Let's Travel to Africa, with a variety of Books

Books Set in Africa 

 Included in this list are adventure stories, historical novels, autobiographies, life stories of growing up in 

Africa, fictional accounts, folktales, and youth books for a sampling of books set in the continent of Africa. 

The List: (brief book summaries follow the list of titles)
King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
The African Queen by C S Forester
What is the What: The Autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng by Dave Eggers
Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela
Congo by Michael Crichton
The Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency Series by Alexander McCall Smith
The Flame Trees of Thika by Elspeth Grant
Amelia Peabody Series by Elizabeth Peters (Archaeological mysteries- Egypt)
Out of Africa by Karen Blixen
Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Vergese
A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood by Alexandra Fuller
The Butterfly Lion (youth) by Michael Morpugo
Listening for Lions (youth) by Gloria Whelan
Why Mosquitos Buzz in People's Ears by Verna Aardema (Folktale)
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters (youth) by John Steptoe
The Elephant's Child by Rudyard Kipling (youth) 

King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard- This was first published in Blackwoods magazine in 1899

 as a series of stories. A group of adventurers set off in an unexplored region of Africa to find the missing

 brother of one of the men in the group. Allan Quartermain Series. Contains common beliefs of 19th 

century Europeans.

 Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad- A Narrated voyage up the Congo river inspired by Conrad's 

experiences as a steamer captain in Africa, written from his travel journals. (Imperialism/violence)
The African Queen by C S Forester- (also a movie adaptation with Humphrey Bogart) WW1 Africa, 

travel down the Nile River.
What is the What: The Autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng by Dave Eggers- About the lost boys 

of Sudan 2006.
Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela- 1994 His early life, coming of age, 

education and years in prison. 

 Congo by Michael Crichton- 1980 Science Fiction novel investigating mysterious deaths in the ruins of

 a lost city in the tropical rain forest. 

 The Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency Series by Alexander McCall Smith- Set in Botswana, Precious 

Ramotswe sets up a detective agency, solves mysteries and muses about life, charming series, the 

author spent his childhood in Botswana.
The Flame Trees of Thika by Elspeth Grant- An English Couple decide to set up a coffee plantation in 

Kenya, memoirs of their daughter growing up. Also a British television series.
Out of Africa by Karen Blixen- Memoir by Danish author telling of the 17 years she lived in Kenya, 

then called British East Africa, also a 1985 movie.
Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton- Story of a Zulu pastor and his son, set in a background of 

racial injustice. 

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver- a Baptist minister, his wife and four daughters move to 

the Belgian Congo in 1959, an emotional tale of morals and responsibility.
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe- Okwonko, a warrior in a Nigerian clan tries to come to terms 

with his father's less than stellar legacy, historical fiction.
The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay- The story of an illegitimate child in South Africa and raised 

by black Africans in a remote mountain village 1930's.
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Vergese- An epic novel about an Ethiopian born Indian-American 

doctor. Love, betrayal, compassion, etc. 

A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul- Set in central Africa, describes a personal journey and a journey

 in uncharted regions of an Indian who goes to Africa to run a business, post-colonial black Africa.
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi- Ghana, slave trade, an old African belief that death of a slave allows the 

person to return back to Africa. 

 Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood by Alexandra Fuller- A memoir of her 

family as white Rhodesian farmers after the Bush War in 1980.
 The Butterfly Lion (youth) by Michael Morpugo- Inspired by the lions of Timbavati, a WW1 soldier 

saves some circus animals...
Listening for Lions (youth) by Gloria Whelan- Historical fiction, British East Africa, Kikuyu and 

Masai Tribes an orphaned girl becomes involved in an inheritance predicament.
Why Mosquitos Buzz in People's Ears by Verna Aardema (Folktale)- A mosquito brags to the animals 

in the jungle, Caldecott medal winner 1976, unique primitive artwork enhances the tale.
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters (Folktale) by John Steptoe- An African Cinderella story, set in Zimbabwe.

The Elephant's Child (youth) by Rudyard Kipling (youth)- A tale, great for reading out loud, about the 

insatiable curiosity of a young elephant and how he gets a trunk for a nose, one of the wonderful 

animal stories written for children by Kipling, setting the Mapungubwe River on the border of 

Botswana and South Africa. “The Great Gray Green Greasy Limpopo River, all set about with fever trees.”