Books Set in Africa

Book Summary

This modern parable was written by an award-winning Tunisian author. He weaves the story of a beekeeper, Sidi, into a tale about the aftermath of the Arab Spring. Sidi is heartbroken when he wakes up one morning to find that his beloved bees have been attacked by a swarm of hornets. The killer hornets aren’t native to the area, and Sidi must figure out where they came from and how they can be stopped. 

His journey takes him out of his village and into the city, where he encounters those impacted by the Arab Spring, uprisings that took place between 2010-2011 in Tunisia (and spread to other nations).

Book Summary

Ninety percent of Mauritania is part of the Sahara Desert, and this story transports us there through the eyes of a camel herder named Ahmed. He and other Bedouin families live a nomadic life, ruled by changing seasons and the needs of their camels.

As the French colonizers, modernization, and drought threaten the Bedouin way of life, Ahmed tries to focus on the ancient routines that make up his daily life. But when his favorite camel, Zarga, disappears, he sets out on a dangerous journey that will test his desert survival skills.

Book Summary

This Ghanaian novel illustrates the power of female friendship and vividly portrays class and family life in Ghana.

Cousins Selasi and Akorfa grew up together as young girls. Though inseparable, they had vastly different personalities – Selasi is exuberant and funny, while Akorfa is quiet and studious. They shared everything, including their hopes and dreams, secrets, and private jokes.

But then Salasi becomes hostile and quiet, her grades suffer, and shuts Akorfa out. Meanwhile, Akorfa continues to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. She is accepted into an American university but encounters racism in ways she never expected. It takes a crisis to finally bring the two back together, revealing secrets and reckoning with their estrangement.

Book Summary

This multi-generation epic follows the divergent paths of two half-sisters born in 18th century Ghana and their descendants over 300 years. Effia marries a wealthy Englishman and lives in a castle, but she doesn’t know Esi is imprisoned in the dungeon below. Esi is sold in the slave trade and shipped to America, where she, her children, and her grandchildren are raised in slavery. 

The book continues to follow each generation of both Effia and Esi all the way to the present day and includes a range of historical time periods, including the American Civil War and the Jazz Age.

Book Summary

Emma Djan dreamed of working her way up in the police department, just like her late father did. But when, at age 26, that dream crashes down around her, a former colleague gets her an interview with a private detective agency.

Gordon, a middle-aged widower from Washington D.C., found solace in an internet support group. There, he also befriended a young Ghanaian widow. When her sister is in a car accident, he’s eager to help and sends thousands of dollars to help cover the hospital bills. Gordon then travels to Ghana to surprise the new love of his life. When he goes missing, his son Derek chases after him, fearing for his father’s life.

Emma’s first case – tracking down Gordon – will lead her into the depths of the email scams of Ghana, the world’s Internet capital.

Book Summary

Author Ismael Beah was born in Sierra Leone in 1980. In 1991, when he was just 11, a violent civil war began. By the time he was 13, his parents and two brothers were killed, leaving him to be forcefully recruited as one of the child soldiers many of us were devastated to see in news reports about the war. 

Two years later, he was successfully rescued by UNICEF. In 1996, at only 16 years old, he spoke to the UN about the war and its impact on children. At 27, he released this memoir to share his journey with the world. Since the release and acclaim of his memoir, Ismael Beah has published two fiction titles and continues to advocate for children in conflict zones around the world.

Book Summary

In this compelling YA novel, fifteen-year-old Amadou and his eight-year-old brother live as modern-day slaves on a chocolate plantation in Ivory Coast, which produces 40% of the world’s chocolate. They left home two years earlier for a seasonal job, and have been held captive ever since, forced to meet quotas or go without food. 

Everything changes when the first girl arrives at the plantation, Khadija is different. Instead of trying to just survive, she’s determined to fight back and escape. While her bravery causes complications for the brothers, it also re-inspires their will to make it back home to Mali.

Book Summary

Funke had a happy childhood growing up in Nigeria with her art teacher mother, and professor father. But following a tragedy, she’s sent to England – a place she only knows from her mother’s stories. The much-lauded estate she’s heard so much about is now dilapidated, and both the weather and the food leave a lot to be desired.

The only member of her mother’s family that doesn’t act cold and distant is her free-spirited cousin, Liv. Filled with warmth and kindness, Liv helps Funke heal. As the two girls grow into women, they become close friends and Funke feels fiercely protective of Liv until another tragedy tears them apart.

In the shadow of their shared family history, each woman will struggle to find her way forward. Set in Lagos, Nigeria, and Somerset, England, over the course of two decades, the cousins – separated by country, misunderstanding, and ambition – will have to determine whether a family’s generational wrongs can ever be righted.

Book Summary

Adunni is a 14-year-old girl living in poverty in a Nigerian village. She loves school and knows that learning all she can is the key to achieving a better life. But, despite promising to allow Adunni’s schooling to continue after her mother’s death, Adunni’s father makes a decision that ends her education in the village and changes the trajectory of her life.

You’ll be moved to both tears and cheers as Adunni endures and overcomes heartbreaking challenges while remaining focused on her dream of an education.

Book Summary

This novel is a modern reimagining of the myth of Hades and Persophone set within a Nigerian family.

Nani is just 17 years old when she loses her older sister, followed soon after by her father. She doesn’t feel understood by her mother or her remaining sister, but she finds comfort in a handsome, itinerant preacher who offers her a new place to belong. It’s not long before she finds herself in an abusive marriage and estranged from her family. Will she be able to find the courage to break free without losing her children?

Book Summary

This memoir – from Nobel Peace Prize-winning Wangari Maathai – recounts her life story, from her childhood in a rural village in the 1940s to her role as an activist and a single mother of three.

Throughout her life, Wangari Maathai fought for environmental responsibility, equality for women, and democracy in her home nation of Kenya. These efforts have led to many run-ins with the brutal Moi government and have even landed her in jail.

Her drive and determination also allowed her to become the first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a Ph.D. and the first woman in Kenya to head a university department. In 2002, she was appointed to Parliament.

Book Summary

While the author of this book is Israeli, she divides her time between Israel and Kenya and has formed a deep bond with the Massai ethnic group after living with them beginning in 2001. This memoir tells her story and how she became so engaged with the community that they gave her a Massai name, Nayolang, which means “One of Us.” 

Throughout the book, you’ll be introduced to daily life, special ceremonies, and many Massai traditions. It’s a rare, thought-provoking glimpse into the similarities and differences between Western and Massai culture.

Book Summary

Connie last visited her aunt’s beach resort in Tanzania sixteen years earlier, but she still has vivid fond memories of her time there. When she divorces her cheating husband in the UK, it seems like a perfect opportunity to visit her aunt again.

On the path of mending her broken heart, she spends time assisting at her aunt’s properties in both Tanzania and Zanzibar. In addition to the gorgeous scenery, Connie finds some gorgeous men and discovers a long-hidden family secret.

Book Summary

For the twelve years of her life, Kirabo has been raised by the women in her small Ugandan village. She is surrounded by love from her grandmother, many aunts, and her best friend, but she’s never known her mother.

Seeking answers about her mom’s identity, Kirabo spends afternoons with a local witch. She senses that in addition to her sweet, obedient nature, she has a second self inside of her – one that is headstrong and that confuses her.

This novel is rich in the folklore of Uganda and explores what it means to be a modern girl in a society that tries to silence women.

Book Summary

Told through the eyes of two 12-year-olds, this book captures Uganda’s political unrest during three months in 1972, following President Idi Amin’s rapid expulsion of those of Indian descent from the country.

Asha and her best friend, Yesofu, never cared about the differences between them: Indian. African. Girl. Boy. But when Ugandan President Idi Amin announces that Indians have ninety days to leave the country, suddenly those differences are the only things that people in Entebbe can see — not the shared after-school samosas or Asha cheering for Yesofu at every cricket game.

Determined for her life to stay the same, Asha clings to her world tighter than ever before. But Yesofu is torn, pulled between his friends, his family, and a promise of a better future. Now, as neighbors leave and soldiers line the streets, the two friends find that nothing seems sure…not even their friendship.

Book Summary

Desta’s first home was Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and he has some great memories of it, but it’s also the place of his saddest memory – his father’s death. He’s been avoiding home, but now, as his 26th birthday approaches, his job as a Dominican-American emergency relief worker lands him there for twelve weeks.

Elias has earned the opportunity to pursue his doctoral studies in the U.S. but is struggling with the thought of leaving his country. When he meets Desta, Elias suddenly sees a different future for himself.

Book Summary

This epic novel is based on the life of Valentino Achak Deng, one of thousands of Sudanese children — the so-called Lost Boys — who were forced to leave their villages in Sudan. At the age of seven, Valentino was separated from his family and trekked hundreds of miles by foot, pursued by militias, government bombers, and wild animals, crossing the deserts of three countries to find freedom. When Valentino ultimately immigrated to the United States under the Lost Boys of Sudan program, he found a life full of promise but also heartache and myriad new challenges.

Dave Eggers is an American author with many non-fiction and biographical successes. For this work, Eggers and Valentino spent many years collaborating to tell the story of the Lost Boys of Sudan. Valentino shared everything that he could remember, and from that material, Eggers initially set out to write a conventional biography. Ultimately, however, he determined he could best tell the story by blending non-fictional and fictional elements. By classifying the book a novel, Eggers tells the Washington Post, it allowed him to “re-create conversations, streamline complex relationships, add relevant detail and manipulate time and space in helpful ways — all while maintaining the essential truthfulness of the storytelling.”

Book Summary

This memoir, told in alternating timelines, is an incredible tale of resilience.

Clemantine was only six years old in 1994 when, in a span of just 100 days, more than 800,000 people would be murdered in Rwanda and millions more displaced. Clemantine and her fifteen-year-old sister, Claire, were forced to run. Together, they spent the next six years making their way through refugee camps in seven African countries in search of safety. Throughout the entire time, they did not know whether their parents were alive. They witnessed unimaginable cruelty, but they also found unexpected kindness.

Six years later, at age twelve, Clemantine and her sister were both granted asylum in the United States. But this chance to build a new life in Chicago was not an easy road. She spoke five languages, but English was not one of them, and she had almost no previous experience attending school.

Book Summary

Originally from Sydney, Australia, Peter Allison’s safaris have been featured in National Geographic, Conde Nast Traveler, Jack Hanna’s Animal Adventures, and other television shows. In this book, he gives us a guide’s-eye-view of what it’s like to live and work in Botswana’s Kalahari Desert, confronting wild animals and managing herds of tourists daily (the latter often proves to be the more dangerous).

Allison’s wry wit is exceeded only by his love and respect for the animals. You’ll also have a high appreciation for the wildlife of Africa at the end of the book.

Book Summary

Born a Crime is the true story of Daily Show host Trevor Noah’s childhood and into his early adulthood. His rise to success was unlikely based on his beginning. Trevor was born in South Africa in 1984 to a white father and black mother. His parents could have been imprisoned for five years – or worse – for conceiving him. He spent his early years largely hidden from life outside because his mother feared (with good reason) that he could be removed from her custody because of the apartheid rules of segregation.

In true Trevor Noah fashion, you’ll be entertained while also receiving an education on life in apartheid South Africa. He manages to explain the extremely complex system of apartheid in accessible terms by drawing on examples and comparisons.

When the era of white rule officially ended in the early 1990s, it was far from the end of the family’s troubles. From attempted kidnappings and domestic violence to high school dating drama, you’ll find a mixture of relatable and shocking stories that keep you engaged with every page.

Book Summary

Pippa is a neurodivergent air traffic controller and loves her job and the voices she speaks to from the planes. She does not love repeating patterns, tight clothes, or people asking why she’s single at school reunions.

Pilot Andrew is also single, and his parents won’t let him forget it. They have good intentions, but are making him crazy. While he’s talked to Pippa over the radio for six months, they’ve never met and don’t even know they’re based at the same airport.

After Pippa and Andrew have an unexpected meet-cute moment and begin talking, they realize they can help each other. Andrew will attend Pippa’s ten-year reunion, and Pippa will be Andrew’s girlfriend at a family wedding. Their fake dates take them around South Africa until sparks fly. Suddenly, things don’t feel so fake anymore.

Book Summary

Fifty-something Tannie Maria loves to cook and write – which is why she’s the perfect person to write a recipe column for her local paper, the Klein Karoo Gazette. But when the powers that be insist that the paper must also feature an advice section – Tannie’s column has to meet the requirement by becoming a joint advice and recipe column. 

When her column receives a letter from a woman whose husband beats her, Tannie’s best advice appears not to be good enough when a woman matching that description turns up dead. She and her Gazette colleagues decide to help the police find the murderer. But things are not so simple, and soon there’s another murder – a suspected poisoning – as well as a kidnapping or two. 

This is the first book in a murder mystery series that’s packed with humor (ranging from slapstick to understated). 

Book Summary

Set against the backdrop of life on a South African wild animal reserve, this memoir details South African-born conservationist Lawrence Anthony’s experiences taking in a “rogue” herd of elephants (initially against his better judgment). The elephants had already earned a reputation as notorious escape artists (largely due to their past negative encounters with humans), and Anthony was their last hope. As Lawrence battled to create a bond with the elephants and save them from execution, he came to realize that they had a lot to teach him about life, loyalty and freedom. 

Although the elephants are the focus of this story, readers can also glean much more about life in the wilds of South Africa.