description: I find Fantastic Invasion one of those rare things, an important book on independent Africa today. It exposes a disastrous situation, arising from ignorance, sometimes hypocrisy and sometimes greed. I would describe it as uncommon-sense.' Graham Greene 'Fantastic Invasion is - fantastic. Patrick Marnham's grim sharp wit is much to my a depressing, not to say horrible story becomes, because of it, an exhilarating Swiftian excursion into human folly.' Doris Lessing 'An absolutely horrifying chronicle which, better than any book I know, explains Africa and finds a pattern in what has baffled every other observer up to now. It is a courageous and brilliant effort.' Paul Theroux 'We fear Africa because when we leave it alone, it works,' says the author of this provocative book. Patrick Marnham shows how outsiders - British, Russian, American, French and Chinese - have repeatedly tried to alter a land they do not understand. The relief workers, scientists, businessmen, tourists and conservationists all roam through Africa wreaking havoc as they go, attempting to mould the continent into their numerous images and ideals. Fantastic Invasion is the story of these invaders and the continent beneath, a candid narrative available neither in tourist guides nor in academic studies.
language: English
title: Fantastic Invasion: Dispatches from Contemporary Africa
titlecomplete: Fantastic Invasion: Dispatches from Contemporary Africa
genres: Africa, Travel, Nonfiction
ratings_count: 15
publisher: Vintage/Ebury (A Division of Random House Group)