Africa Biography

What elevates teaching my mother how to give birth, what gives the poems their disturbing brilliance, is Warsan Shire's ability to give simple, beautiful eloquence to the veiled world where sensuality lives in the dominant narrative of Islam; reclaiming the more nuanced truths of earlier times -...

The road to success is rarely linear and never easy. But with courage, hard work, perseverance, and dedication to duty, Jim Ovia, founder and chairman of Zenith Bank, proves we can achieve the unthinkable. Jim has been called the Godfather of Banking by Forbes Africa. And this should be no surprise. In a time of tension between military and civilian regimes, periods of incredible economic instability, and a decaying infrastructure, Jim founded Zenith Bank in Nigeria.

The Super-Afrikaners, originally published in 1978, scandalised a nation as it exposed the secret workings of the Broederbond. Out of print for over three decades, this edition with an introduction by Max du Preez is available for a new generation. Political journalists Hans Strydom and Ivor Wilkins traced, at great personal risk, its development from the earliest days to the present. The book includes the most comprehensive list of Broeders ever published.

Recién casada, una joven danesa, aristócrata y refinada, hija y hermana de militares, viaja a Kenia, donde permanece durante diecisiete años. Esta experiencia da lugar a una novela que es una encendida declaración de amor a unos paisajes, a unas gentes y a unas culturas situadas en el polo opuesto de lo que había sido su pasado familiar y social. Poseída por la misma pulsión de Sherezade, Isak Dinesen nos sumerge en un relato que se prolonga a lo largo de páginas encantadas: el de su vida en África y el de la vida de los que la rodeaban, europeos o somalíes, kikuyus o masais.

Ray Norman spent most of his life living in far-flung corners of the globe, working on long-term development projects and living out his calling as a Christian professional. By the time he arrived in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania around the turn of the millennium, he was veteran of life as...

The biography of Mahommah Gardo Baquaqua was compiled by the abolitionist, Samuel Moore. Born in West Africa (now Benin) around 1830, Baquaqua was sold as a slave and lived in Brazil, Haiti, Canada, and the US where he escaped from slavery in New York City. He also visited England, but it is not known whether he realized his dream of returning to Africa.

Abdi Nor Iftin first fell in love with America from afar. As a child, he learned English by listening to American pop and watching action films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. When U.S. marines landed in Mogadishu to take on the warlords, Abdi cheered the arrival of these Americans, who seemed...

“Bowles is at his best when writing about places. He can evoke a place with a few sure strokes.” —New York Times “His work is art. At his best, Bowles has no peer.” —Time Travels is a thrilling anthology of the travel writings of Paul Bowles, author of the era-defining post-war novel...

A heartfelt, deeply personal book, Showing Up for Life shines a bright light on the values and principles that Bill Gates Sr. has learned over a lifetime of “showing up” — lessons that he learned growing up in the Great Depression, and which he instilled in his children and continues to...

For readers of Behind the Beautiful Forevers and Nothing to Envy, this is a breathtaking real-life story of four street children in contemporary Zambia whose lives are drawn together and forever altered by the mysterious murder of a fellow street child. Based on years of investigative reporting...

Want to end poverty for good? Entrepreneur and Samasource founder Leila Janah has the solution—give work, not aid. “An audacious, inspiring, and practical book. Leila shows how it’s possible to build a successful business that lifts people out of poverty—not by giving them money but...

In "Africa to Arizona–Memories of a South African Scatterling" Tihêhô takes listeners on a captivating journey through his life, spanning continents and cultures. Born and raised on the picturesque farm of Wintershoek in South Africa, his childhood is filled with adventures, close encounters with wildlife, and the unique experiences of rural life. Tihêhô's early years are rich with memories that shaped his identity. His years in the military also left scars on him–both psychological as well as physical.

At age twenty Rowland Bingham committed himself to serving not only in Africa, known as the white man's grave, but in Africa's Sudan interior, where few missionaries had ventured and those who did soon died of disease or retreated in defeat. Experienced missionaries told Rowland that his dream was impossible. But when he found himself the sole surviving member of the fledgling Sudan Interior Mission, he didn't give up—neither did God.

Instant #1 USA Today Bestseller From the celebrated athlete and award-winning author, an inspirational collection of personal stories and lessons that will spark change within you and transform how you contribute to the world. Arshay Cooper believes in bringing people together, seeking out...

In Part of the Pride, Kevin Richardson, dubbed "The Lion Man" on 60 Minutes, tells the story of how he grew from a young boy who loved animals to become a man able to cross the divide between humans and predators, looking some of the world's most dangerous animals directly in the eye, playing with them, and even kissing them on the nose - all without ever being attacked or injured.

In their escape from Boko Haram's reign of terror in Nigeria, Tani's family's journey to the United States was nothing short of a miracle. Then 8-year-old Tani started competing with his public school in the ultra-exclusive chess clubs of New York City – and winning. A true story of...

A prizewinning young author tells the moving story of growing up during Burundi’s ethnic civil war in this powerful memoir hailed as “a jewel of a book” (Margaret MacMillan). “There’s nothing like a great love song, and Pacifique Irankunda sings a beautiful one here to his homeland and...

Discover the untold story of how freed African American slaves and Black pioneers helped establish Liberia—the first independent Black republic in West Africa. Coming to Africa explores the Back-to-Africa movement and the role of the American Colonization Society in resettling freed slaves on African soil. Through vivid accounts of leaders like Paul Cuffe, Robert Finley, Bushrod Washington, James Monroe, John Kizell, and Zolu Duma (“King Peter”), this book reveals the struggles, resilience, and vision that shaped the birth of a nation.

In her memoir, winner of the Autumn House Press Nonfiction Prize, Jill Kanel details her early days as a newlywed, accompanying her Dutch husband to Zambia and living in a village so remote that it takes an eight-hour canoe ride to reach. This book recounts Kandel's day-to-day experiences, exploring how she learns to navigate her life in this new culture and her relationship with her husband.

Sometime in 1965, James Hawes landed in the Congo with cash stuffed in his socks, morphine in his bag, and a basic understanding of his mission: recruit a mercenary navy and suppress the Soviet- and Chinese-backed rebels engaged in guerilla movements against a pro-Western government. He knew the United States must preserve deniability, so he would be abandoned in any life-threatening situation; he did not know that Che Guevara was attempting to export his revolution a few miles away. Cold War Navy SEAL gives unprecedented insight into a clandestine chapter in US history through the experiences of Hawes, a distinguished Navy frogman and later a CIA contractor. His journey began as an officer in the newly-formed SEAL Team 2, where Hawes commanded boats in the CIA's series of covert, hit-and-run raids into North Vietnam. Those raids directly instigated the Gulf of Tonkin Incident.