Great African Reads discussion

History repeating itself in Mali: The French military is again drawn into the fray against jihadists in the forbidding desert country

By Peter Chilson
For Foreign Policy magazine
Published: January 20, 2013

In 1893, in what is now central Mali, the French army achieved a victory that had eluded it for almost 50 years: the destruction of the jihadist Tukulor Empire, one of the last great challenges to France’s rule in the region....

I've found the longform pieces by al Jazeera's May Ying Welsh very good and nuanced:
http://www.aljazeera.com/profile/may-...

Thanks for posting these. Good reading for when we get to Mali in May/June!

I'm planning a trip to Mali very soon, for both business and pleasure. Any more recent recommendations for finding good books from this country?

The Golden Hour by Todd Moss. I'm on page 100 of 322. Does it ever get to be more about Mali than the CIA?

No. Not really. As someone who has lived Africa much more deeply and longer than Todd, I could not finish this book, but as reluctant as I am to buy his second book, I probably will out of my respect for a fellow author.

Mark wrote: "No. Not really. As someone who has lived Africa much more deeply and longer than Todd, I could not finish this book, but as reluctant as I am to buy his second book, I probably will out of my respe..."
So, Mark, even though you did not finish the book, you got farther than page 100? I almost never quit a book early and don't want to do it now--if I can find a reason to continue.

I have the book next to my bed with the best intention of finishing it some day. I got past page 100, but I had other books I wanted to read first before trudging through Todd's first book. I also do not like not finishing any book I start reading, but with other books to read, my own writing, my move, etc. time is scarce.

I lived in Mali in 2013-14 (blogging here).

Here's a few things to read:

Books:
There's a Listopia of books on Mali that I seem to be the only voter on... the rest of y'all should add your books!

News:
If you read French / google translate you can get Malian public opinion at news sites:
http://malijet.com
http://maliactu.info/
http://www.malikounda.com/index.php
http://www.jeuneafrique.com/pays/mali...

There is a very good and approachable analysis of the Mali conflict here:
http://bridgesfrombamako.com/2013/04/... (and that whole blog is worth looking at!).

And a who's who and background on the crisis by Alex Thurston which is quite useful is here:
http://africacenter.org/2013/09/a-han...
His Sahel Blog Mali tag is worth a read: https://sahelblog.wordpress.com/categ...

Al Jazeera wrote some interesting articles from the Tuareg perspective (search Al Jazeera English not Al Jazeera America for Mali):
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inte...
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spot...

I just finished reading , by Laurent Guillaume (translated from French), which is set in Mali. I enjoyed it!