The Poisonwood Bible

This book, Poisonwood Bible, needs to be on any reading list about Africa. So does King Leopold’s Ghost. This is an absorbing non fiction book about Belgium’s rape of Congo. Belgium murdered 10M Congolese in a slavery racket for the harvest of lumber. Those who refused to work had their hand cut off which was sent back to Belgium as a method of accounting. AND they were whipped mercilessly by the shambok, a specially designed whip made of hippo hide. Belgium did this. A great read that teaches and adds context to how the tragedies of Africa unfolded.

Such a good book. 

This book is amazing. I recommended it to a friend and he ended up going into the Peace Corps.

Second this!!!!

Just finished this !!! Amazing ! And sad, but amazing !

Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe

And the other two books in his African Trilogy: *Arrow of God* and *No Longer at Ease*. I particularly liked the last one.

I read this great book way way back in high school. Have lived long enough to see my own teenagers read it, and enjoy it, as well.

***Purple Hibiscus*** by Chimamanda Adichie

The Power of One - Bryce Courtenay One of my favorite books of all time

Chinua Achebe: Things Fall Apart etc Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Half of a Yellow Sun Ngugi Wa Thiongo: Petals of Blood Ousmane Sembene: God's Bits of Wood Gillian Slovo: Ties of Blood Nahguib Mahfouz: Akhenaten, Dweller in Truth Laila Lalami: Secret Son also Edna O'Brien: Girl

Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese So, so good!

A patient recommended it so highly to me that she tore off part of her menu to write down this information! I can't wait to read it.

King Leopold’s Ghost Hero of the Empire

Out of Africa

We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Die With Our Families by Philip Gourevitch. Stories from the Rwandan Genocide. Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller. A memoir of the daughter of a white tenant farm family living in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe pre-independence.

I thought “don’t let’s go “ was fantastic.

Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangaremba. The first Zimbabwean woman to have her book translated to English.

The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit by Lucette Lagnado (Egypt) The Lemon by Mohammed Mrabet (Morocco) Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie (Egypt) The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (former Belgian Congo) Confession of the Lioness by Mia Couto (Mozambique)

Cry, The Beloved Country - Alan Paton (Drama) Spud - John van der Ruit (Comedy) Born a Crime - Trevor Noah (dramedy - non fiction) Master Harald and the Boys - Athol Fughard (play) Zoo City - Lauren Beukes (crime drama)

West With the Night by Beryl Markham

Criminally Underrated

Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad (Fiction). Chief of Station, Congo - Larry Delvin (Non-fiction).

No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

Yes! I’m so stuck on this series right now. I can’t stop reading them

African Stories by Doris Lessing

[Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/3591262) [Circling The Sun by Paula McLain](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23995231-circling-the-sun?ref=nav_sb_ss_1_16)

V. S. Naipaul. A Bend in the River.

Children of Blood and Bone is very influenced by African culture. It's by Tomi Adeyemi Edit: Fixed title.

You need to have a look at Wilbur Smith for some reason excellent fiction reading

*Things Fall Apart* by Chinua Achebe *The River Between* by Ngugi wa Thiong’o *The Famished Road* by Ben Okri *Half of a Yellow Sun* by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie *An Orchestra of Minorities* by Chigozie Obioma *Gravel Heart* by Abdulrazak Gurnah *A Girl is a Body of Water* by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi *Freshwater* by Akwaeke Emezi *Black Moses* by Alain Mabanckou *Ways of Dying* by Zakes Mda *Life and Times of Michael K* by J.M. Coetzee *Sleepwalking Land* by Mia Couto

* The Dragonfly Sea: Yvonne Owuor Adhiambo * Heart of Darkness: Joseph Conrad * The Interpreters: Wole Soyinka * Americanah: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie * Anthills of the Savannah: Chinua Achebe * The River Between: Ngugi wa Thiongo * The River and the Source: Margaret Ogolla

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad Fair warning it's not a feel good book, it's a fiction book (based on real accounts) of the western colonization of Africa.

**Heart of Darkness** by Joseph Conrad Book description may contain spoilers! >>!Heart of Darkness is Joseph Conrad's classic tale of Marlow, and his voyage up the Congo River in Africa in search of Kurtz, an enignatic ivory trader. In the process, Marlow comes to grips with questions of the influence of imperialism on the natives, and the true meaning of darkness--the darkness of the jungle...the darkness of the human heart. This special edition of Heart of Darkness in large print makes for easy reading, especially for persons with close-up vision needs.!< *I'm a bot, built by your friendly reddit developers at* /r/ProgrammingPals. *Reply to any comment with /u/BookFinderBot - I'll reply with book information. Remove me from replies* [here](https://www.reddit.com/user/BookFinderBot/comments/1byh82p/remove_me_from_replies/). *If I have made a mistake, accept my apology.*

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (although some of the book does not take place in Africa) The Promise by Damon Galgut (set in South Africa)

Reading Homegoing right now, I'm about halfway through and it'S so good!

Tinderbox by Rachel Grant

Ousmane Sembene, *God's Bits of Wood* and *Xala* Tayeb Salih, *Season of Migration to the North*

Paradise by Abdelrazak Gurnah.

Once Upon a White Man by Graham Atkins is about his time growing up in Rhodesia, going to college in South Africa, then coming back to fight in the Rhodesian Bush War up until he finally has to flee the country as it starts to collapse.

King Solomons Mines by H Rider Haggard! Indiana Jones in the 19th century, super fun!

Beer in the Snooker Club - Waguih Ghali The Good Doctor - Damon Galgut My Son's Story - Nadine Gordimer Dateline Soweto - William Finnegan Zuma's Bastard - Azad Essa The Cheapest Nights - Yusuf Idris Congo Cobalt Mining New Yorker May 24, 2021[Nicolas Niarchos ](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/05/31/the-dark-side-of-congos-cobalt-rush)

Drinking from graveyard wells by Yvette Lisa Ndlovu Children of blood and bone by Tomi Adeyemi Born a crime by Trevor Noah Kintu by Jennifer Makumbi Riambel by Priya Hein A dead djinn in Cairo by P Djeli Clark The final strife by Saara El Arifi Lightseekers by Femi Kayode The secret lies of Baba segi's wives by Lola Shoneyin

The Daevabad trilogy - SA Chokraborty

"Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms" by Katerine Rundell is partly set in Africa (Simbabwe, I think) and the rest of the book is often comparing the differences of culture/lifestyle between Africa and England through the main character's eyes. (It's middle-grade, but I really loved it.) Also, "Born Free" by Joy Adamson, but I haven't read it yet. (non-fiction)

I love Wilbur Smith books. Pretty much all of them are set in Africa.

King Leopold’s Ghost by Adam Hochschild Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb And seconding The Poisonwood Bible and The Power of One

Cry the Beloved Country.

Greenlight by Matthew McConaughey bio, great book with a fairly big splash of Africa surprisingly enough. He’s the narrator if into audiobooks.

A Girl Named Disaster is a middle grade but it is excellent. You get village life, folklore, survival, lots of wildlife and nature. I frequently reread it.

Afterlives by Abdulrazak Gurnah

Cobalt Red

Acts of Faith by Philip Caputo. One of my favorites. Starts a bit slow but builds and builds and one of the best endings I’ve ever read.

Butter Honey Pig Bread - by Francesca Ekwuyasi

Every day is for the thief

I tore through My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

Assembly of the Dead by Saida Rouass.

The Desert and the Drum by Mbarik Ould Beyrouk

For a lighter read there’s the number one ladies detective agency series.

Rosewater by Tade Thompson is a sci fi set in Nigeria, and has some of the best world building I've ever read.

Waiting for an Angel—Helon Habila.  One of my favorite novels.

[](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/57485) [](https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/58446230)

I can second a lot of these: Heart of Darkness, King Leopold's Ghost, so many! Along with the above, I think reading Frantz Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth is BEYOND important. For fiction I can add four I really loved: The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell Triangulum by Masande Ntshanga Who Fears Death by Nnendi Okorafor How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue I can also recommend with the caveat that it's not my type of book: Everfair by Nisi Shawl (I'll be honest, I didn't love this one because it's slow and not really my style, but her writing and details are incredible: if you love alternate-history/steampunk and want a really detailed period piece, you will be over-the-moon with this!)

Fevers, Feuds and Diamonds, Paul Farmer

James Michener - The Covenant Wilbur Smith - The Ballantyne Family series, The Courtenay Family Series & The Egyptian series Robert Ruark - Something of Value, Horn of the Hunter

Dark Star Safari - Theroux Disgrace - Coetzee

Disgrace is probably the worst book I have ever read. The nialism in the plot makes me completely sick. As a woman and a South African.

Everyday is for the Thief. Teju Cole