Kind of a strange book - all related to Africa, but bounces around so much (and covering this much territory in one book is of course impossible). But I much like, enough to do a pretty careful re-read (first read, in 2003, back here).
Maybe too much emphasis on justifying why Africa's population growth and overall development has been slow in comparison to the places where African migrants settled; that it's not due to inferior skills and initiative. Though I suppose so many non-African experts - and common folk - over the centuries have drawn that conclusion, that he feels a need to rebut?
Explains why most of Africa was and is generally a challenging place to live - low population densities; growth after periods of "good" years leads to trouble when normal (drier) conditions return. Conflict, but not large-scale wars (except Egypt). Lack the manpower; also tended not to own stuff that could be accumulated and fought over. Seldom enough labor available - a continuing problem. Unique challenges like the tsetse fly.
A good review of the Portuguese explorers - their rather impressive accomplishments mapping the coast in 15th century and beyond. Others elbow them out of the picture by end of 16th century.
Influences from abroad not benign - as technologies were developed locally and (more often) brought in from elsewhere, perhaps some sort of sustainable local economic and political systems might have evolved without so much interference. Seems to lament this quite a bit - but kind of pointless - Africa not the only place where less developed societies get flattened, reshaped by more developed aggressive neighbors.
Though it is so sad in Africa. Arab slavers bad enough. Then the system is amped up with the Europeans and the Americas, while the Arabs continue. Prime labor - always in short supply - is shipped away in exchange for pointless prestige goods, guns, horses that flow to the elite - no motivation to develop local economy and less folks to accomplish it anyway. (Some of that sounds like more recent foreign aid programs - elite siphon off the goodies; donated goods (especially food) choke off development of sustainable local capacity to supply the same.)
Discussion of how the slave trade affected so much of the continent - even areas far from the coast. Plenty of complicit locals, but the scale was not driven by locals.
Interesting discussion of South Africa; the Boers; finding diamonds (and gold); solving labor shortages by rather awful methods.
Then the rather amazing late 19th century "scramble", the Congo (again solving labor problems by awful methods), the carving up of states on lines that didn't reflect the locals.
And yet - lots of growth, lots of room for optimism.
Not quite sure how it all fit together, but the book started with lengthy discussions of geologic history and evolution, lots on hominids to humans. This part was actually quite thought-provoking. Walking upright; chewing; talking; developing a large brain, taming fire, developing agriculture, on and on - that's a lot to happen!
Interesting idea - that colonial administrators trying to rationalize things post-WWI came on the scene after a devastating cattle plague (rinderpest) and famine - they thought depopulated areas had always been that way - some of the game preserves formerly had human populations, now we think the "natural" state is animals-only.
