He arrives on the eve of Amin's takeover, he tries to flee the country from Entebbe airport the day the hijacked plane lands there, and so on. What is surprising then is the almost trancelike passing of this whole ignominious episode of history. The historical moment that Amin represented is given little weight, the complex socio-political factors involved only lightly touched upon, and the international forces and interests involved largely only alluded to. For what it is, though, it is an excellent book, and the picture of Amin striking. Foden captures the ogre well, and uncomprehending Garrigan is a useful foil.
Several reviewers complain about the humor in the book being inappropriate to the subject matter.
We did not find any aspect of the book that was actually funny. Otherwise the book is very, very well written, with a number of haunting scenes and a solid ending. We do recommend this book highly. There are some scenes in it which will disturb the squeamish, but we find them entirely appropriate and justified. Note that the English reviews were generally considerably more favorable than American ones, i.e. it seems to be more to English tastes than American ones.