Book description
One small East African country embodies the battered history of the
continent: patronised by colonialists, riven by civil war, confused by
Cold War manoeuvring, proud, colorful, with Africa's best espresso and
worst rail service. Michela Wrong brilliantly reveals the contradictions
and comedy, past and present, of Eritrea.
Just as the beat of a butterfly's wings is said to cause hurricanes on
the other side of the world, so the affairs of tiny Eritrea reverberate
onto the agenda of superpower strategists. This new book on Africa is
from the author of the critically acclaimed In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz.
Eritrea is a little-known country scarred by decades of conflict and
occupation. It has weathered the world's longest-running guerrilla war,
and the dogged determination that secured victory against Ethiopia, its
giant neighbour, is woven into the national psyche. Fascist Italy wanted
Eritrea as the springboard for a new, racially-pure Roman empire,
Britain sold off its industry for scrap, the US needed headquarters for
its state-of-the-art spy station and the Soviet Union used it as a pawn
in a proxy war.
Michela Wrong reveals the breathtaking abuses this tiny nation has
suffered and, with the sharp eye for detail that was the hallmark of her
account of Mobutu's Congo, she tells the story of colonialism itself.
Along the way, we meet a formidable Emperor, a guerrilla fighter who
taught himself French cuisine in the bush, and a chemist who arranged
the heist of his own laboratory. An arresting blend of travelogue and
history, 'I Didn't Do It For You' pierces the dark heart of our colonial
history. Praise for I Didn't Do It For You:
'Contemporary history on the grand scale. I was entertained, informed
and angered. Wrong has given us another essential contribution to the
post-colonial scramble for Africa.' John le Carre
'Vivid, penetrating, wonderfully detailed. Michela Wrong has written
the biography of a nation and more - she has excavated the very heart
and soul of the Eritrean people and their country.' Aminatta Forna
'If you thought Eritrea was some exotic flower you heard mentioned on a
gardening programme this book will tell you something different. It
tells the tale of a small group of Africans so despised and trampled by
successive foreign occupations that they fought back and after 30 years
of war, they became a nation. It is an astounding story packed with
tales of the worst - and the best - of human behaviour.' Richard Dowden,
President of the Royal African Society
'This is a wonderful, readable and illuminating book. Michela Wrong is
an enormously talented writer…thoroughly researched and deeply engaging
and honest.' Clare Short - New Statesman
'Impressive … Wrong offers an uplifting testament to the resilience of
the human spirit. Eminently readable and full of fascinating detail,
this is a book that deserves and needs to be read' Guardian
'[A] corker … fascinating and tragic. Wrong's writing flows so smoothly
that it is only after 100 pages or so that you notice how much legwork
she has put in [and] she tracks down a startling array of characters'
Daily Telegraph
'A lyrical, intensely intelligent and wonderfully readable history of
Eritrea … beautifully written' Independent Michela Wrong has been a
foreign correspondent since joining Reuters after University and has
worked extensively in Africa for the BBC and has also worked for the
Sunday Times. She now writes for the Financial Times
