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A review by reggiewoods
Africa Is Not A Country: Breaking Stereotypes of Modern Africa by Dipo Faloyin
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.5
Nigerian Faloyin goes back to the Berlin Conference of 1884 where 14 European nations gathered to draw a new map of Africa to decide who got what territory, as gentlemen do. Arbitrarily dividing and grouping over 2,000 tribal nations has caused identity problems ever since, and those at fault perpetuated the myth of the 1 African identity, which Faloyin is sick of. With a biting humor, he highlights several different aspects of modern Africa that Africans have found impactful and used to define their individual nations. From the fight for democracy to jollof rice, Faloyin touches on a wide range of lifestyle to both dispel the western myths of Africa and explore the differences of cultures within the continent. His style shifts from lighthearted and humorous to angry, sometimes within a paragraph, to illustrate that there is a lot to celebrate that’s being overlooked. His account of the hit song “Do They Know It’s Christmas” in the ‘White Savior Industrial Complex’ chapter is worth the price of the book itself. This was a refreshing take that I really enjoyed reaading and found quite informative.