Africa South of the Sahara: A Geographical Interpretation (Texts in Regional Geography)

We've never had a geography of Africa text that examines the real issues of Africa's development crisis quite like this one does. Its comprehensiveness and balance are impressive. I found the approach fresh, informative, and provocative. It is written in clear prose, in a style that will give the text a long-life before a revised version is necessary. It includes chapters on patterns and processes affecting physical environments, salient social and cultural features, and an essential historical perspective to development and social change. Greatest emphasis is given to African economies and economic life, including a chapter devoted specifically to the extraordinary involvement and potential of women in development. The chapters on Africa's role in the world economy, relations of ideology and development, and development from within are important and welcome features that give this book particular relevance and enable it to stand apart from other geography texts on this region. Features that faculty and students will both look forward to using include well-chosen and written vignettes in each chapter, effective introductory essays at the start of each major section of the text (e.g., Africa in Historical Perspective, Dynamics of Population, Urban Economies and Societies, Resources). Also, the suggestions for further reading have been carefully chosen for each chapter. The text carries the earmarks of a thoughtful scholar who is personally well-acquainted with the complexities of trying to interpret contemporary Africa. I think Bob Stock succeeds admirably where no one else has for many years. This really will be a welcome text for courses on Africa! We've had a long drought. --Charles M. Good, Ph.D., Professor of Geography, Virginia Tech

Robert Stock offers us a stimulating book on the geography of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Using a thematic and analytic approach, the author not only points to the various factors that have contributed to SSA's deepening crisis but he also points out the seeds of hope' that lie ahead in the region's vast potential. This is a well-balanced work that explains SSA's contemporary realities in a synthesis of historical, cultural, social political, and economic perspectives on the region. The book should make an excellent text at the undergraduate level and a must background reading to academics, politicians and development administrators. The author has made an excellent use of vignettes, maps, and figures providing readers with a rich set of materials illustrative of the thematic chapters. Robert Stock renders a perspective long overdue on SSA's geography. --Assefa Mehretu, Ph.D., Professor of Geography and African Studies, Michigan State University