After a lifetime s close observation of the continent one of the world s finest Africa correspondents has penned a landmark book on life and death in modern Africa. It takes a guide as observant experienced and patient as Richard Dowden to reveal its truths. Dowden combines a novelist s gift for atmosphere with the scholar s grasp of historical change as he spins tales of cults and commerce in Senegal and traditional spirituality in Sierra Leone; analyzes the impact of oil and the internet on Nigeria and aid on Sudan; and examines what has gone so badly wrong in Zimbabwe Rwanda Burundi and the Congo. Dowden s master work is an attempt to explain why Africa is the way it is and enables its readers to see and understand this miraculous continent as a place of inspiration and tremendous humanity.