African Madness

NY: Knopf, 1988. 1st. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. Hardcover in a bright, unclipped dust jacket. 202 pages. A collection of four pieces on African history or culture. "The Woman Who Loved Gorillas" is a stark, unflattering look at Dian Fossey. Differing from the usual hagiography about Fossey, this essay focuses on her mistreatment of the Africans, her erratic and supposedly violent behavior, and her anti-social arrogance. It's not a slam piece, though, offering motives about her murder and admitting that Dian did much for the gorillas of Rwanda. "The Last of the Dog-Headed Men" is a look at the elusive indri, a "singing" lemur of Madagascar. "The Emperor Who Ate His People" is a look back at the career of Central African Republic dictator Bokassa. Finally, "In Search of the Source Of AIDS" is both a quest for possible sources of the virus and a look at how the disease is ravaging Africa (circa 1987). Clean, bright copy. Record # 381893