Not even a week has passed since this post and there is news that Mega publishing is being liquidated.
It is already the week’s end and we haven’t had time to write anything since Monday, so instead of letting the week slip by without an additional post, we thought we would put in a plug for two books on Ethiopia.
The first is Survival and Modernization, written by Messay Kebede – some of you may have taken classes with him while at AAU or may be familiar with his writings*. While not entirely an easy read [it is after all a philosophical discourse], the paradigm the book takes on Ethiopian history and the failure to modernize is one which we find our selves agreeing with. This book is strongly recommended.
The second book which we recently came across is Hagai Erlich’s Ras Alula and The Scramble for Africa - a political biography of Ras Alula Aba Nega. A very well documented, short and easy to read biography of the great Ras; it tells the story a man from humble beginnings, whose loyalty, bravery and military genius enabled him to become one of the most powerful men in the country. It also gives insight into the history of late 1800s Ethiopia - the internal struggles for power, the external relations with Britain, Italy, Egypt and the Mahdis and how the interaction of the internal and external pressures play out on the political scene of the time. Both books are available from Amazon.
While on the subject of book availability --- On a recent visit to Addis, we were dismayed that EPRDF owned publisher and bookseller Mega Books (previously Kuraz) no longer offered many of the history books it previously carried. We went mainly looking for the ‘Ye Ethiopia Andinet’** series by Tekle Tsadik Mekuria. We also wanted to get copies of the compiled works of Birhanu Zerihun - We found neither. Much to our dismay we also did not find any work of Ethiopian history on the shelves [we were pleased to find new editions of some of the works of Kebede Mikael in store and a book on the history of aviation in Ethiopia by Capt. Mekonen Beri - Aviation be Ethiopia].
Our first instinct was that the absence of history books was politically motivated; aimed to discourage certain perspectives of Ethiopian history***…however, after a short discussion with the staff, they said it was because the authors or families of the authors (who have become the bearers of the copyright) have not authorized reprints. Though there is no way for us to know if this is in fact the case, if you know authors or families of authors whose books are no longer in print, please ask if they could authorize reprints.
The first is Survival and Modernization, written by Messay Kebede – some of you may have taken classes with him while at AAU or may be familiar with his writings*. While not entirely an easy read [it is after all a philosophical discourse], the paradigm the book takes on Ethiopian history and the failure to modernize is one which we find our selves agreeing with. This book is strongly recommended.
The second book which we recently came across is Hagai Erlich’s Ras Alula and The Scramble for Africa - a political biography of Ras Alula Aba Nega. A very well documented, short and easy to read biography of the great Ras; it tells the story a man from humble beginnings, whose loyalty, bravery and military genius enabled him to become one of the most powerful men in the country. It also gives insight into the history of late 1800s Ethiopia - the internal struggles for power, the external relations with Britain, Italy, Egypt and the Mahdis and how the interaction of the internal and external pressures play out on the political scene of the time. Both books are available from Amazon.
While on the subject of book availability --- On a recent visit to Addis, we were dismayed that EPRDF owned publisher and bookseller Mega Books (previously Kuraz) no longer offered many of the history books it previously carried. We went mainly looking for the ‘Ye Ethiopia Andinet’** series by Tekle Tsadik Mekuria. We also wanted to get copies of the compiled works of Birhanu Zerihun - We found neither. Much to our dismay we also did not find any work of Ethiopian history on the shelves [we were pleased to find new editions of some of the works of Kebede Mikael in store and a book on the history of aviation in Ethiopia by Capt. Mekonen Beri - Aviation be Ethiopia].
Our first instinct was that the absence of history books was politically motivated; aimed to discourage certain perspectives of Ethiopian history***…however, after a short discussion with the staff, they said it was because the authors or families of the authors (who have become the bearers of the copyright) have not authorized reprints. Though there is no way for us to know if this is in fact the case, if you know authors or families of authors whose books are no longer in print, please ask if they could authorize reprints.
+++++++Two more books we felt should be included in the list++++++
Bahru Zewde's A History of Modern Ethiopia 1855-1991 is an excellent, concise book mainly covering the time from the end of Zemene Mesafint (Era of Princes) and the rise of Tewodros to the demise of the Derg in 1991 (includes quite a few pictures too). You should have this on your shelf.
Also, if you are interested in the who-is-who of Ethiopian literature, Black Lions: The Creative Lives of Modern Ethiopia's Literary Giants and Pioneers offers short biographies on thirty two personalities.
* Here are a few we readily found online:
1. Ethnic Politics and the Cracks in the Dry Ground of the TPLF
2. The Rise of Ethiopian Nihilism and the Plight of Addis Ababa University
3. Assab or How to Make the Best of a Predicament
4. Guilt and Atonement: The Genesis of Revolutionary Spirit in Ethiopia
5. Bringing Reason Back to Ethiopian Politics
**The books in this series are (all in Amharic)
Atse Tewodros ena Ye Ethiopia Andinet, Atse Yohannes ena Ye Ethiopia Andinet, and Atse Menelik ena Ye Ethiopia Andinet
***While we feel our suspicion is justified because of EPRDF’s constant attempts to reinterpret and discourage the classical view of Ethiopian history; for an interesting and humorous take on the suspicious Ethiopian mind, we recommend Hama Tuma’s Of Paranoia and the Ethiopian Psyche.
1. Ethnic Politics and the Cracks in the Dry Ground of the TPLF
2. The Rise of Ethiopian Nihilism and the Plight of Addis Ababa University
3. Assab or How to Make the Best of a Predicament
4. Guilt and Atonement: The Genesis of Revolutionary Spirit in Ethiopia
5. Bringing Reason Back to Ethiopian Politics
**The books in this series are (all in Amharic)
Atse Tewodros ena Ye Ethiopia Andinet, Atse Yohannes ena Ye Ethiopia Andinet, and Atse Menelik ena Ye Ethiopia Andinet
***While we feel our suspicion is justified because of EPRDF’s constant attempts to reinterpret and discourage the classical view of Ethiopian history; for an interesting and humorous take on the suspicious Ethiopian mind, we recommend Hama Tuma’s Of Paranoia and the Ethiopian Psyche.
2 comments:
Great post. Thanks for the recommendations. Just wanted to comment on two books on your list and recommend another.
Every Ethiopian history aficionado should own a copy of Bahru Zewde's book. It's well researched, accessible to both novices and historians, is fair, balanced, and devoid of author bias.
In addition to providing the bios of 32 Ethiopian writers, Molvaer's Black Lions provides interesting snippets of the time in which the featured authors lived. His meeting and interview with Ato Haddis Alemayehu (Fikir eske Mekabir) was interesting. I was happy to read about Bealu Girma, the slain author. Oromai and Derasiw are wonderful novels. Someone should translate Oromai into English someday.
I wanted to recommend a great book I just read by Amb. Zewde Reta: Teferi Mekonen, Rejimu Yesiltan Guzo, be Eyasu ena be Zewditu Zemen 1884-1922.
I look forward to reading Messay Kebede's Survival. Thanks for recommending his work.
Selam.
Thank you for writing about our father's book AVIATION IN ETHIOPIA. If there are any requests for the book please inform them the link of http://www.4ep.us This is his children website.
Please use the link to my father's book which is available at our Internet Store.
Enamesseh'genalen
The MAKs
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