Pete_56 reviewed Shadow of the Sun by Ryszard Kapuściński
None
5 stars
This book has been my companion for ages, and I will miss it. I have been reading these snapshots of life in Africa for about a year, on the bus to work. This is the Africa that I have lived with for the last 50 years. The coups, wars and genocides are covered, but this is no political history of Africa. The author says in his forward "In reality, except as a geographical appellation 'Africa' does not exist." Nevertheless there are themes that define the western concept of Africa, and they come through clearly. The widespread unemployment, the apparently mindless violence, the superstition, the failure to maintain anything, the sense of community, the heat are all covered in short stories, and in analytical prose. If that makes the book sound boring then I am misleading you. Ryszard has a gift for writing that should not be under estimated. I was …
This book has been my companion for ages, and I will miss it. I have been reading these snapshots of life in Africa for about a year, on the bus to work. This is the Africa that I have lived with for the last 50 years. The coups, wars and genocides are covered, but this is no political history of Africa. The author says in his forward "In reality, except as a geographical appellation 'Africa' does not exist." Nevertheless there are themes that define the western concept of Africa, and they come through clearly. The widespread unemployment, the apparently mindless violence, the superstition, the failure to maintain anything, the sense of community, the heat are all covered in short stories, and in analytical prose. If that makes the book sound boring then I am misleading you. Ryszard has a gift for writing that should not be under estimated. I was sorry to read that he died in 2007.
There are also some very personal stories, of trying to do his job as a correspondent and struggling with the lack of funding he has, of journeys across the continent in ancient and broken down trucks and of meeting so many different people.
The book builds a wonderful picture of life on the continent and is well worth a read.
