In Search of Africa

"There I was, standing alone, unable to cry as I said goodbye to Sidimé Laye, my best friend, and to the revolution that had opened the door of modernity for me--the revolution that had invented me." This book gives us the story of a quest for a childhood friend, for the past and present, and above all for an Africa that is struggling to find its future.In 1996 Manthia Diawara, a distinguished professor of film and literature in New York City, returns to Guinea, thirty-two years after he and his family were expelled from the newly liberated country. He is beginning work on a documentary about Sékou Touré, the dictator who was Guinea's first post-independence leader. Despite the years that have gone by, Diawara expects to be welcomed as an insider, and is shocked to discover that he is not.The Africa that Diawara finds is not the one on the verge of barbarism, as described in the Western press. Yet neither is it the Africa of his childhood, when the excitement of independence made everything seem possible for young Africans. His search for Sidimé Laye leads Diawara to profound meditations on Africa's culture. He suggests solutions that might overcome the stultifying legacy of colonialism and age-old social practices, yet that will mobilize indigenous strengths and energies.In the face of Africa's dilemmas, Diawara accords an important role to the culture of the diaspora as well as to traditional music and literature--to James Brown, Miles Davis, and Salif Kéita, to Richard Wright, Spike Lee, and the ancient epics of the griots. And Diawara's journey enlightens us in the most disarming way with humor, conversations, and well-told tales.

In Search of Africa is a smart, rewarding study by a native-born African attempting to recapture the mystique of a distant past. In his search, we are enlightened as we grapple with his conclusion that 'the salvation of Africa lies in modernization, the creation of a secular public sphere, and the freedom of individuals.' Diawara convincingly demonstrates that we left not only our minds in Africa but a portion of our hearts and souls., In Search of Africa is not contained neatly like an American mall, but operates like the stalls of an African market, offering from chapter to chapter a bit of memoir, a study of Black American and African cinema, African music, 20th-century art, and political and economic theory. But the African market is more than a metaphor...Diawara believes the market has the potential to liberate women...and reduce Africa's dependence on European aid and economic models., This is a serious book by one who cares deeply for Africa. It does not descend into the level of travelogue or voyeurism. The book raises deep questions about Africa, its people and culture, and its future. Although the book concentrates on West Africa and on Guinea in particular, the issues examined are continental and applicable to the social and political situation of Africa today. The author writes with deep knowledge of Africa and is able to connect Africa with the diaspora. His view of Africa is thoughtful, rather than romantic...This masterful book deserves the widest circulation., While friendship quest provides the basic narrative structure of Diawara's In Search of Africa, the book is interspersed with a series of important 'situational' essays that give the text an additional rich layer of intellectual depth. From considerations of Jean-Paul Sartre's essay Black Orpheus, which served as an introduction to Leopold Senghor's landmark 1948 Negritude anthology of new African poetry in French, to contemporary Afro-American hip-hop, 'homeboys,' and the films of Spike Lee, Diawara's meditations on African and Afro-American culture and politics are wide-ranging, provocative, and never less than engaging...Once more, a sometimes abstract 'search for Africa' bumps up against real-life experience. The result is illuminating not only for Manthia Diawara, but equally for those of us for whom Africa remains an unknown continent., In 1996, after a 32-year absence, Diawara returned to his childhood home of Guinea, West Africa. This insightful...book is his account of that prodigal son's journey...Though fluent in local languages and deeply conversant with local custom, he was still overwhelmed by Africa: 'How many times I have retreated from Africa into my hotel room!' he writes, with typical honesty. He also embarked upon a poignant search to find his childhood best friend, leading to a series of incidents where his writing sparkles. His account of his teenage gang organizing the festival Woodstock-in-Bamako is fascinating.

Manthia Diawara is Professor of Comparative Literature and Film, as well as Director of Africana Studies and the Institute of African American Affairs at New York University. He is the founder and editor of Black Renaissance Noire.