Into Africa: A Journey Through the Ancient Empires

Les Harding is the author of The Voyages of Lesser Men: Thumbnail
Sketches in Canadian Exploration and The Journeys of Remarkable Women:
Their Travels on the Canadian Frontier.

How many Canadians, other than stamp collectors, have heard of the
Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Equatorial Guinea, or Burkina-Faso
(formerly known as Upper Volta)? Not too many, I should think. The
authors of this fascinating volume have done more than just hear of
those obscure countries; they have also visited them, along with 30
other African nations, including Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa.

The authors’ primary interest was historical. They wanted to see the
remains of Africa’s great and glorious empires of the past and to
compare them with what exists there today. Their book, which is part
travelogue, part history, and part adventure tale, is replete with
interesting personal observations on people, cultures, and events that
are only dimly appreciated by most Canadians.

Forget the “outsider” clichés of the Dark Continent, cannibalism,
rampant tribalism, barbarism, famine, and hopelessness. The Africa de
Villiers and Hirtle experienced is incredibly diverse, sometimes
horrible and sometimes magnificent, and always vibrant and culturally
rich. With the authors we travel down the Congo River by barge, explore
rain forests and trackless deserts, tour huge cities and tiny villages,
and meet Africans of every description.

Into Africa is divided into broad geographical sections that include
historical and contemporary accounts. Sidebars with arresting quotations
and descriptions are another welcome feature of this enjoyable and
informative book.