num_pages: 803
description: Drawing on many years of African experience, John Reader has written a book of startling grandeur and scope that recreates the great panorama of African history, from the primeval cataclysms that formed the continent to the political upheavals facing much of the continent today. Reader tells the extraordinary story of humankind's adaptation to the ferocious obstacles of forest, river and desert, and to the threat of debilitating parasites, bacteria and viruses unmatched elsewhere in the world. He also shows how the world's richest assortment of animals and plants has helped - or hindered - human progress in Africa.
language: English
title: Africa A Biography Of The Continent
titlecomplete: Africa A Biography Of The Continent
genres: Anthropology, Biography, History, Science, Geography, Politics, World History, Africa, Travel, Nonfiction
ratings_count: 1809
awards: awardedAt: 883641600000
name: Alan Paton Award
publisher: Penguin UK