Popular Central African Republic Books

Daba's Travels from Ouadda to Bangui by Makombo Bamboté , George Ford (Illustrator)

Daba was born in Ouadda, in what is now the Central African Republic. His mother often told him about the terrible dry season that year, when elephants, buffaloes and antelopes stampeded through the countryside in a frenzied search for water. Even panthers stalked the bush around the village, often carrying innocent sheep. Safe near his parents' hut, Daba listened to the s Daba was born in Ouadda, in what is now the Central African Republic. His mother often told him about the terrible dry season that year, when elephants, buffaloes and antelopes stampeded through the countryside in a frenzied search for water. Even panthers stalked the bush around the village, often carrying innocent sheep. Safe near his parents' hut, Daba listened to the story time and time again. And as he grew, loved and protected, there grew in him a strength of spirit and a deep love for his native village. But Daba was not destined to live his live in Ouadda. When he was still a young boy, he left his beloved home on the first of a series of journeys that would lead him farther and farther away--even to France. For Daba's parents wanted him to be educated, a rare and special privilege not often enjoyed by poor village children.... The life, history and tradition of the people of the Central African Republic are described with great feeling by Bambote, for Daba's Travels is a recollection of his own childhood and youth.

State of Rebellion: Violence and Intervention in the Central African Republic by Louisa Lombard

In 2012, a wave of violence swept through the Central African Republic as Seleka rebels clashed with anti-Balaka militias. In the face of seemingly senseless bloodshed, journalists, politicians, and scholars struggled to account for the conflict’s origins. In this first comprehensive account of the violence, Louisa Lombard argues that the conflict was more than a straightf In 2012, a wave of violence swept through the Central African Republic as Seleka rebels clashed with anti-Balaka militias. In the face of seemingly senseless bloodshed, journalists, politicians, and scholars struggled to account for the conflict’s origins. In this first comprehensive account of the violence, Louisa Lombard argues that the conflict was more than a straightforward religious clash between Christians and Muslims. Instead, she traces the roots of the conflict to fears of spiritual insecurity and a social breakdown that drove inter-communal violence.   Placing the uprising within its broader social, cultural, and historical context , Lombard reveals the complicated roles played by marginalized rural youths, local political leaders, and the global community in sustaining the conflict, and she offers an urgent corrective to our perceptions of this little-understood country, making a compelling case for international leaders to rethink their approach to resolving the conflict.  

African Tales: Folklore of the Central African Republic by Rodney Wimer , Polly Strong (Translator)

Tales from the oral tradition of the Madija and Banda tribes, collected from village storytellers of the Central African Republic and translated by Polly Strong.

Making Sense of the Central African Republic by Tatiana Carayannis (Editor) , Louisa Lombard (Editor)

Despite its position at the center of a tumultuous region that has drawn substantial international attention and intervention over the decades, the Central African Republic is often overlooked when discussions turn to questions of postcolonial development, democracy, and change in Africa. This book seeks to remedy that oversight, bringing together the foremost experts on t Despite its position at the center of a tumultuous region that has drawn substantial international attention and intervention over the decades, the Central African Republic is often overlooked when discussions turn to questions of postcolonial development, democracy, and change in Africa. This book seeks to remedy that oversight, bringing together the foremost experts on the Central African Republic to offer the first in-depth analysis of the nation’s recent history of rebellion and instability. Gathering contributions from nearly every scholar and international policy maker who has written on the Central African Republic in recent years, the book presents a close look at the two major coups of the past twenty years, the successes and failures of attempts at international intervention, the ongoing series of UN and regional peacekeeping efforts, and the potential for peaceful, democratic change in the nation’s future.

Batouala by René Maran , Barbara Beck (Translator) , Alexandre Mboukou (Translator) , Donald E. Herdeck (Introduction)

French African prose can be given a beginning with the publication in 1921 of the novel Batouala . . . its sensitive portrayal of African life, with its evocation of the natural environment, could not but make a profound impression upon its African readers and offered a vivid example of what an African novel in French could be. -Abiola Irele

Dark Age: Political Odyssey of Bokassa by Brian Titley

Dark Age recounts the turbulent political career of the late Jean-Bedel Bokassa, flamboyant president-for-life and later emperor of the Central African Republic/Empire. Brian Titley examines the myths and legends surrounding the man, probes their origins and veracity, and attempts to provide a more balanced perspective on this controversial and misunderstood figure. Follow Dark Age recounts the turbulent political career of the late Jean-Bedel Bokassa, flamboyant president-for-life and later emperor of the Central African Republic/Empire. Brian Titley examines the myths and legends surrounding the man, probes their origins and veracity, and attempts to provide a more balanced perspective on this controversial and misunderstood figure. Following a lengthy career in the French army, Bokassa seized power in the Central African Republic in 1966. His excesses soon became legendary: he was accused of cannibalism, feeding enemies to lions and crocodiles, and beating schoolchildren to death. Bokassa's tendency for self-aggrandizement culminated in 1977 when he named himself emperor and orchestrated a coronation based on Napoleon's. He was overthrown by French paratroopers in 1979 and went into exile, but returned to his homeland in 1985 to face a sensational trial. Titley interprets Bokassa's authoritarian and self-aggrandizing style as an attempt to legitimize his regime in a context devoid of indigenous political structures and explores the troubled relations between France and its former colonies. Combining techniques of historical inquiry and investigative journalism, he has produced a fascinating account of a pivotal chapter in contemporary African history.

Le Dernier Survivant De La Caravane by Etienne Goyémidé

Travels in the Congo by André Gide , Dorothy Bussy (Translator) , Ecco

The Belgian Congo (now the countries of Congo, Zaire, and Central African Republic) has fascinated travellers for centuries with its mysterious and brilliant landscapes and its rich tribal cultures. While the area is investigated in the most minute detail, Gide is clear about his position as the responsive outsider. He does not claim cultural familiarity - rather, he treat The Belgian Congo (now the countries of Congo, Zaire, and Central African Republic) has fascinated travellers for centuries with its mysterious and brilliant landscapes and its rich tribal cultures. While the area is investigated in the most minute detail, Gide is clear about his position as the responsive outsider. He does not claim cultural familiarity - rather, he treats all that he describes with the authority of a writer whose startling awareness makes places and people live indelibly in the imagination.

We Are Not Refugees: True Stories of the Displaced by Agus Morales

Never in history have so many people been displaced by political and military conflicts at home--more than 65 million globally. Unsparing, outspoken, vital, We Are Not Refugees tells the stories of many of these displaced, who have not been given asylum. For over a decade, human rights journalist Agus Morales has journeyed to the sites of the world's most brutal conflicts a Never in history have so many people been displaced by political and military conflicts at home--more than 65 million globally. Unsparing, outspoken, vital, We Are Not Refugees tells the stories of many of these displaced, who have not been given asylum. For over a decade, human rights journalist Agus Morales has journeyed to the sites of the world's most brutal conflicts and spoken to the victims of violence and displacement. To Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the Central African Republic. To Central America, the Congo, and the refugee camps of Jordan. To the Tibetan Parliament in exile in northern India. We are living in a time of massive global change, when negative images of refugees undermine the truth of their humiliation and suffering. By bringing us stories that reveal the individual pain and the global scope of the crisis, Morales reminds us of the truth and appeals to our conscience.

Travels Through The Third World by Brian M. Schwartz

This riveting book tells the story of one man's adventures and experience in exotic places whose very names fire the imagination, like Timbuktu, the Congo rain forests and the swamps of the Nile. Brian Schwartz spent six years following the back roads, trails, and rivers of Africa and Asia, mostly hitchhiking and on foot.

The Emperor and the Elephants: A Peace Corps Volunteer's Story of Life During the Late 1970s in the Central African Empire by Richard W. Carroll

"The Emperor and the Elephants" is a deeply moving memoir chronicling one Peace Corps volunteer's fascinating experiences in the Central African Republic during the late 1970s. After hiking the Appalachian Trail in 1975, author Richard W. Carroll joined the Peace Corps, signing on as a fisheries extension agent in the heart of Africa. Balancing the rose-tinted writings of a "The Emperor and the Elephants" is a deeply moving memoir chronicling one Peace Corps volunteer's fascinating experiences in the Central African Republic during the late 1970s. After hiking the Appalachian Trail in 1975, author Richard W. Carroll joined the Peace Corps, signing on as a fisheries extension agent in the heart of Africa. Balancing the rose-tinted writings of an optimistic twenty-three-year-old volunteer with pragmatic reflections from over forty years later, most of which he spent in Africa as a wildlife conservationist for the World Wildlife Fund, Carroll draws readers into a wildly unique place and time. In 1977, under the brutal rule of Jean-Bidel Bokassa, the self-proclaimed president for life, the Central African Republic became the Central African Empire, and it's against this political backdrop that Carroll served-first in small villages, discovering the rich cultures of a warm and welcoming people, then as a wildlife biologist in Manovo-Gounda St. Floris National Park, in the remote north. "The Emperor and the Elephants" abounds with vivid, often poetic descriptions of the wildlife, close encounters, peaceful revelations, and thoughtful reflections on a location that's as far from mountains and ocean as one can get on planet Earth.

Le Silence de la forêt by Etienne Goyémidé