S is for Samora: A Lexical Biography of Samora Machel and the Mozambican Dream (Columbia/Hurst)
Whether you want to read from beginning to end or dip in, this A-to-Z of Samora Machel, the first president of Mozambique, is packed with history and many new and fascinating details. It should become a classic and could start a new trend.(Richard Dowden, director of the Royal African Society, author ofAfrica: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles)This is an arresting and original 'biography' of Samora Machel. The Mozambican leader emerges as a complicated human being, combining an uncanny ability to relate to people with an implacable commitment to the construction of a new Mozambique. Mixing journalism, diary, and academic research, Sarah LeFanu offers one of the most wide-ranging accounts of Machel available to date. She provides gripping insight into the personal and political mix that made Machel the outstandingly successful leader he undoubtedly was.(Patrick Chabal, King's College London)Sarah LeFanu first visited Mozambique as a solidarity worker soon after its 1975 independence. Now, so many years later, she has returned to the subject. In a very personal way, S is for Samora combines what LeFanu sees today with the memory of what she experienced in the late 1970s. Vivid and clear-eyed, it tells the exciting story of the 'Birth of a Nation' -- a story that should be of interest to more than just those who have their own direct experience of Mozambique. Profoundly interesting and highly recommended.(Henning Mankell, bestselling author and Maputo resident)An important and readable rediscovery of Mozambique's revolutionary history.(Joseph Hanlon, author ofDo Bicycles Equal Development in Mozambique?)