitting

Goodreads Book reviews & recommendations	IMDb Movies, TV & Celebrities	IMDbPro Get Info Entertainment Professionals Need	Kindle Direct Publishing Indie Digital & Print Publishing Made Easy	Amazon Photos Unlimited Photo Storage Free With Prime	Prime Video Direct Video Distribution Made Easy

Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands	Amazon Warehouse Great Deals on Quality Used Products	Whole Foods Market America’s Healthiest Grocery Store	Woot! Deals and Shenanigans	Zappos Shoes & Clothing	Ring Smart Home Security Systems

eero WiFi Stream 4K Video in Every Room	Blink Smart Security for Every Home	Neighbors App Real-Time Crime & Safety Alerts	Amazon Subscription Boxes Top subscription boxes – right to your door	PillPack Pharmacy Simplified	Amazon Renewed Like-new products you can trust

Buy new: $14.22$14.22 $5.15 delivery: Aug 14 - 15 Payment Secure transaction Ships from American University of Sovereign Nations Books Sold by American University of Sovereign Nations Books Returns Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Buy used: $9.99

Other Sellers on Amazon

Follow the Author

The Fear: Robert Mugabe and the Martyrdom of Zimbabwe Hardcover – March 23, 2011

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together

What do customers buy after viewing this item?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

From Booklist

Review

About the Author

Product details

Videos

Important information

About the author

Peter Godwin

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Top reviews from other countries

Buy new:

$14.22

$5.15 delivery: Aug 14 - 15

Payment

Secure transaction

Ships from

American University of Sovereign Nations Books

Sold by

American University of Sovereign Nations Books

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Buy used:

$9.99