Beautiful Scars: Searching for my Smile – A memoir by Lyndah Wasike- Green

The most dangerous corner of Africa is its north-east corner where instability reigns and terrorism thrives on the antagonisms of all of its governments. This region, comprising Ethiopia, Sudan and now South Sudan, Somalia, Djibouti and Eritrea, and stretching to include Kenya and Uganda, is a pivotal geopolitical pressure point in world politics. It stands at the hinge of Africa and the Middle East. It was of vital interest to the superpowers during the Cold War and remains, in the post-Cold War period, a key area in international relations and a major source of mineral wealth, while its sufferings have been described as a scar on the conscience of humanity. But seemingly endemic political chaos, failed states, terrorism and international piracy have dealt a death blow to the ambitions of the US and her allies in the international community to further a New World Order of liberal democracy. Peter Woodward's book is essential reading for Africa and international relations specialists, including policy planners." ISBN:2147483647 Author:Peter Woodward

When Sara and Sam fall in love, they presume Sara's white European skin and Sam's black African skin will not be of interest in 1978 Nairobi, the cosmopolitan and free-thinking capital of Kenya where they both live. They are wrong. Soon they must face painful prejudices from the outside world, as well as their own families. They also slowly realize that unexpected deep-rooted differences exist between them.Sara and her Dutch expat parents have happily settled in Kenya for a few years, but this is only the latest in a long list of countries they called home. Soon Sara's father will be transferred to a new position, and the family must move to a new country again.But things are different for Sara this time. She is 18 years old, and absolutely certain she belongs in Kenya. She plans to stay forever--especially after she falls passionately in love with Sam.After all, on the surface of it, Sara and Sam have a great deal in common. They both come from comfortable middle-class families. They attend excellent schools as academic high achievers. They balance on the cusp of adulthood, and have every reason to think their futures will be bright. But soon enough, the differences between them are too apparent to be ignored, even by them. And this is only the start of the ordeals Sam and Sara must overcome.Sara is a pampered only child. Sam is the eldest son of the first wife of a polygamous Ugandan family. Sara does not at first understand the significance of his position. It takes time for her to see how deeply his young life is influenced by the many responsibilities that rest on his shoulders.The lovers suffer from prejudices from people close to them, as well as from strangers. They are startled to discover that both sets of parents oppose their union, and believe their child should find a better partner within their own cultures.Perhaps most complicated of all is the slow realization that Sara and Sam have very different expectations of each other. Sam presumes he has certain rights as the man in the relationship. Sara does not automatically subscribe to his position of leader, or consider it her duty to follow. ISBN:2147483647 Author:Jo Alkemade

To identify the economic stars of the future we should abandon the habit of extrapolating from the recent past and lumping wildly diverse countries together. We need to remember that sustained economic success is a rare phenomenon. As an era of easy money and easy growth comes to a close, China in particular will cool down. Other major players including Brazil, Russia, and India face their own daunting challenges and inflated expectations. The new "breakout nations" will probably spring from the margins, even from the shadows. Ruchir Sharma, one of the world’s largest investors in emerging markets for Morgan Stanley, here identifies which are most likely to leap ahead and why. After two decades spent traveling the globe tracking the progress of developing countries, Sharma has produced a book full of surprises: why the overpriced cocktails in Rio are a sign of revival in Detroit; how the threat of the "population bomb" came to be seen as a competitive advantage; how an industrial revolution in Asia is redefining what manufacturing can do for a modern economy; and how the coming shakeout in the big emerging markets could shift the spotlight back to the West, especially American technology and German manufacturing. What emerges is a clear picture of the shifting balance of global economic power and how it plays out for emerging nations and for the West. In a captivating exploration studded with vignettes, Sharma reveals his rules on how to spot economic success stories. Breakout Nations is a rollicking education for anyone looking to understand where the future will happen.

On October 23, 2009, British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler were kidnapped from their sailing boat off the archipelago of the Seychelles. Naval forces and search rescue centres did not swing into full action until the story broke on October 27 when Somalis informed the media that the couple were in their hands. The yacht, S/Y Lynn Rival, was found the next day by naval forces, abandoned off the Central Somali Coast. After the attack, Paul and Rachel were taken first onto a previously hijacked merchant ship, the MV Kota Wajar, and then onto land near Ceel Huur, north of Harardheere on the coast of Somalia. The couple were released, over a year later, on November 14, 2010, after a reported $800,000 ransom was paid. In this remarkable book, Paul and Rachel Chandler exclusively recount their ordeal, revealing the entire breathtaking, inspiring and poignant story behind the dramatic headlines. At the heart of their survival was their unshakable belief in each other and their determination to survive against all the odds, making Hostage an unlikely love story, in which death, at times, seemed preferable to being separated. ISBN:2147483647 Author:Paul Chandler

Brief Summary The four-million-copy international bestseller of the incredible love story between a European woman and an African warrior The White Masai combines adventure and the pursuit of passion in a page-turning story of two star-crossed lovers from vastly different backgrounds. Corinne, a European entrepreneur, meets Lketinga, a Samburu warrior, while on vacation in Mombasa on Kenya's glamorous coast. Despite language and cultural barriers, they embark on an impossible love affair. Corinne uproots her life to move to Africa—not the romantic Africa of popular culture, but the Africa of the Masai, in the middle of the isolated bush, where five-foot-tall huts made from cow dung serve as homes. Undaunted by wild animals, hunger, and bouts with tropical diseases, she tries to forge a life with Lketinga. But slowly the dream starts to crumble when she can no longer ignore the chasm between their two vastly different cultures. A story that taps into our universal belief in the power of love, The White Masai is at once a hopelessly romantic love story, a gripping adventure yarn, and a compulsively good read." ISBN:2147483647 Author:Corinne Hofmann and Peter Millar

Brief Summary Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and founder of the Green Belt Movement, offers a refreshingly unique perspective on the challenges facing Africa, even as she calls for a moral revolution among Africans themselves, who, she argues, are culturally deracinated, adrift between worlds.The troubles of Africa today are severe and wide-ranging. Yet what we see of them in the media, more often than not, are tableaux vivantes connoting poverty, dependence, and desperation. Wangari Maathai presents a different vision, informed by her three decades as an environmental activist and campaigner for democracy. She illuminates the complex and dynamic nature of the continent, and offers "hardheaded hope” and "realistic options” for change and improvement. With clarity of expression, Maathai analyzes the most egregious "bottlenecks to development in Africa,” occurring at the international, national, and individual levels–cultural upheaval and enduring poverty among them–and deftly describes what Africans can and need to do for themselves, stressing all the while responsibility and accountability.Impassioned and empathetic, The Challenge for Africa is a book of immense importance. " " ISBN:9780307390288 Author:Wangari Maathai