Product Description
A journey into contemporary Africa's most powerful and most corrupt nation.

To understand Africa, one must understand Nigeria, and few Americans understand Nigeria better than Karl Maier. This House Has Fallen is a bracing and disturbing report on the state of Africa's most populous, potentially richest, and most dangerously dysfunctional nation.

Each year, with depressing consistency, Nigeria is declared the most corrupt state in the entire world. Though Nigeria is a nation into which billions of dollars of oil money flow, its per capita income has fallen dramatically in the past two decades. Military coup follows military coup. A bellwether for Africa, it is a country of rising ethnic tensions and falling standards of living, very possibly on the verge of utter collapse -- a collapse that could dramatically overshadow even the massacres in Rwanda.

A brilliant piece of reportage and travel writing, This House Has Fallen looks into the Nigerian abyss and comes away with insight, profound conclusions, and even some hope. Updated with a new preface by the author. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Terrible
I hated this book for a variety of reasons.First of all, no one who has any real appreciation of Nigeria's rich and diverse culture, history, literature, music, etc., will be even mildly convinced that this man knows the first thing about the people and the country about which he decided to write this wretched book.

You, the potential reader, may not know this, but at least you have me to tell you before you make the mistake of purchasing this book in the fraudulent belief that you will learn something from it.Maier seems obsessed with simply presenting Nigeria as a basketcase, despite the fact that he does not have a profound understanding of its people.No one like that should write a book like this.

Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe, two of Nigeria's most talented authors, have both written books extremely critical of Nigeria, but they did so from a position of knowledge, and it showed.Which is not to say that you have to be from Nigeria to write a book about the country.Certainly not.But presenting the nation out of context in such an unsympathetic way, with so little nuance, is not only poor scholarship, it's dangerous.

Nigeria has tremendous problems, but it also has amazing success stories, none of which made it into this book.There are stories demonstrating the remarkable ingenuity, entrepreneurship and dilligence of Nigerian men and women under the hardest circumstances.It's a nation with great art, great literature, great music, a great sense of humor, not to mention thousands of years of history, and some of Africa's longest lasting and most interesting kingdoms and cultures.

But, you would definitely not know that reading this book, because all you are presented with is a bunch of miserable information.How would one expect readers to become interested in such a place?I'm not suggesting that Nigeria's very real problems be ignored, far from it.I'm only saying that a national portrait of political and moral collapse should at least show that the nation in question ALSO has remarkable talent, also has some of the funniest, warmest, and most resilient people you'll ever meet, also has a fascinating history, is diverse, and has complex historical reasons for so many of its problems.The book doesn't really explain how colonialism or modern financial interests and corporate interest might play into that.Or, why corrupt leaders come to power.What's the dynamic there?Why does this happen?The book doesn't deign to attempt answer such questions.Why?I have no idea.It just tells us that it's a corrupt country, and that we should care because it has oil, and a hundred million people.

I really think the world would be a better place if uninformed people stopped writing pessimistic drivel that further defames a continent which needs defenders, not detractors.I can't believe I bought this book, and own it.

A Nice Book
A nice book that touches on key aspects of Nigerian society. For a foreigner, Mr. Maier does a nice job in writing about the diverse ethnic groups that make up Nigeria. However, I have chosen to rate this book with three stars for the following reasons:

At some point in time, I got the feeling I was reading a newspaper. Being well versed and current with affairs in Nigeria, I found most of the stories recounted by Mr. Maier to be very familiar. What Mr. Maier failed to do was provide significant in-depth analysis into the problems besetting modern day Nigeria, or better still, present likely solutions to some of these problems from his point of view.

There are quite a few typographical errors in the book. I also disagree with a historical event stated. This has to do with the amalgamation of Nigeria in 1914. Mr. Maier says it was done because Northern Nigeria was running a deficit, while the South was economically sustainable. This is definitely not true. The Northern and Southern protectorates were merged to form Nigeria in 1914 to serve the interests of the British Empire. Mineral resources obtained in the North were shipped to ports in the South to be sent to Britain. It made economic sense to Britain and had nothing to do with deficits or the economic state of the Northern and Southern colonies.

Generally, it is a very good book and one that touches on several aspects of modern Nigerian society in its 300 or so pages. It is definitely worth the read if you are interested in understanding the complexity and diversity of Nigerian society as well as its history, economic state and recent return to a democratic system of government.

A typical post colonial prejudice by a western journalist
It took me some time to get a copy of this book from a friend to read. But after reading it, I was glad not to have a copy myself. It is not that the contents of the book do not correspond with the nigerian situation, but the total lack of objectivity in the book. Maier clearly shows that he is among those we hear are paid to promote and justify the exercise of colonialism in Africa: that africans can not rule themselves. If Nigeria as a house has fallen, then it is due to the wrong foundation upon which the house was built which was the British mess and exploitation. Where Maier tried to remember that there was no nation like Nigeria before colonialism, he avoided telling the truth of the emergence of Nigeria as a consequence of British selfishness. For example, he mentioned that Nigeria had a great agricultural potentials in products such a palm oil and so many things, but quickly added these were exported to England and "inturn Nigeria got millions of tones of cosmetics and gins". Or where he slightly mentioned the activities of oil firms like the royal dutsch/shell in Nigeria, the environmental harzards are not taken note of. For God's sake why could he not tell us the truth that the aim of colonialsm was primarily for the need of his sponsors. Or when he metioned the amalgmation of north and south of Nigeria and termed it "for the purpose reducing deficit of the north", was the aim not to enhance more agricultural opportunities for the great Britian. It was on this bad foundation that ethnic kingdoms like the Igala, Yoruba, Benin and many others who had a very effective leadership and administrative autonomy were forced and forged into the nationhood of Nigeria which even became a problem before the exit of the foolish masters-maier's ancestors. Thank God, people like Alan Burns, a one time Birtish governor in Nigeria still live to write the truth: "Those Europeans who were interested in one protectorate knew little of the other, and wasted no sympathy on their neighbours, while among the inhabitants of the country the lack of uniform system of government had already accentuated the already existing difference of race, religion and culture" (Alan Burns: History of Nigeria,London, 1969. Pg. 11). I would wish that Maeir make out time to reason why he needs to blame his motherland for the many attrocities committed in Nigeria and africa as a whole of which the present situations are hangovers. I could have better not read this monographs of journalistic nonsense called a book on Nigeria, and would never recommend it to any objective mind.

You Are Welcome, Maier Cracks A Bit of Nigeria's Problems
Living in Nigeria leaves one drained, confused and fascinated.Nigeria is like watching a car crash every day; you cannot help but to watch despite the blood and carnage.Mr. Maier's lively account of daily scences in Nigeria is a accessible read for anyone, even those who never set foot in Nigeria or could care less about Africa's problems.A case in point is Maier's visit to former military President Babangida.The President sat in his chalet a few hours drive from Nigeria's capital Abuja, charming, sly, friendly and happy with the billions of dollars he stold from the Nigerian people.In fact, Babangida is set to make another run for President in 2007. Maier allows the former President to talk and expose the underbelly of most Nigerian leaders, avarice, self-righteousness and the ability to buy people off with the money taken from government coffers.In fact, be it Obasanjo, Abacha, Buhari or any other military leader or newly minted democratic leaders, they are all the same people, in the same big seats, stealing the same people and country blind.Sad, but Nigeria.Maier allows the reader in to see Nigeria from Abuja to Minna to Lagos; it is a great read and essential for anyone coming to Nigeria.

You are Welcome!! Nigeria, what a country and what a mess.

old wine in new skin
I bought This House Has Fallen: Nigeria in Crisis (Maier, 2003) after reading This house has fallen: Midnight in Nigeria (Maier, 2000). To my surprise, the texts were identical, save for the title and cover picture. Was it the intention of the publishers and the author to reproduce the 2000 publication word for word under a different title? I hope not, but I look forward to hearing from them on this medium since I have not been able to reach them otherwise. ... Read more

Product Description

In the 1990s, Nigeria, like several countries in Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe and Latin America, underwent transition programs to return the country to democracy. Nigeria’s democratization in the 1990s was a civil and international movement to free Nigeria from over 20 years of authoritarian military rule. Agbese examines the role and agenda of the Nigerian press in the democratization process, highlighting the grave challenges the Nigerian press faced – such as jail, arrest, and assassination – in pushing for democratization in Nigeria.

Product Description
This study of the evangelization of the Igbos uses archives of the Holy Ghost Fathers in Paris. Prior to 1885 the protestant missions dominated the field, but from that date the Roman Catholic influence was established and the two churches; struggle for mastery is the central theme. ... Read more

Product Description
This volume analyzes discourses on British colonialism constructed by Muslims of northern Nigeria c. 1903-1945. It departs from the conventional wisdom on British colonial policy of indirect rule and its “benign” consequences. Conceptualizing colonialism not simply as a unilateral imposition but as a dynamic encounter between colonizer and colonized, the book shifts the focus away from the overwhelming impact of the former and devastating consequences on the later, thereby revealing indeterminate outcomes and unintended consequences of both the actions of the colonizer and the reactions of the colonized. The volume analyzes legal treatises, poems, and novels, connecting authors to their intellectual backgrounds, relations to colonial regime and intended audiences, leading to better understanding of the ideas that informed Muslims' intellectual and practical responses to colonialism. ... Read more

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This critical assessment of the origins and consequences of Islam and politics in colonial and post-colonial Nigeria covers religion and national integration; looks at the old and the new Caliphates; examines violence and deprivation in the Kaduna State; and analyses national feeling. ... Read more

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"Isidore Okpewho has written another landmark study.... Written with exceptional clarity, accessible, yet vigorously argued and sparkling with illustrative insights, Once Upon a Kingdom is immeasurably delightful to read. Like anything Okpewho has ever written, the boook has set the terms for future studies in the field." -- World Literature Today

"Okpewho gives us yet again a work of outstanding scholarship that is also a joy to read." -- Chinua Achebe, author of Things Fall Apart

"Indispensable for collections of black or oral literature and history... " -- Choice

"An incisive analysis by one of the leading Africanist scholars that manages to be at once enjoyable, informative and challenging. This timely and authoritative book represents a new stage in the study of African narrative which will interest and challenge (or arouse) students of narrative whatever their geographical specialism." -- Ruth Finnegan

The communities that once lived in the pale of the West African kingdom of Benin still tell stories that show traces of their ingrained resentment of the kingdom. Isidore Okpewho uses stories he collected from narrators in these communities to reveal an effort by marginalized peoples to defend themselves and their place in an uneven socio-political landscape.

Product Description
This book examines the decline of slavery in Northern Nigeria during the first forty years of colonial rule. At the time of the British conquest, the Sokoto Caliphate was one of the largest slave societies in modern history. Rather than emancipate slaves, the colonial state abolished the legal status of slavery, encouraging them to buy their freedom. Many were unable to do so, and slavery was not finally abolished until l936.The authors have written a provocative book, raising doubts over the moral legitimacy of both the Sokoto Caliphate and the colonial state. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Slavery in Northern Nigeria
In nine chapters, the authors discussed the gradual decline of slavery in Northern Nigeria, specifically in the Sokoto Caliphate. Slavery ended as a result of the different policies of the British in this region of Nigeria. The first efforts at ending slavery were stopping the raiding of slaves. Then there was the policy of granting freedom to all children born after April 1, 1901. Later policies allowed slaves to purchase their own freedom or third parties to ransom them. Women received their freedom through marriage or concubinage. The official abolition of slavery by the British was in 1936. The study by Lovejoy and Hogendorn concentrates on the British part of the Sokoto Caliphate because a majority of the slaves were in this area. The process of emancipation of slaves in this area was "jerky;" it took over four decades, from 1897 - 1936. The policy of emancipation was crafted by Sir Frederick Lugard, the High Commissioner of Northern Nigeria (1900-1906.)It was the 1936 abolition of Ordinance No. 19 which had "maintained the status of slavery for individuals born before April 1, 1901" that legally brought slavery to an end in Northern Nigeria.

This book is a thoroughly researched work with hundreds of sources. The authors carefully analyzed their sources to support the main thesis of their book, which is that the British did not end slavery immediately but it was an evolving process which took about four decades. The book also reveals the complexities involved in ending not only the raiding of slaves but also the institution of slavery. The British who originally claimed the reason they invaded the emirates was to end slavery, found themselves partners with the emirs and village leaders who perpetrated slavery in the next four decades. It was not to the British interest to end slavery immediately and thus, they became accomplices in the institution for which they sought to eliminate. While the policies of the British concerning slaves were directed at male slaves, the authors did a good job extracting and presenting the colonial officials' policy on slave women, most especially, concubinage. Their chapter on concubinage is excellent. The authors also devoted a significant portion of their book to discuss the relationship between slavery and the pre-colonial and post-colonial economy.

The book has some weaknesses. While the authors claim that this book results from several years of research in Northern Nigeria, their history is more an "elitist" history. Their focus is on the colonial policies and the emirs/ village heads. The voices of the slave masters and the slaves themselves are rarely heard in the book. A detailed study of this nature should reflect the experiences of the slave masters and the slaves. It would be a different book if those voices were heard. The second weakness I identified in the book is the repetitions. The authors have a tendency to repeat the same facts over and over again. The same things discussed in previous chapters or sections, get mentioned again. While this might be an attempt to drive important points in the book, it makes reading the book burdensome. The last weakness I identified in the book is that the authors ignored the politics of slavery. In every human institution, there is politics.Questions such as these are ignored: To what extent the British were involved in the local politics? Did slaves within an estate have leaders? Were there emirs who were more favorable to the emancipation of slaves? How did village leaders or emirs got chosen? Were there local leaders who worked with the British against their own people and the institution of slavery?

On the whole, I found this book insightful. While more work needs to be done in this area, this is a good start. Historians studying West Africa or slavery would find this book very resourceful. I strongly recommend this book.
... Read more