Average customer rating:
- Charming, Oblique
- the wildness and irregularity of the country
- The Best Autobiography I've ever read
- There Is No Africa
- Here I am, where I ought to be.
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Out of Africa and Shadows on the Grass
Isak Dinesen
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ASIN: 0679724753
Release Date: 1989-10-23 |
Amazon.com
Out of Africa is Karin Blixen's love letter to the country she called home for nearly 20 years. Arriving in British East Africa (now Kenya) from Denmark in 1914, Blixen--Isak Dinesen was her pen name--was immediately seduced by the landscape of the Ngong hill country, not to mention the animals and people who inhabited it. Her descriptions bring this wonderland alive for readers: out on safari, she recalls the movements of a group of giraffes, "in their queer, inimitable, vegetative gracefulness, as if it were not a herd of animals but a family of rare, long-stemmed, speckled gigantic flowers slowly advancing." Blixen laces into her reverie the account of her coffee plantation--which ultimately succumbed to high altitude, droughts, and tumbling international coffee prices--and tales of her friendships with other colonials in Nairobi. But one should read her memoir for the stories she tells of cooking with her Kikuyu chef (who almost never ate any of the European delicacies he so expertly created), adopting an abandoned infant antelope, flying over the countryside in her lover's plane--"the greatest, most transporting pleasure of my life on the farm"--and watching the children of her tenant farmers collect at her house each day at noon for the spectacle of her cuckoo clock.
Though some of her references to native Africans will likely make today's readers uncomfortable, Blixen can also be perceptive, particularly in her articulation of the differences between European and African culture and her excitement over what she learns from "her" Africans. It is not long before she is attuned to the rhythms of nature: she can foresee when the rains will come, can spot the new moon before anyone else on the farm, and knows exactly what the silence of night should sound like. Though her sorrow is almost unbearably palpable when at last--after the collapse of the farm, the loss of her lover, and the war looming--Blixen leaves Africa, the reader will close the book richer for her sojourn. --Jordana Moskowitz
Book Description
With classic simplicity and a painter's feeling for atmosphere and detail, Isak Dinesen tells of the years she spent from 1914 to 1931 managing a coffee plantation in Kenya.
Customer Reviews:
Charming, Oblique.......2007-05-24
I came to this book expecting to read one woman's personal experience of living in Africa, and that's what I found. There is no sociology here, and very little historical context. She does not illuminate THE African experience. She records HER African experience. Certainly that is all she owes the reader? One woman's experience, one woman's life in a time very different from our own.
Do some of her observations shock the modern reader's sensibility? Oh certainly. There are things one simply does not SAY, and back when she wrote, she did. On the whole, her love and respect shine through when speaking of the people who entered her life as neighbors, employees and friends.
Dinesen brings to life a physical landscape that most of us will never get to see. She takes passionate delight in her work, her companions, and her surroundings. Even her setbacks are embraced, as they compose part of a life she knew was slipping away from her.
I was intrigued by what she didn't write. The book maintains almost complete silence about her husband, her health, and her relationship with Denys Finch Hatten. It is only in writing of his death that we understand how deep her feelings were. She writes around that love. Her discretion made my heart ache.
Very highly recommended.
the wildness and irregularity of the country.......2007-03-22
Now eclipsed by the Streep-Redford film presentation that appropriated its title, Karen Blixen's memoir of life on her Kenyan coffee farm speaks movingly of the more benign side of colonialism in Africa and of one European's self-evident love for the land she had made her own.
Sadly, Blixen's lush descriptions of 'her people' are often judged too quickly by modern criteria of racial attitudes, a game that is like asking this early twentieth-century writer to wrestle with one arm tied behind her back. If it can be granted that there was anything good about Europe's colonization of Africa, then Bliksen (Isak Dinesen was her pen name) is its face.
She loved the land and its people, entering about as far as was plausible in her time into the remarkable rhythm of both. What more can be asked of any of us, all children of our moment and enveloped in its limitations?
This is a book for lovers of Africa, no matter whence they come. Blixen not only pushed an eloquent pen, she was herself shaped in the biblical and classical language of educated Europeans in a way that prepared her to bridge Africa and Europe in a day when few were equipped to do so.
Blixen's Africa no longer exists, as she already realized within the window of her writing of OUT OF AFRICA and SHADOWS ON THE GRASS. Yet the Africa Blixen knew has children, not to be disinherited for the generations that have passed and the unsavory disease that a legacy of failed leaders has wrought upon this great continent. Though the primary fruit of reaching behind the celluloid to *read* OUT OF AFRICA is the satisfaction of the read itself, it is also true that today's Africa and today's Africans can be glimpsed in the great-grandparents who knew and lived in proximity to this enigmatic and uniquely gifted Danish colonist in a land she mistreated only by calling it hers.
The Best Autobiography I've ever read .......2005-10-13
I find most autobiographies to be masterbatory exercises in which the authors attempt to explain themselves.
But in Out of Africa, Denison does no explaining, no apologizing. It is love poem to the Africa she knew, and while she does display racist views, it is as she unashamedly shows her heartbreak over a world she loved and was lost.
Denison also wrote some very powerful short stories, most notably the ones in "Winter's Tales." "The Sorrow Acre," is technically one of the most masterly presented short stories I have ever read. Despite her later skills, though, Out of Africa sets itself apart as a masterpiece for its ability to elegantly show an individual's gushing sense of loss.
There Is No Africa.......2004-11-28
Underlying Blixen's tale of early 20th century Africa is the presumption that there was such a place; that is, a people or nation of peoples existed to which she went and from which she was forced to depart by economic circumstances. This presumption a priori allows her to reminisce about Africa the way it was or was supposed by her to have been.
As she observed, Africa was, in a sense, leaving her. Peoples were being moved around, new laws restricting tribal behavior were being passed, and the Ngong Hills were being laid out as a suburb of Nairobi. She was there, she professed, before all these changes began.
But was she? Was there a time and place, "Africa", or is this concept mainly her and the European view of the times? Blixen's Africa in fact was not any sort of original. Europeans had already produced vast changes: the tribes were by then being herded into reservations and European ways and goods prevailed. European reporters never reported Africa the way it was or had been. That information remained "dark."
The informational darkness is not entirely their fault. An observer always alters that which he sets out to observe. It is only a presumption that his observations are an approximation of the reality the way it would be without him observing it. That presumption is least justifiable in human affairs. We will never know what the original Masai or Kikuyu were like, or the exact configuration of flora and fauna among which they dwelled, or how they reacted to their environments or each other.
Similarly Blixen's little white light doesn't shine very far. We get some ethnic generalities as the vehicle of which she devises some stock identities, "the Kikuyu", "the Masai" and the like, which, on closer examination, turn out to be of European origin. Blixen manufactures masks and tries to get the Africans to wear them. Sociological and anthropological data are nearly entirely in deficit from these supposed traits. She probably is not alone in this process of inventing peoples. It accounts, perhaps, for why the Mau-mau insurrection caught the Europeans totally by surprise, as though you were to paint doodles on a sleeping man's body and he were to awake suddenly and demand angrily to know what you were doing.
Here I am, where I ought to be........2004-11-19
I'm another reader who comes to Out of Africa by way of Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye; and it became recommended reading before I visited Kenya for myself in the early 90's. So, having just finished it and now half way through Shadows on the Grass, my overall impression is a pleasant one. I enjoyed Dinesen's writing style very much, and would agree with many readers that Out of Africa deserves a place among the classics in English literature. It's Karen Blixen's memoirs of her time in Kenya around WWI, living and working on her coffee plantation near Nairobi. Her descriptions of the Natives, her European friends, the land, the animals, flora and fauna are incredible. The chapters shift back and forth in time, some focused on specific events and individuals, some more whimsical and anecdotal. Reading Out of Africa transports the reader into early 20th Centrury colonial Kenya, and more concretely, onto Ms. Blixen's farm at the foot of the Ngong Hills. Years later she takes up her time in Africa again in Shadows on the Grass, talking more about her loyal Somali servant & right-hand man, Farah, taking a more philosophical tone regarding "masters & slaves", Native superstitions, manners, and so on. Shadows is inferior in many ways to Out of Africa, and it feels more like an "addendum" to the main work, which is poetry by comparison. By the time she writes it, she seems to have grown slightly more distant, and well, Colonist European.
As for Out of Africa, if you've seen the movie version and are looking for it here you're in for a surprise because the book contains no overt romance between Karen & Denys, nor mention of siphylous, nor much in the way of Karen's own personal life. Her ex-husband, Bror is almost non-existant. That makes sense seeing that she wrote under a pseudonym for whatever reaons. Still, I was slightly disappointed not to find more personal thoughts or emotions from her, or discussions regarding the politcal, historical, or economic backdrop of Kenya. Or the workings of the coffee business there. (I have yet to read it, but from what I gather "Uhuru" by Robert Ruark is an excellent novel dealing with these types of affairs in Kenya in the next generations after Blixen, in the 1950's & 1960's). Also, Blixen is very much a product of the times and her colonial attitudes and mindset sometimes come across as condescending or negative towards the Africans (mostly in certain passages in Shadows though). However, I do believe that in her frequent comparisons between the animals, land, and Natives Blixen is actually praising and admiring the people, not being racist or mean, as one reviewer here claims. She frequently praises the Kikuyus, Masai, and Somali she lives with for their numerous attributes (as well as the European settlers) and for their simplicity and harmony with nature, versus the repressed and "civilized" Europe she comes from. One other thing that's different from the movie is her attitude towards hunting. In the movie it's as though she doesn't hunt at all, but in the book she specifically mentions her intitial desire to shoot one of every kind of local game (though she does later express some distaste for hunting, she remains enthusiastic about shooting lions, comparing it in Shadows to "a declaration of love" and hunting to being a sort of "love-affair"). She means respect, but oh how the times have changed now with all the big game enthusiasts shooting game with . . . cameras from pop-top mini-vans!
Once I let go of the movie (its own masterpiece of beauty & cinematography) and my intellectual curiosities, and came to accept Blixen's memoir as it is, I enjoyed it more and more as I read on. I took my time reading it, savoring it, and reflecting upon my own safari experience (with a camera) in Kenya not too many years ago, and found much to admire and contemplate in her writings, even if from a different era. While Out of Africa isn't especially deep or philosphical, nor dramatic or emotional, it somehow comes across as a grand novel, and there are moments when all of the above hit you. This is due primarily, I think, to Blixen's having lived a fascinating life in a unique period and place, and knowing how to tell a story without overdoing it - she just writes her own experiences. One good example of this balance can be found in one of my favorite chapters entitled, "A Fugitive Rests on the Farm" from Part III. In it, a Swedish immigrant and traveler named Emmanuelson stays briefly on Karen's farm, discusses his lonely and peripatetic life with her, and eventually walks off into the Masai reserve all alone, putting his fate into God & the Masai's hands. The sparse detail and images are great. Likewise, her rememberances with Denys Fitch-Hatton are wonderfuly scenic and memorable as well, and subtly romantic. All the vignettes she relates are mostly undramatic, straight-forward, and though unforgettable. Out of Africa is a unique literary memoir and journal of a diverse group of people come together in one specific place and time, bonded together by the very soil in which the coffee trees they lived for were once planted, and live on in these organic pages.
Amazon.com
From 1991 to 1994, Keith Richburg was based in Nairobi as the Africa bureau chief for the Washington Post. He traveled throughout Africa, from Rwanda to Zaire, witnessing and reporting on wars, famines, mass murders, and the complexity and corruption of African politics. Unlike many black Americans who romanticize Africa, Richburg looks back on his time there and concludes that he is simply an American, not an African American. This is a powerful, hard-hitting book, filled with anguished soul-searching as Richburg makes his way toward that uncomfortable conclusion.
Book Description
In “the most honest book to emerge from Africa in a long time” (USA Today), a black american correspondent for the Washington Post reports on the horrors he witnessed in Somalia, Rwanda, South Africa, and other troubled African nations-and reflects on his own identity. Map; updated with a new afterword.
Customer Reviews:
disturbing.......2007-03-29
this is a very disturbing and frightening account. While I agree with the authors premise of "straight talk", I do not agree with the pessimism.
I grew up in Africa and it has its own unique beauty. Africa is not for everyone though, black or white, only certain people can appreciate it. Africa has many problems, and many of them cannot be blamed on western or European nations. They are africa's problems so africa must find its own solutions. I agree with the author that african dictators have committed terrible atrocities to their own citizens
Richburg seems to focus on the extreme negative sides of Africa, rwanda war, somali civil war, war in the congo. But they were people in other parts of Africa who were equally shocked and revulsed by those wars. I am african but I do not think even I could manage to keep myself together if I had seen 3 different civil wars in three years. You do not have to be a non-african to be affected.
Basically you cannot make generalizations about Africa. In my whole life in africa( more than 25 years) I have never seen anyone killed, never, I have never seen anyone fire an AK47. Petty theft is a part of life that you get used to, what do you expect when folks live on less than $1. just keep your wallet in your front pocket. And if you do not want burglers to rob your home just have a large family with plenty of extended relatives- too much to handle for burglers, life goes on.
I disagree with the authors pessimism because around 80% of all african countries have mulitiparty democratic elections. Liberia elected africa's first woman president. Africa is largely entering its second round or phase of multiparty democracy as the terms of most two term presidents have ended. Malawi, tanzania, zambia, south africa have all entered this phase. Nigeria is about to have its first transition from one elected leader to the next.
It is known there is a stigma about africa amongst many of African descent. Because of the "poverty" and lack of development many would like to distance themselves and not be associated with Africa. I can understand that, its a personal choice. But I think that is what is at the heart of this book. This book is very anti-african, for a man who spent 3 years in Africa and did not integrate well with africa and felt like an alien- well I think that says alot.
A must read.......2007-03-02
I read this book when it first came out. It is a fascinating, gripping and honest portrayal of the author's experiences in Africa. Some of the images it painted in my mind are still with me, such as the scene of the bodies flowing down the river from the upstream genocide.
Africa is a big enough and important enough place that everyone should read this book to get a dose of the reality that is Africa.
I noticed a strange thing with the few critics that did not like this book. Every single one of them resort to psycho analyzing the author. They theorize that he is traumatized and not in his right mind, or he is suffering from self hatred and self doubt and that, more than his actual experiences, explains the book. To me it is certainly ok to dispute or disagree with an author if you don't like his book, but is it necessary to attack his mental health if you dont't like what he reports? It reminds me of the tactics of the Soviet Union where dissenters were declared mentally ill and put into institutions. What is it about all these folks who are offended about his reporting on conditions in Africa that make them want to attack the author's mental health? One of the reviewers even went so far as to call him a "murderer" and "traitor". One reviwer who even claimed to have been a friend in college used the mental health approach to undermine his work. Some friend!
When I read the book I saw a brilliant reporter at work and detected not a hint of mental illness or psychosis. Read the negative reviews for yourself and help me get a grip on this strange approach to critisizing this book....I've never seen anything quite like it....at least not since the decline of the Soviet Union. Is this a new trend?
A brilliantly-written book that bravely bucks conventional wisdom.......2007-01-17
Richburg's book is both immensely important and immensely readable. His command is majesterial. He marshalls facts and personal experiences to substantiate the twin arguments that are at the book's core: (1) that modern-day Africa is a place of almost unimaginable violence and dysfunction, and (2) that black American identity has wrongly tried to establish an unquestioning affinity with that troubled continent.
Truth is always in short supply, particularly at the nexus of race, identity and global politics. Richburg's book speaks with a precision and intelligence that inform, provoke and ultimately enlighten his readers. Highly recommended.
"There but for the grace of God we go"-excerpt from the book.......2006-10-26
It's one of the best and most gripping book I've read. It's a very vivid account of someone on the ground of what really happened in Africa in the early nineties. ..very honest, passionate , and angry.
I must admit, in the first few chapters I thought, here's a very intelligent black man whose circumstance shielded him from the discriminating lot in America. As you read on, you would come to admire this man for coming out victorious, successful and grateful amidst the discriminating environment he grew up with.
I've recommended these books to my friends-regardless of whether they think America owes them anything or not.
A Black Man confronts his worst fears, his identity:.......2006-09-16
Keith B. Richburg was the Washington Post's Africa bureau chief from 1991 to 1994. In his memoir "Out of America" Richburg's tale of Africa is interesting. He describes himself as a man torn between two worlds. First he copes with living as a black man with Euro-centric tendencies and second, he refers to him self as a black man who doesn't quite fit in an Afro-centric world.
Many reviewers have labeled Richburg a self hating black man because of some of his statements. Many Blacks who've read the book were offended. I guess some of his views could be construed in a negative manner when perceived from a racially myopic standpoint, and I quote, "Thank God my nameless ancestors, brought across the ocean in chains and leg irons, made it out alive. Thank God I am an American." To properly ascertain why Richburg made this comment the reader has to comprehend the horrors that he's witnessed. A Case in point: the atrocities in Rwanda. In chapter 5, "Thy Neighbor's Killer," in reference to the Rwandan massacre Richburg states that, "I first saw the bodies floating down the Kagera River from Rwanda into Tanzania. They floated down the river and over the Rusumo Falls." What has to be ascertained is that during the 1994 campaign the Hutu massacred the Tutsi. Belgium lost control of the territory and the Tutsi were in league with the Belgians while the Hutu became second class citizens. The Hutu in a jealous rage perceived that the Tutsi were the enemy and in a sense they were since they represented the years of sanguineous oppression that the Hutu experienced, which sparked their recalcitrancy or insurrection. However, this doesn't justify the Hutu's barbarous acts.
The overall point that Richburg was making was that he's glad he wasn't involved in this gravitas situation. I think most people would have the same response if they had experienced this atrocity.
In chapter 3, Richburg takes a journey through Somalia. He begins his tale quoting a U.S. intelligence official, "Somalia has ceased to exist. And right now, nobody cares." Richburg covered the 1992 atrocities in Mogadishu which lead into the United Nations' mission "Operation to Restore Hope" which was a complete failure. Later the U.N. succeeded in alleviating the famine conditions in the country. But in the end the U.N. retreated and the country has been in a state of entropy ever since.
Moreover, Richburg delves into the issue of economic strangulation. His inquiry was, "why has East Asia emerged as the model for economic success while Africa has seen mostly poverty, hunger and economies propped up by foreign aid?" And Richburg's answer, "corruption is the cancer eating at the heart of the African states. It is what sustains Africa's strongmen in power, and the money they pilfer, when spread generously throughout the system, [this] is what allows them to continue to command allegiance long after their last shred of legitimacy [is] gone." One particular case was Zaire president Mobutu stashing nearly $10 billion in overseas bank accounts, while ripping off state-run corporations. The African people are not receiving the funds necessary to run their countries. According to the World Bank,"Africa is home to the world's poorest nations." African children's mortality rate is abysmal. Children are most likely to die before age five and most adults don't make it beyond age fifty. The book gives many answers, unfortunately the answers given are uncomfortable ones, and may not be what the reader wants to read. But the bottom line is that the truth hurts.
Also, the book briefly alludes to Liberia's late 1980's free fall and the maniacal Valentine Strasser's ascension to power. The fact that in 1993 African American leaders such as Coretta Scott King, Jesse Jackson and Louis Farrakhan attended a summit meeting between Africans and African Americans organized by the Reverend Leon Sullivan (who is an anti apartheid activist) leaves something to the imagination.
The question that was raised during the summit was a legitimate one. How come black leaders are so quick to call for social change in America under white suppression but waffle around the issue when it involves black suppression on black people in African countries? It's just something to ponder on, but remember be circumspect when contemplating on the issues brought up in this book. Don't read this with a reactionary point of view. You'll do yourself a deserves then.
This book should be read by a wide readership because it is so thought provoking. Many Blacks need to take an internal journey of the self and contemplate the true meaning of ethics and justice, then and only then will all Africans taste freedom.
Richburg succeeds in taking the reader through his personal journey, but if you are looking for an academic perspective then look elsewhere because this is his story, his experience. If you want to learn more about Africa this book will lead you in the right direction, but academia it is not.
Book Description
In this book, the author of Seven Gothic Tales gives a true account of her life on her plantation in Kenya. She tells with classic simplicity of the ways of the country and the natives: of the beauty of the Ngong Hills and coffee trees in blossom: of her guests, from the Prince of Wales to Knudsen, the old charcoal burner, who visited her: of primitive festivals: of big game that were her near neighbors--lions, rhinos, elephants, zebras, buffaloes--and of Lulu, the little gazelle who came to live with her, unbelievably ladylike and beautiful.
The Random House colophon made its debut in February 1927 on the cover of a little pamphlet called "Announcement Number One." Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer, the company's founders, had acquired the Modern Library from publishers Boni and Liveright two years earlier. One day, their friend the illustrator Rockwell Kent stopped by their office. Cerf later recalled, "Rockwell was sitting at my desk facing Donald, and we were talking about doing a few books on the side, when suddenly I got an inspiration and said, 'I've got the name for our publishing house. We just said we were go-ing to publish a few books on the side at random. Let's call it Random House.' Donald liked the idea, and Rockwell Kent said, 'That's a great name. I'll draw your trademark.' So, sitting at my desk, he took a piece of paper and in five minutes drew Random House, which has been our colophon ever since." Throughout the years, the mission of Random House has remained consistent: to publish books of the highest quality, at random. We are proud to continue this tradition today.
This edition is set from the first American edition of 1937 and commemorates the seventy-fifth anniversary of Random House.
Customer Reviews:
Out of Africa abridgment too limited.......2007-10-04
The two-cassette abridgment was way too limiting for such a magnificent book. Also disappointing was the fact that the product was a rejected one from a public library, and the second tape was stretched and half of the second tape was not able to be heard. This product should never have been sold in this condition.
Hindsight.......2007-10-03
This was the first of many books I've read about Africa. At the time, I had a romanticized view of The Dark Continent, a naieve view.
After doing some more research, I realize Karen Blixen's view was VERY romanticized....to the extent that many of her contemporaries thought her somewhat odd and out of touch with reality.
If you want a lyrically told story colored with emotion...this is for you.
If you're interested in Africa as it really was, read the many accounts extant by settlers who spent far more time, and ranged over a wider area.
"Out of Africa": The Book, the Movie, the Feminist.......2007-09-11
The book, "Out of Africa," is a memoir of the Danish Baroness Karen Blixen's habitation near Nairobi in Kenya from 1914 to 1931 on a fertile 6000-acre coffee plantation, "at the foot of the Ngong Hills" (1992: 3). Blixen writes under the pen-name Isak Dinesen. Karen Blixen went to British East Africa (in a location in present-day, Kenya) to join her German husband (Baron Bror Blixen), and upon separation she stayed in Kenya to manage the farm by herself. The extent of her adventures in Africa, and to what extent she is a feminist is borne out by the book, as well as the film "Out of Africa," that is based on the book. This piece will examine such, as well as comparisons between the book and the film.
Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen) presents geographical detail, oftentimes comparisons and contrasts within this fertile land of the Kikuyu people that would several decades later be the crux of the Mau-Mau rebellion over whites' displacement and dispossession of natives from their land. Dinesen also compares features with those of her native Europe. Dinesen writes of the equatorial habitat, "Everything that you saw made for greatness and freedom, and unequaled nobility...Up in this high air you breathed easily, drawing in a vital assurance and lightness of heart: Here I am where I ought to be" (1992: 4). Dinesen writes of "heavy-scented lilies," of "long-rains," "ever-changing clouds," of "hills from the farm [that} changed their character many times in the course of the day, and sometimes looked quite close and at times very far away" (1992: 4). Dinesen, in precise and elegant language displays love and fascination for the geography, the clean air, the animals, the beauty of this African environment; she becomes possessed by the place.The movie captures the large, picturesque, mysterious, and varied eastern equatorial Africa where the eland, the buffalo, and the rhino are quite common sights; the movie impressively and unanimously earned, Oscar, "Best Picture of the Year."
In the end Dinesen is forced to give up her plantation, this scenario elicits a heartache and sadness. Dinesen's memoirs, years after she had left Africa could be a reflection of her nostalgic dealing with her loss of the farm as well as overall experiences in Africa. Dinesen stands out as a courageous and strong woman, one who is in the feminist direction. She lost her philandering husband, but stayed on bravely, for nearly 20 years in a foreign harsh environment, one with languages and cultures far-fetched from her own. Dinesen worked well at being appreciative of an environment that was new to her, during an era of colonialism in Africa, a time when Darwinian relegation of black Africans to the lowest of human species and elevation of whites to the upper rung was very strong. Dinesen cuts through the female traditional roles, she tries flying in planes, the goes on safari, she learns how to shoot and even shoots and kills game. She is open and welcomes countless visitors from all over the world to her home and farm. This was an age of exploration and acquisition of "Dark Africa," by Europeans and Asians. Dinesen is quite aware of her feminine strength. She rescues and adopts a wounded antelope she names Lulu; Lulu becomes a celebrity on the farm; Dinesen searches, discovers and celebrates the feminist strength in Lulu: "But Lulu was not really gentle, she had the so-called devil in her. She had, to the highest degree, the feminine trait of appearing to be exclusively on the defensive, concentrating on guarding the integrity of her being, when she was really, with the force in her, bent upon and defensive" (1992: 74). Also, "Lulu of the woods was a superior, independent being...she was in possession. If I had happened to have known a young princess in exile, and while she was still a pretender to the throne, and had met her again in her full queenly estate after she had come into her rights, our meeting would have had the same character" (1992: 78).
The book displays that Karen Blixen exemplified the Europeans with the upper hand in colonial world conquest and politics. It is to be recalled that the three weapons used by Europeans to subjugate Africans were the gun, the Bible, and the anthropologist. Karen used guns to protect herself. Catholic (mostly Belgian and French), Protestant (mostly British), and Muslim (mostly Arabic) agencies vied for power in Africa. The Germans were in present-day neighboring Tanzania (German East Africa) to the south. They would be ousted during this significant, "Scramble for Africa." The book illustrates how Karen Blixen took great interest in which religious group the young natives (some of whom served her) adhered to. Many native followers, taught to kneel and pray to an invisible white Almighty god, became converted to the political/ religious groups, as they became dispossessed of their land resources. The anthropology aspect, as mentioned, involved relegation of black Africans to the lowest rungs of evolutionary mankind...the white was relegated as the superior, the master, the savior, the benevolent, the genius. The movie is great at casting Meryl Streep as the beautiful, rosy-cheeked clean, statuesque woman amidst muddy, black African paradise! The real Karen Blixen likely had more rugged looks and likely often got "down-and-dirty," than is depicted in the movie. An equatorial Africa of long and heavy rainy seasons, of continuous tropical sun, and of limited running water would not leave the Danish heroine so clean and collected.
It is to be recalled that Dinesen is writing from an overly European point of view, hence, negative criticism of her will not be short. Her attitude to black Africans is racist and condescending. In the movie, Denys Finch-Hatton (Robert Redford) rebukes her for instructing native porters to get off her belongings by "shooing," them off!. Finch-Hatton, in shock, remarks to her, "Shoo?" as if telling her, "I do not believe you addressed these people that way!" Finch-Hatton (who became Dinesen's lover) knows the native languages (Kiswahili and Kikuyu), and goes on to communicate her instructions to the porters. Black Africans are prevalently depicted in the movie as poverty-stricken servants, laborers and porters, as helpless people close to animal nature. In tune with the movie, here Dinesen writes, "They were poor people, small and underfed; they looked like a pair of badgers on my lawn...I could hardly distinguish them against the grass. They were sank in deep grief; their bereavement and their economic loss melted into one overwhelming distress" (1992: 108). Dinesen is surprised that the, "Natives," are strikingly open, adapting, welcoming and unprejudiced. Yet, as prevalent in the colonial fashion, she does not attribute this to the inner traditions and workings of indigenous African society, but from influence from foreigners including slavers! "The lack of prejudice in the Natives is a striking thing, for you expect to find dark taboos in the primitive people. It is due...to their acquaintance with a variety of races and tribes, and to the lively human intercourse that was brought upon East Africa, first by the old traders of ivory and slaves...and...by the settlers and big-game hunters" (1992: 54).
Dinesen wishes the natives would understand and appreciate her more. It is always presumptuous to be confident of having fully understood a foreign culture and people; she does not seem to believe she is prejudiced and why the natives to a good extent regard her as a foreigner far different from them, and difficult to comprehend. She writes, "If I know a song of Africa,---I thought,---of the Giraffe, and the African new moon lying on her back, of the ploughs in the field, and the sweaty faces of the coffee pickers, does Africa know a song of me?" (1992: 83). At the same time, Dinesen quite often acknowledges that newcomers from Africa are from a noisy and rushed world, they do not have the patience and connectedness of native Africans. European colonialists imposed on the natives an alien system of forced dispossession and displacement and of monopoly. So much of this colonial intrusion was quite new to the prevalently communalist and family-oriented, egalitarian way of native African subsistence.
Karen Blixen's marriage starts out as more of a convenience than of romance. She left Denmark to marry the German Baron Bror Blixen (Klaus Maria Brandauer) and start a dairy in Kenya. Bror is actually the brother of her lover. Karen is offering her fortune for companionship and adventure (and for the title of, "Baroness") much more than for enjoying the security of a man. So, from the outset, Karen's feminist inclinations are strong. The husband changes his mind about the diary, and instead invests her money in a risky venture of growing coffee. The husband is unfaithful, philandering, gives her syphilis that will disable her from having children; the marriage breaks up. Karen is left to manage the farm, she has to battle with floods and fire. Hardly anything of British big game hunter Denys Finch-Hatton's romance with Dinesen (Karen Blixen), is mentioned in the book; the movie likely borrows from other sources depicting the life of Karen Blixen. Unfortunately the English accent of Denys Finch-Hatton is not conveyed by Redford, compared to Karen's excellent outflow of a Scandinavian accent. Yet, the movie depicts their chemistry, Denys is impressed by her strength and independence, Karen's ability to tell and weave stories, they kiss, and in one scene have sex. Karen does seem to desire long-term companionship and commitment from Denys, desire for a man who will sacrifice to be with her. She stands against having a man like Denys who wants to be "free-wheeling," one who will come and go depending on need and desire, he loves the African outdoors. Finch-Hatton is mysterious, elusive and emotionally distant, but he is miscast in that in the movie: he seems to represent an all-American jock that waywardly found his way into Africa. Karen was wounded before, and this encounter with Denys is only a brief moment of ecstasy, but she bravely soldiers on, appreciating more of what is around her. Karen is indeed confident, stoic and creative in face of the odds. She did resist going on safari with Denys, but she eventually succumbed to his quite undeniable invitation. Eventually, they got closer, she broadened her horizons, she better adapted to and better accepted foreigners and their ways.
In conclusion, the movie emphasizes the romantic issues and episodes in Karen Blixen's life in Africa (romance and sex sells in Hollywood), much more than the book does. The book seems to be constructed from a breadth of notes of what Blixen put together while in Africa, and weaved them into a good fairy tale. The truth is that Blixen dealt with aspects like fluctuating coffee prices, sometimes drought and heavy rains, discontented dispossessed natives, scrambles for Africa amongst several European agencies, African diseases and sometimes unsanitary conditions, wildlife from untamed neighborhoods. The movie does display the exquisite beauty of tropical Africa which Blixen did dwell on, but not on the colonial wranglings. There is lyrical beauty in Blixen's writing, and the movie does elicit an African peaceful mood through the excellent music. Blixen, in both the movie and the book is a strong and opinionated woman, yet flexible and open to ideas, people, and adventure. She is a significant precursor of modern-day feminism.
There and back again..........2007-09-06
It's tough to bungle a memoir set in Africa - early 20th-century, a hilltop coffee plantation, with lions, hyenas, giraffes, zebras and views of Kilamanjaro - and Karen Blixen largely avoids it. Surrounded by offbeat adventurers and Kikuyu retainers, the author has innumberable sources of interest to draw from.
I saw the movie when it premiered in 1985 and, maybe because of my youth, found it to be quite a sleeper. Some twenty years later, I find the book, as is often the case, to be significantly better. But, this doesn't disguise the fact that Blixen's written work can be somewhat disjointed. She skips hither and yon and too often casts aside a recollection before it's much anticipated completion. Kamante, a cherished and endearing Kikuyu child, a seemingly essential component, disappears without trace though ostensibly remaining within the author's immediate employ. One is left disappointedly pondering where this disarming youngster has gone.
All things considered, however, the period and place overpower any literary shortcomings. Blixen's scattershot approach still manages to bestow a palpable sense of wonder. It feeds the pull a person feels for the savannah, the safari, the elemental mystique which is the continent of Africa. I recommend it. 4+ stars.
Not quite like the movie.......2007-06-11
After watching the movie, I was eager to read the actual story it was based on...Oh my....a bit of a "yawn". Didn't make it even 1/3 through; just couldn't stay interested. More of a day to day diary of her life on the coffee plantation and not nearly as interesting or historically the same as the movie...I think the movie may have taken a lot of creative license to make it interesting. However, it does give a very good description of life in Africa in the early 1900's.
Book Description
Cape Town is one of the richest and most culturally diverse cities in Africa, and one of the most beautiful in the world. Set where two oceans meet and overlooked by Table Mountain, it offers endless beaches, natural attractions, and outdoor opportunities. Gastronomically speaking, the man-made attractions are impressive too—the food and wine are excellent, the cultural life thriving. Reborn after the ugly days of apartheid, Cape Town is a premier holiday destination for Americans, where the dollar goes a long way and English is ubiquitously spoken. The Time Out Cape Town guide gives travelers extensive information on the beaches, the food and wine, and the culture of this fascinating city, with coverage of the beachside suburbs, and the wine lands. This guide offers expert advice on enjoying the city's thriving food and drink scene, with tips on restaurants, local vineyards, cheese farms, strawberry picking, cigar bars, and sunset spots.
Customer Reviews:
Time Out Cape Town: Winelands and the Garden Route.......2007-08-28
As many other Time Out Guides, the Cape Town one didn't let me down. It is a very reliable and updated source on best hotels in town, best shops, best restaurants, bars, and so on, for all budgets. I believe it enhanced greatly my experience of knowing new places. I took my Time Out Guides with me to NYC, New Orleans, Buenos Aires and Cape Town and I must say their recommendations rarely disapointed me. They also have a comprehensive session on tours, museums or sight seeing, but they are not the most complete in the market, though.
EXCELLENT guide to Cape Town.......2005-05-01
I spent a month in Cape Town and this guide was always by my side. Excellent guide with wonderful endearing side bars on locals-it gives you a great sense of Cape Town and its local flavour. All the sections are dead on. I found the dining and shopping extremely helpful with its guide to what is uniquely Capetonian. This is by far the best guide to Cape Town out now. The writers and contributors for this guide should be commended.
Amazon.com
Wellesley classics professor Mary Lefkowitz takes aim at the basic claims of leading proponents of Afro-centrism, in this expansion of her New Republic article exposing flaws in the argument that black Africans were responsible for the great civilizations of Egypt and Greece that brought praise from historians and criticism from Afrocentrists. Lefkowitz argues that the Greeks' African heritage touted by Senegalese scholar Cheikh Anta Diop is based upon a single dubious source and that Egyptians never considered themselves black Africans, in fact, that they consciously disassociated themselves from blacks. She argues that the legacy of these two cultures remains so rich even foes of European civilization want to claim that legacy for themselves.
Book Description
Was Socrates black? How about Cleopatra? Was Greece colonized by Egypt? As absurd as these claims seem to be, they, and other "truths" are being taught today to college students across the country.
Not Out of Africa is the first book to debunk these claims made by the Afrocentric movement. Dispensing with political correctness in favor of historical accuracy, professor Mary Lefkowitz presents a fascinating and scholarly look at each of these myths, meticulously dismantling them and explaining why they have propagated despite an overwhelming lack of real evidence. At the same time, she sounds a ringing clarion call that warns us all about the social and intellectual dangers inherent in suspending academic standards to indulge a political agenda.
Customer Reviews:
Pure Crap.......2007-09-27
Whether Ancient, notice I wrote ANCIENT Egypt were African people is not even up for debate anymore, except among racist who can't allow themselves to concieve the notion that while eur-asians were bashing each other up-side the head in caves, Africans were building pyramids. African Civilization was established long before anyone concieved of someplace called Greece, Rome or before anyone named Abraham came along.
I saw Mary Lefkowitz in a Debate with a great scholar, John Henrik Clarke, in the early 90s when the debate was raging; she couldn't even defend her position even with help from one of her colleagues.
If Ancient Egypt was anything other than black people, Africans, then why is there such an effort to dispute it, when the greeks & romans acknowledged it in their own writings, such as the Illiad; and why was Cheikh Anta Diops' books banned in this country? Dr. Clarke had to literally fight just to get them published here, and most of the really important ones still can't be found in this country. If more Africans in the diaspora were aware of their true history, we wouldn't even have to entertain such non-sense as this waste of paper.
What a Horrible Argument .......2007-07-19
I read this book in 2002 because my professor had a problem with my statement that the Greeks stole their philosophy from Kemet (Egypt). This is some pure garbage under the guise of scholarly pursuits. She never discredits anything. She never discusses Gerald Massey or any other European Scholars who wrote about the influence of Kemet on modern civilization. She mentioned that one could say that Kemet is source of all the religious systems...duah...my point is if you are going to set out to crush an argument crush the some of the earliest writing about the topic. She also makes claims about Socrates being black...nobody says that...what we say is the his term "Know Thy Self" was around thousands of years before he existed. It is the white superiority complex that makes this claim so unbelievable which is sad. But as global cleansing is occurring this argument will soon be moot.
An Important Corrective.......2007-05-05
I have come to this issue of Afrocentrism late, and thus to this book late. As a teacher of ancient Greek philosophy, when I heard of these claims of Egyptian antecedents of Greek philosophy I felt compelled to look into them. I read two books: first Innocent C. Onyewuenyi's "The African Origin of Greek Philosophy," and Molefi Kete Asante's "The Egyptian Philosophers," and was unimpressed by the arguments (my reviews of both are on this site). I also read a part of the first volume of Martin Bernal's "Black Athena" and was equally unimpressed.
Mary Lefkowitz's book is unfortunate in two respects. It is unfortunate that in certain areas of academe political aspirations have motivated tawdry scholarship of the sort that she feels compelled to respond to. Postmodernist fantasies and certain elements of radical feminist studies serve as other sad examples. Secondly, it is unfortunate that Lefkowitz must divert from her own productive research to write a book that goes back to the basics of classical studies to refute the many absurd claims made by afrocentrists. Indeed I think the reason that many reputed scholars don't do this yeoman work is that they don't wish to be distracted from their own work for what they quite correctly regard as nonsense. But unfortunately the nonsense is growing in influence, and so all scholars owe Lefkowitz a debt of gratitude for her willingness to take on such a thankless task.
Lefkowitz is thorough in her approach. She doesn't simply correct the multitude of errors that afrocentrists make in the development of their arguments. In addition she does two other things to seal the case. For one, she tracks down the modern sources of the conceptualization of ancient Egypt which provide the framework for afrocentrist arguments. This framework is the so-called ancient Egyptian Mystery System-an imagined system of education administered by the Egyptians that was supposed to have branches throughout the ancient world. This she traces back to a fictional novel written in the 18th century by Abbe Jean Terrasson. Terrasson's fantasy was preserved as factual within Free Masonry since its publication, and is the "scholarly resource" upon which afrocentrists have based their arguments.
The second thing Lefkowitz does is to point out various errant methodological principles upon which afrocentrists rely. There is what Lefkowitz calls "the argument from silence": the absence of any texts of Egyptian origin that might confirm the afrocentrist's argument is thought to bolster their view. Technically in logic this is ignoratio elenchi, or argument from ignorance. Martin Bernal argues in this manner when he insists that the traditional creation myths of ancient Egypt "must" have been for popular consumption, and there "must" have been a more abstract and theoretical basis for them preserved by the priests of Egypt. Where are the texts? Not only is this argument from ignorance, but it ignores the implausibility that any abstract interpretation of the myths would undoubtedly require written expression. Abstract and complex conceptualizations can only be developed in writing. Lefkowitz also notes the tendency of afrocentrists to use the fallacy of post hoc, propter hoc, that is, if someone in Egyptian culture says something that sounds like what the later Greek philosophers said, then there must have been influence. This ignores the difficulty of justifying the claim of influence. Comparative studies between western and eastern modes of thought have been an ongoing concern for some decades, centered in Hawaii's East/West Center, and their journal. Fascinating parallels have been discovered, but the issue of influence has never been raised. What appears to be clear from these studies is that human thought can converge at times, without any influence.
Lefkowitz has done all scholars of ancient thought the great service of setting the record straight. The myths of a massive influence, or even identity (cf. Onyewuenyi) are dispelled. What I wish is that the efforts of African and African-American scholars cease to concentrate on this quixotic search for Egyptian antecedents of Greek philosophy and give all of us some insight into the viewpoints, customs, ideas of African people throughout the continent. Culture never fails to offer fascinating and important cognitive fruit. It is the time for this to come to light.
Not for the Timid.......2007-04-24
After having had enough caffeine to float a ship, I finished Mary Lefkowitz's "Not Out of Africa." The arguments of the book are compelling; it was the author writing like an academic that required shots for the attention span. Nevertheless, her scholarship and knowledge of ancient Egypt is obvious.
Her reason for writing the book was simple. She saw history being revised to enhance racial and cultural esteem by the introduction of fantastic and nonsensical theories that she enumerates in detail.
The revisionism taking place today follows an inductive pattern of thought. Egypt is in Africa; therefore it was a Nubian culture. Cleopatra VII, Queen of Egypt was obviously black because one of her parents probably conceived with a slave. "Proof" of her African heritage comes from a nineteenth century painting by a black artist depicting her as being black, and a description of her in William Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar" where she is described as being "tawny brown."
Professor Lefkowitz correctly counters that Cleopatra was a Ptolemy, not Egyptian, a descendent from a Macedonian conqueror who ruled Egypt after the death of Alexander the Great. William Shakespeare's description of her had nothing to do with her skin color, and that the Bard had never left England, let alone traveled to Egypt. (How would he have known?) She refutes the theory that Cleopatra was (likely) conceived by a slave.
She presents compelling arguments against the notion that the Greeks stole the alphabet and philosophy from Egypt pointing out the obvious evidence that both cultures had contrasts on every level. It is like the other theory that Plato stole the African philosophy and ideas from the library at Alexandria and then burned it to the ground, quite a feat since the library wasn't started until Plato was long in the tooth, and then took years to complete. Besides, how do you steal ideas and thought? Even if you do, don't more ideas simply return to those who thought of them in the first place?
Some charge Lefkowitz and her supporters with racism. This is an act of desperation that is tantamount to academic extortion. It is the same as saying that if you don't support the president, you are hurting our troops. Both challenges are nonsense. The good professor is not intimidated.
Warning: the book is not an easy read for those looking for lively narrative. This is very scholarly but academic, and may give new meaning to the word dry.
An excellent book -- just because you don't agree with it doesn't mean it's racist.......2007-03-03
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I think it put historical fact into perspective. There is no doubt that the Egyptians were a great society, but so were the Greeks. It points out how week the Afrocentric arguments are. I am surprised people have referred to Ms. Lefkowitz as racist. One could argue those same people are racist as well (and based on some of the comments, some are definitely anti-Semetic). When has honest debate become racist?
Just because someone disagrees with the Afrocentric theories, it does not mean they are racist. Awhile back, the Detroit Institute of Arts had an exhibition on ancient Egyptian treasures. One of the items on display was a sarcophagus. On the sarcophagus was a white face. The exhibition indicated that the sarcophagus was from the Roman-era. I was amazed that there were people who objected to that piece being part of the exhibition because it was racist. Interestingly enough, that same piece is part of the DIAs permanent collection. It was not brought in specially for the exhibition. It was a true artifact that was thousands of years old from Egypt. Did it really matter that the person on the sarcophagus was white? The purpose of the piece in the exhibition was to demonstrate how different a Roman-era sarcophagus was from earlier periods. It was not about race.
Book Description
Bones, Stones and Molecules provides some of the best evidence for resolving the debate between the two hypotheses of human origins. The debate between the 'Out of Africa' model and the 'Multiregional' hypothesis is examined through the functional and developmental processes associated with the evolution of the human skull and face and focuses on the significance of the Australian record. The book analyzes important new discoveries that have occurred recently and examines evidence that is not available elsewhere. Cameron and Groves argue that the existing evidence supports a recent origin for modern humans from Africa. They also specifically relate these two theories to interpretations of the origins of the first Australians. The book provides an up-to-date interpretation of the fossil, archaeological and the molecular evidence, specifically as it relates to Asia, and Australia in particular.
* Readily accessible to the layperson and professional
* Provides concise coverage of current scientific evidence
* Presents a robust computer-generated model of human speciation over the last 7 million years
* Well illustrated with figures and photographs of important fossil specimens
* Presents a synthesis of great ape and human evolution
Customer Reviews:
Multiregionalism Debunked.......2006-08-19
Alternating between hard-core and literary, "Bones, Stones and Molecules" covers all of the latest anthropological discoveries and developments. Sahelanthropus and Orrorin are breaking news in paleoanthropology and are covered early in the book. These two new fossils are from the "wrong" side of the Great Rift Valley and neatly dispense with another recent favorite theory of human origins that involved the stranding of Old World and New World monkeys on either side of the Great Rift.
"Out of Africa" versus the "Multiregional" hypothesis are the book's main focus, and "Out of Africa" comes out the clear winner. David Cameron and Colin Groves each have their own slant on human origins, and these are clearly depicted in dozens of cladograms, each co-author posing variations. There are numerous sketches and photographs, and brief boxed interludes that also display a sense of humor.
"Bones, Stones and Molecules" introduces Groves' strong background in Australian fossils, the controversy over the timeline of Australian colonization has ramifications that affect much of anthropology. This is a solid book best suited to those with previous knowledge of the field. The appendix provides mathematical proof of assertions made in the book, hundreds of anatomical measurements are detailed. There are very few works that achieve such an excellent balance between mathematical rigor and literary readability.
Valuable reference for academics and laymen alike.......2004-09-05
Cameron and Groves have produced a handsome volume that details the anatomical structure of the species immediately ancestral to homo sapiens, and fleshes out the multiple "Out of Africa" episodes that have characterised the longer span of human evolution.
Full of ecological and detailed anatomical descriptions of the key species in human evolution, this volume very rarely, if not uniquely, integrates the story of hominid anatomical adaptation and modification across the Miocene through to the Holocene.
Students of paleoanthropology will not find a more thorough one volume overview, which while going far beyond being an introduction, admirably serves that role to.
For those who want to come to grips with, at a very detailed level, the drivers and form of anatomical and associated behavioural change amongst the human ancestral species, this Cameron/Groves volume is the ideal reference.
Great read, showcasing the latest fossils!.......2004-07-29
This is a great read for anyone interested in human evolution. It includes all of the most recent fossil hominid discoveries as well as providing an up-to-date overview and systematic analysis of human evolution over the last 6 million years or so (including molecular - archaeological information). It provides a convincing argument for the 'Out of Africa' Hypothesis for modern human origins. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in evolution and human and great ape evolution in particular.
Average customer rating:
- Wonderfully balanced biography of a fascinating woman
- Well research
- Beyond the myth
- Karen Blixen/Isak Dinesen
- Odd biography of an odd woman
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Out of Isak Dinesen in Africa: Karen Blixen's Untold Story
Linda Donelson
Manufacturer: Coulsong List
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0964389398 |
Book Description
This new analysis of "Out of Africa" describes the young Baroness Blixen's struggles with a difficult marriage, a pioneer coffee farm, and a complicated love affair in Kenya.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderfully balanced biography of a fascinating woman.......2005-08-10
Dr.Donelson's well-researched biography of Karen Blixen is a balanced look at the Danish writer's years in Africa. Wonderfully sympathetic and leisurely paced, this "Untold Story" is less a revelation of startling new facts as a skillful new presentation of the many facets of Blixen's life on a Kenyan coffee farm. Donelson's sensible narrative is enhanced by a keen insight into Blixen's literary works. The biographer peels back the onion to reveal the link between Blixen's fantastic adult fairy tales and her relationships in Africa.
I am a great fan of literary biographies and this book remains a solid favourite. Donelson shows a great understanding of Blixen's story but her restrained approach lets both Blixen herself and Africa share in the telling.
Well research.......2004-04-02
The difficulty with writing a biography about Karen Blixen lies in the fact that until the latter part of her life, she lived very much as a solitary and intensely private individual. Consequently, the part of her life we are most interested in, her time in Kenya, are closed except for the glimpses one gets from her letters back home. Donelson has done an admirable job of trying to move beyond Blixen's letters. She relies primarily on interpretations of Blixen's books to give more flavor to Blixen's motivations and state of mind. Naturally, it will always be speculative to speak of someone else's intentions. What I appreciated most in this book was the presence of hard numbers. We do get a better sense of the economics of the whole farm deal than with Thurman's biography.
Ultimately, the picture that emerges of Blixen is an unflattering one. Donelson downplays Blixen's self-avowed attachment to Africans and points at her neediness and helplessness. I'd recommend this book as a good counterpoint to the unrestrained romance of "Out of Africa". Why did Blixen write "Out of Africa" the way she did? On reading "Out of Isak Dinesen in Africa", as was suggested in the introduction, Blixen wrote the book to convince others that her experience in Africa was not a failure; but perhaps also to convince herself that despite the trauma of personal and financial loss, it was worth it.
Beyond the myth.......2002-09-27
Linda Donelson's book is so far (to my knowledge) the only work on Dinesen to move beyond the Hollywood movie "Out of Africa", the glossy version of Dinesen's own glossy memoir by the same name. Judith Thurman in her wonderful and lauded biography also writes a great deal about Dinesens's years in Africa, but Donelson's book is concentrated wholly on Dinesens's time there.
Donelson's writing is wonderful, transporting the reader to another time and place, but at the same time making Dinesen seem very real and very human. It is also the only work that gives us a Dinesen profile that in fact fits the one that comes to light through Dinesen's OWN letters from Africa (still in print and a must read for any true Dinesen fan) to her family in Denmark during the years 1914-31.
Her memoir "Out of Africa" was Dinesen writing nostalgically in retrospect about her lost paradise several years after her return to Denmark from Africa. The film "Out of Africa" is without doubt a gorgeous and highly entertaining composite version of Dinesen's memoir as well as other works on Dinesen, including Thurman's bio. However, Donelson's book gets at the truth. Whether one likes her work or not depends. If you are the kind of Dinesen fan who prefers the glossy nostalgic version, you might be irritated that someone would "dare" to go beyond the pretty fiction. If however you want the truth, confirmed in Dinesen's own letters, you will enjoy Donelson's book immensely.
Karen Blixen/Isak Dinesen.......2002-09-16
Karen Blixen/Isak Dinesen
In the movie "Out of Africa" I believe that the writers of the film script missed a wonderful opportunity. In the book "Out of Isak Dinesen in Africa, Karen Blixen's untoldstoy, by Linda Donelson" a reader can find an exciting, wonderful, semsual, complex woman. A woman that is not the same person that appears in the movie. Sometimes, too often movies are made with just the vision of great profits alone, artistry be damned. Too often movie moguls seem to be most interested in maintaining the glory of the lead characters and less interested in telling the great story they have to work with. The Out of Africa Movie would have been so much better with new leading people and a script that didn't have to paint Barron Blixon as such a heavy and could have given a more realistic picture of the marvelous unique man, Denys Finch Hatton. I suspect that the script may have been contaminated by impute from forces that might have been less than insightful. As past history has demonstrated the Moguls some time miss the mark by a long ways.
Linda Donelson in her book, which is smooth reading, does a most wonderful job of letting us see inside the rich character of the real people in this story. But not only that, a long the way you taste and feel Arica and you begin to understand the remarkable history , not only of Nairobi and it's surrounding African wonderlands, this book is magic in the way it blends in social history and world events with close personal feelings and experiences.
Odd biography of an odd woman.......2002-09-06
Before reading this book, I knew nothing about Karen Blixen's personal life, other than that she supposedly died of syphilis. The author refutes this idea, proving that Blixen's physical problems were due to the various drugs and poisons she took to combat her alleged illness. However, Donelson somehow misses one glaringly obvious detail--it's clear, reading this book, that Blixen never had syphilis at all! First, her husband (apparently the only man she was sleeping with at the time) never showed any signs of the disease. Second, Blixen never tested positive for syphilis--indeed, we have no proof that any doctor ever diagnosed her as a sufferer. All we have is her word for it, which is clearly suspect. Blixen, from what this book says, was a fantasist--or, if you want to be blunt, a pathological liar, who clearly loved to create an "image" for herself. Plus, she had particular reason to have a neurotic fixation about syphilis--her father committed suicide when she was a child, and it was said he did this because he found he had contracted the disease. This was bound to leave its mark on her.
Granted, this was a relatively minor aspect of Blixen's strange life, but I find it odd that the author would refute one aspect to the "Blixen syphilis legend" and not take it to its logical conclusion.
Book Description
Formerly a SkyLight publication.
Transform average or reluctant learners into eager ones. This breakthrough book speaks to all teachers in a child's life: educators, parents, caregivers, counselors, community workers? probably you! This layperson's guide shows how to implement professor Reuven Feuerstein's theory of mediated learning that intelligence is modifiable, that people can change-with the "right kind of intervention."
This intervention, called
mediated learning, occurs when a caring adult works one-on-one with a child to lay the foundation for learning.
Mediated Learning In and Out of the Classroom explains how this technique can improve students' impulse control, their ability to make accurate comparisons, orientation in time and space, understanding of cause and effect, and other higher-order thinking processes. For example, having a child draw a route to a store or guide you there can help correct spatial disorientation. Similarly, arranging toys according to color and size can sharpen a child's comparison-making skills.
These strategies-and hundreds more-accompany the easy-to-read text, worksheets, rating scales, assessments, and case studies. Together, they are a proven formula for success, both for you and for the children you care about.
Book Description
For twenty years an acclaimed correspondent on PBS's The News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the winner of two Emmys and two Peabody Awards (the latter two for her coverage of Africa), Charlayne Hunter-Gault was until recently the Johannesburg Bureau Chief for CNN. In New News Out of Africa, this eminent reporter offers a fresh and surprisingly optimistic assessment of modern Africa, revealing that there is more to the continent than the bad news of disease, disaster, and despair. Blending personal memoir with sterling reportage and astute analysis, Hunter Gault presents an Africa we rarely see. She looks first at South Africa, contrasting the country she first encountered as a young reporter--when she personally witnessed the brutality of apartheid--with the black-led, multiracial society of today, a nation undergoing one of the most radical social and economic experiments in modern times. She acknowledges the great imbalance in income in modern South Africa (where upwards of 30 to 40 percent of blacks are unemployed) and describes the ravaging effect of AIDS on the nation, but she also underscores the nation's commitment to affirmative action, describes how South African universities have opened their doors to black students, and debunks many of the myths about the violence of South African society. Likewise, Hunter-Gault looks at the continent-wide efforts to promote "an African Renaissance," illuminating the political and economic conditions in Rwanda, Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Angola, and Sierra Leone. Finally, the book describes the challenges of reporting on the much-maligned continent and the efforts of African journalists to tell their own story. A compelling book on a topic of vital importance, New News Out of Africa promises to re-define what is news about this vast and complex continent.
Customer Reviews:
A snapshot.......2006-11-30
Charlayne Hunter-Gault provides a snapshot of life in Africa, from the perspective of someone who has lived and breathed news coverage on the continent for decades. Yes, the book is heavy on South Africa, but as the powerhouse of Africa and the launching point for most of her work, it makes the book more personal and anecdotal - a plus from my perspective.
She is a journalist questioning her industry's poor coverage of the continent -- that is the heart of the book. It is not meant to be an academic book or the definitive word on Africa. New News presents a moment in time. She addresses the sad fact that most Westerners have a severely skewed perspective of the continent, largely due to doomsday media coverage.
New News was a modest attempt to give some balance to what Hunter-Gault calls the four D's of the African Apocalypse. Yes, I would like to read more, but was grateful for the 100-some pages of honest, first-hand analysis.
Hunter-Gault Delivers with "New News".......2006-11-14
Veteran journalist Charlayne Hunter-Gault hits the nail on journalism's head with her latest book, New News Out of Africa: Uncovering Africa's Renaissance. Hunter-Gault, who up until recently was the Johannesburg Bureau Chief for CNN, gives her take on media coverage of Africa. Half of the book is dedicated to her work experience in both pre- and post-apartheid South Africa, while the rest of the book examines what she calls the renaissance occurring in postcolonial Africa with the help of enterprising African journalists. If one only depended on Western media for news about the continent, they would conclude that the only things happening in Africa are war, famine and AIDS. This
Afro-pessimism is further compounded by patronizing celebrities and Live 8 concerts that claim to be "saving" Africa. While she agrees that atrocities, such as the HIV pandemic and the Darfur genocide should be covered, Hunter-Gault feels that this should be balanced out with the new news about the politicians and activists making a positive impact on the atrocities. "Recalling the old/bad news and putting it in context must also be a part of our new news mission if there is to be any hope of the past instructing the future," she says. Hunter-Gault cites the rise in democratic elections, and, thus, more democratic leaders around the continent as part of the new news. The reporter also recognizes being an African American and a woman has also helped her to "come in right" or fairly report news about Africa. A must read for all journalism students and those who care about Africa's future.
Excellent Overview Of Africa's Current Progressive Trend.......2006-09-09
NEW NEWS shows us that there is, in fact, good news coming out of Africa.
This new book by Charlayne Hunter-Gault provides a lively overview of the political, economic and social progress occurring in many African countries in recent years.
Hunter-Gault, who has lived in South Africa for the past decade, personalizes the narrative with her own firsthand stories as a black female American journalist covering African events for CNN, NPR and the MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour. She frequently contrasts her African experiences with her life in the pre-Civil Rights American South. (As a young woman in 1961, Hunter-Gault famously integrated the University of Georgia amid racial taunts, personal threats, and student riots.) Hunter-Gault's personal anecdotes are perhaps the most compelling part of NEW NEWS.
For those seeking to understand where Africa has been in recent years, and where one hopes it will continue to go, NEW NEWS is an excellent start.
a decent introduction to Africa today.......2006-09-03
I had very high hopes for "New News Out of Africa," but I was ultimately disappointed.
For someone who knows nothing about contemporary Africa, the book does provide a good introduction to some of the main issues that Africa faces (the legacy of apartheid, AIDS, corruption, NEPAD, the African Union) and elucidates some bright spots on a troubled continent. However, there are several problems with this book, in my opinion.
1) THE FOCUS ON SOUTH AFRICA
Hunter-Gault focuses disproportionately on South Africa (well over 1/3 of the book). This makes sense since she lives in Johannesburg, but South Africa is hardly representative of Africa as a whole. South Africa has the highest GDP per capita in Africa (higher than even Croatia, Chile, Russia, or Turkey). It has extremely low public debt. And it has a world-class infrastructure. When talking about Africa's future, you cannot compare South Africa to [...] Congo-Kinshasa.
2) NARROW COVERAGE OF AFRICA
The author's overemphasis on South Africa and the book's short length mean that the rest of Africa gets less attention than it merits. The book is 142 pages (before endnotes) and is printed in large font. It is true that chapter 2 (out of 3) jumps all over Africa, giving little snapshots of the situation in many countries (and it is the best chapter). But the author could have written a book twice as long and gone into greater depth. Moreover, if she had divided the book up into a region-by-region analysis, she might have been able to highlight the real disparities across Africa in terms of development and hope for the future.
3) THE "I" FACTOR
Readers of "New News Out of Africa" should know that the book is not just about Africa and its recent history. The book is also substantively about Hunter-Gault and her personal relationship to Africa. It is about her experiences in Africa, what Africa has meant to her as an African-American, and which famous people she has interviewed in Africa. This isn't a criticism per se, but prospective buyers should know what to expect. Rather than such a deeply personal aspect, I was hoping for a more dispassionate analysis.
4) SOURCES
I am one of those people who wants to know where facts come from. And Hunter-Gault cites some amazing facts. So, as I read "New News Out of Africa," I was constantly flipping back to the endnotes, but I was very disappointed to see that most of them come from interviews with Hunter-Gault and from websites.
Many academic scholars (especially historians, but not sociologists) are wary of interviews since they are highly subjective and often not verifiable.
And who verifies the websites used? How do we know that the information provided there is accurate? I generally trust websites like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, but what about other sites?
Some of the information seems to be taken uncritically from these sites. As an example, from one website: She quotes a poem by the "Congoloese poet and politician" Patrice Lumumba. I've heard Lumumba called many things before (postal worker, beer salesman, politician, rebel), but never a poet.
In the endnotes/bibliography, I was surprised not to see page after page of scholarly analyses, monographs, and academic papers. There are some, but far fewer than warranted.
"New News Out of Africa" does provide a very good introduction to important issues; however, the best passages -- those that are the most useful -- are buried among others and are best excerpted. But herein lies the paradox or the problem. The person new to African studies wouldn't know which passages are better than others, and the Africa expert, who does know, doesn't need an introduction.
Same Pitfalls.......2006-08-14
Three Stars for an extremely laudable premise, especially considering Africa's renewed efforts at "getting it right". Well written, easy to read piece of work.
However, the writer could have done better by focusing on one sub region at a time. Her extended situation in South Africa allows her a relatively in-depth perception regarding progress and developments within the immediate region.
Her attempt to harness East Africa, West Africa as well as North Africa in this one book drastically watered down what would otherwise have been an extremely great piece of work.
She committed the one grave error most foreign journalists make in reporting on Africa- attempting to lump the entire continent up into one short story. This is regardless of the fact that given the diversity of its societies and economies - a country like Nigeria on its own presents a formidable challenge to analyze in a few paragraphs.
In addition, instead of focusing entirely on supposedly positive news alone, readers will be better served if the writer had given a factual country-by-country report.
If aggregate positive development within the entire continent of Africa can truly be outlined in less than 150 pages, I would not think it worth reporting.
I however think it fair to mention the fact that I lived in West Africa for over 30 years, extensively traveled the continent, still maintain strong ties and am an avid Africa watcher, which somewhat gives me an indepth perception.
This book would probably be a good enough read for the casually interested person.
Book Description
Marrakech has hosted superstars from Paul Bowles to Richard Branson, whose long-awaited “kasbah” (fortress) hotel opened in March 2005. This practical guide shows seasoned visitors and first-timers how to make the most of this pink-walled city on the edge of the Atlas Mountains. More than 80 of the city’s famed riads (boutique hotels) are profiled, while maps of the labyrinthine alleys of the Old City mark every monument, museum, hotel, restaurant, and bar for easy reference. Local writers provide insightful coverage and analysis of local culture, traditions, and arts that have made Marrakech a magnet for the international set.
Customer Reviews:
