This book clearly describes many of the organizational structures within the fatimid emprire. Furthermore, it gives a good account of the empire from start to finish.

A friend gave me Feather Fall for Christmas two years ago, thinking I would enjoy reading it. For some reason I put it on the shelf and forgot about it for several months. When I picked it up and started reading it, I called her to say what a fantastic book and that she must read it! Since then I have been trying to read everything by and about Laurens van der Post. He has led me into a discovery of the people and geography of South Africa, but more importantly has helped me on my spiritual journal.

In Federalism And Ethnic Conflict In Nigeria, Rotimi Suberu provides informative insights into Nigeria's strife ridden post-colonial history and its Federal political structure. A compelling analysis is given for the Nigerian system that has given rise to rampant corruption and social fragmentation. After a clear and illuminating historical and ethnopolitical survey, Suberu offers significant constitutional reforms that if adopted would lead to institutional innovations in Nigerian federalism that would successfully address the nation's demographic and ethnopolitical complexities as they exist between its Muslim and Christian populations. Federalism And Ethnic Conflict In Nigeria is significant and important reading for Nigerian studies reference collections and reading lists.

Seeing ourselves helps us to know ourselves. Seeing people in the context of their world community helps us to know that we are truly one people of the world. Chester Higgins, Jr. has celebrated the African journey and the extended and extensive African family in a way that no other photographer has. Visually this book is treasury. The essays are equally as wonderful. How can African Americans and all descendants of Africa teach our children to honor themselves? We should show them these photographs. All people interested in knowing and sharing the human story would enjoy FEELING THE SPIRIT - SEARCHING THE WORLD FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICA. Every library in every school and university in America should have a copy of this wonderful book.

I bought this book a long time ago when it was first published because I was looking for some information on primates and carnivores of Africa. When I found this book I wasn't disappointed! There are full colour, clear pictures on every page on primates, hoofed mammals, the elephant, carnivores, the aardvark, hyraxes, pangolins, rabbits and hares and the rodents. The carnivore section is the best but they all show original photographs and accounts with distribution, status, behaviour, a map and breeding habits of each animal or a group of them. Every picture has a caption saying where the photo was taken or a special feature of that mammal that makes it different from any other. There are no negative comments I can make on this book because it is clear, informative and with lots of pictures which can help your studies whether you're going to Africa or not!

Generally field guides serve one purpose; to identify animals in the field. However it is a rare occurrence when one finds a field guide that is as useful to identify species as it is to educate. Bill Branch has written such a book about the reptiles of southern Africa. The author has provided informative sections on identifying and collecting reptiles, and on the vegetative habitats of southern Africa which determine the distributions of many species. In addition the book briefly covers the evolution and breeding biology of reptiles. The photographic plates are separate to the text and allow one to quickly scan the pages to identify the species of interest. The text section of each species covers distribution, breeding biology, taxonomy and interesting facts of relevance. Whether you are visiting southern Africa or a resident, this book will spur your interest in herpetology and allow you to identify reptiles with confidence.

Wonderful story about the creation of man and why people come in so many different colors. It conveys a message of understanding that we are all one people in a most captivating way. I think this book should be an integral part of the early childhood curriculum

Recently I read "Fire in His Bones," the story of Benson Idahosa. As an inveterate reader of biographies and autobiographies I found his story to be one of the most moving and inspiring ones that I've read in a long time.
After a casual Internet search today (5-16-02), I learned that a private Nigerian University has been formed by him. What an outstanding life for a man whose father forbade him to go to school! Read it - you'll be inspired.
Jake

This book was inspired by a Safari to Kenya and Tanzania. I was part of the group that travelled with Ms. Ichikawa to Africa. The beauty of the land, the warmth of the people, and the magic of the wildlife is all recreated here... of course, in a simplified manner that makes it accessible to children of all ages. The First Bear in Africa is a story of two children learning about each other's culture. Since there are no bears in Africa, this additional clever twist adds another layer to a wonderful story. Thank you, Ms. Ichikawa, for a magical memory of an incredible adventure.

Van der Post wrote several works of fiction and non-fiction about Africa ["A Story Like the Wind", "A Far-Off Place", and "The Lost World of the Kalahari"]. This book is unique. It is not a cookbook, there are no recipes; rather it is a memoir of meals, food, and hospitality encountered over decades of living and traveling in Africa. Anyone with an interest in African cuisine would do well to obtain this book. Van der Post is very much the intellectual; he shares his thoughts as well as a description of interesting, unusual, and just plain good African food. He is an African of European ancestry. His views of Africans are never racist nor prejudiced, and it is clear he has a genuine respect and admiration for traditional African people and their mode of living, but at times his writing may strike some contemporary readers as a bit dated. Nevertheless, he is always an interesting and informed writer who has written much that is worth reading.

Some (not all) of this book is similar to the text of his "Recipes: African Cooking--Foods of the World" (published by Time-Life, 1970), which is a complete cookbook with recipes as well as much introductory text (It is a two-volume publication: large coffee-table book of text and pictures, plus a small spiral bound book of recipes).