Reviewed by Prof. Lidwien Kapteijns Book: Out of Mogadishu Author: Yusuf Haid Paperback: 166 pages Out of Mogadishu is a beautifully written memoir about the time when Somalia’ civil war shifted towards large-scale clan-based violence against civilians and regime collapse. The memoir represents what the author saw and thought during the chaotic time period between...
November 6, 2026
Category: Book Shelf
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Out of Mogadishu: A Memoir of the Somali Civil War in 1991
Out of Mogadishu: A Memoir of the Somali Civil War in 1991 is a compelling and captivating firsthand account that provides an astute and mesmerizing portrait of Somalia’s civil war and the state collapse that followed. Yusuf Haid, its author, takes you back to Mogadishu’s alleys and behind-the-scenes meetings in the homes of the beleaguered...
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Review: In ‘City of Thorns,’ Ben Rawlence Tells a Refugee Camp’s Story
By JENNIFER SENIOR In English, Dadaab means “the rocky hard place,” a translation of such freakish metaphorical precision that Ben Rawlence, the author of “City of Thorns: Nine Lives in the World’s Largest Refugee Camp,” has the sense to use it with great restraint. Stamped on a dusty desert plain in Kenya, Dadaab — the...
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What Foreign Policy Staff Read in 2015
By FP Staff From novels set in Italy, India, and New York to deep dives into African gun-runners and an exploration of the world’s most hated apostle, Foreign Policy staff read books this year that made us laugh, cry, and rethink how we see and understand art, conflict, religion, and humanity. Below, select FP writers,...
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King of Kings: The Triumph and Tragedy of Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia by Asfa-Wossen Asserate – review
At last, a dignified biography of one of the 20th century’s most misunderstood figures Haile Selassie, emperor of Ethiopia, in Geneva in 1935. Photograph: Lucien Aigner/Corbis By Ian Thomson Haile Selassie is one of the most bizarre and misunderstood figures in 20th-century history, alternately worshipped and mocked, idolised and marginalised. This magnificent biography by the German-Ethiopian historian Asfa-Wossen...
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Sahankii Richard Burton ee Afrikada Bari Cutubka II Nolosha Saylac
Tarjumo & Tifaftir Boodhari Warsame Kugu daalin maayo gacaliye L[umsdenoow] faallada 26 maalmood oo aan wax la sheegaa dhicin, isu wada eg, oo aan wax xiise ah lahayn. Maalmo hurdo, beeb nuugid iyo qaxweysi Saylac la isku dhaafshay uun iska dheh. Intii waddo lagu safro la sii raadinayay, dalmariyeyaal ayaa la sii xulay, awr gaadiid...
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THE MILLENNIUM YEAR 2000
By Asha Abdalla Editor’s note’s : This is an excerpt from an upcoming book titled Somalia failing due to bad leadership by Asha Ahmed Abdalla, a political activist and former parliamentarian and Assistant Minister. __________ With the formation of a new government in the millennium year of 2000, one could sense the prevailing political conflagration...
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SAHANKII RICHARD BURTON EE AFRIKADA BARI
Tarjumo & Tifaftir Boodhari Warsame Hordhac Akristeyaasha sharfanoow, waxa hortiinna yaal ee aan idin la wadaagayaa waa iskudayga tarjumid buug caan ah oo qoraa caan ahi ka qoray socdaal sahan ahaa oo uu sannadkii 1854tii ku maray inta u dhexaysa Berbera ilaa Harar, isaga oo waagaa xagga Badda Cas (Cadan) uga soo tallaabay carriga Soomaaliyeed....
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Spectator books of the year: Michela Wrong discovered a real-life picaresque tale
By Michela Wrong (Photo: Getty) The highlight for me this year was the South African writer Jonny Steinberg’s A Man of Good Hope (Cape, £18.99), hugely topical at a time when Europe is contemplating what it means to be a refugee. I’ve repeatedly found myself recommending it to friends. Steinberg is a novelist camouflaging himself...
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THE ARTA PEACE PROCESS
By Asha Abdalla Editor’s note’s : This is an excerpt from an upcoming book titled Somalia failing due to bad leadership by Asha Ahmed Abdalla, a political activist and former parliamentarian and Assistant Minister. _________________ The Arta Peace Process brought together an amalgamation of people of mystifying characters and fashions’ representing the multicultural mix of...