Adam Roberts (2)

This is an amazing story of a really unbelievable (but true) event - a coup in Equatorial Guinea (a shitty country in West Africa run by cartoonish dictators from an island, propped up by oil wealth, while their population starves), a coup which was described in detail in a fictional book from two decades earlier ("Dogs of War" by Forsyth).

Interesting to read about the practical details of their planning, the stupid things which went wrong, and the ultimately unsuccessful outcome.

As can probably be seen from my books, I am obsessed with Africa. This book was one that had been on my list for a long time and I was not disappointed. While the writing was not great and there probably could have been some better editing, the overall effect was comprehensive. The perspective of those of us outside of Africa is often scarred by the violence we see so often reported. This book in many ways reenforces the idea that this kind of stuff only happens in Africa. However, this is show more not the fault of the author but rather the ridiculous mindsets of the mercenaries. These individuals are microcosms of way that Africa is viewed as a blank slate for the Global North to write the narratives they wish to. The arrogance is mind boggling. show less