An African History of Africa

From the Dawn of Humanity to Independence

De: Zeinab Badawi

Narrado por: Zeinab Badawi

Already a major international bestseller, Zeinab Badawi’s sweeping and much-needed survey of African history traces the continent’s extraordinary legacy from prehistory to the present from the African perspective.

“Equal parts gripping and galvanizing. . . . Researched across more than 30 countries, it brings the dazzling civilizations of pre-colonial Africa vividly to life. A book that feels both long-overdue—and wholly worth the wait.”—British Vogue

Everyone is originally from Africa, and this book is therefore for everyone.

For too long, Africa’s history has been dominated by western narratives of slavery and colonialism, or simply ignored. Now, Zeinab Badawi sets the record straight.

In this fascinating book, Badawi guides us through Africa’s spectacular history—from the very origins of our species, through ancient civilizations and medieval empires with remarkable queens and kings, to the miseries of conquest and the elation of independence. Visiting more than thirty African countries to interview countless historians, anthropologists, archaeologists and local storytellers, she unearths buried histories from across the continent and gives Africa its rightful place in our global story.

The result is a gripping new account of Africa: an epic, sweeping history of the oldest inhabited continent on the planet, told through the voices of Africans themselves.

©2025 Zeinab Badawi (P)2025 HarperCollins Publishers

Exhaustive and quick but beautiful voice and good rundown of African history

I appreciated this book but there is sooo much to each chapter and section that I wish they were more of a compendium. I struggle with history books that use a lot of dates as they just don’t click in my head, and this book obviously did that a lot. more reflective of my own failing than the authors, though. Id prefer to have this as a physical book to make notes and study, but the narrators voice was absolutely lovely.

A very good book

Very well researched and informative. However, we know history is a complicated subject and studies have shown the many complexities of the history. This book backed up a lot of what I know but also gave me gems that I did not correlate with what I knew. This audacious book also gave me things to further research on my own. As a person of the diaspora I can make further connections with the continent of Africa and my brothers and sisters and research their history as well as build upon my own in this forsaken country.

Excellent and well written

What a phenomenally written piece of work. Zeinab’s research was thoroughly conducted. The stories of such fascinating history is compelling and provides a powerful perspective never known or understood by the diaspora in the US. This is our hidden history, now shared with us. Beautifully written!

Introductory History

You can probably tell from the length of this book that it is really an introductory history of the continent of Africa. The book describes highlighted moments in the history of certain regions of Africa. These highlighted moments usually last a few hundred years before it moves on to the next region. These described moments are probably chosen because of their lasting impact. These could be the legacies of import leaders on internal affairs, the effects of trade routes, introductions of religions like Christianity or Islam, or the contact with Europeans. Particularly attention is given to the impact of the slave trade on Africans and their communities. The end of the book gives an overview of the independence movements in the 20th century. It’s a good book to give a very basic history of certain regions and a general understanding of the continent as a whole

A wonderful history

I love every second of this book! I was desperately looking for a book that told the history of Africa that expressed more than just slavery and colonialism. Then I found this gem! It was so good and I learn so much! Now I really want to be able to travel to Africa and explore this beautiful continent and its rich history!

Excellent book! Everyone should read it. Or listen.

A thorough telling of the history of Africa. The history we were never taught us school. It turns out that Africa had the greatest military tactician in history. His tactics are still taught today. It had universities and schools to rival anything in Europe. And it had warrior queens more fierce than Budica. It is Great book! A must listen!

Good basic info.

Learned some things i did not know, and the audiobook was very engaging, still i feel it was "dumbed down" a bit, and the mostly unrelentingly chipper and self-congratulatory tone makes me feel like she is the historian's equivalent of Kenneth Branagh. Despite this i did love it, and i felt that the author had some heartfelt, well-researched and vital points to make.

An African history of Africa

I thought it was an absolutely wonderful review of the history of Africa easy to understand and just makes you want to learn more!!!

Strap in. One of my toughest listens yet.

This is the gut punch in African history that I never knew I needed. There is so much unvarnished detail revealed here in the history leading up to my ancestors' journeys in the slave ships to the Americas. Nzinga…what a complicated figure!

The good news is the author somehow sticks the landing and manages to end on a positive note. Hopefully, this helps to set the course for a brighter future for all of us.

Passionate Storytelling

I really enjoyed the framework of the novel, you can hear the thought and care and excitement throughout the author's narration, it was a breeze to listen to and contained so much new-to-me history and subjects to reflect on.