I Didn't Do It for You : How the World Betrayed a Small African Nation
Author(s): Michela Wrong
Scarred by decades of conflict and occupation, the craggy African nation of Eritrea has weathered the world's longest-running guerrilla war. The dogged determination that secured victory against Ethiopia, its giant neighbor, is woven into the national psyche, the product of cynical foreign interventions. Fascist Italy wanted Eritrea as the springboard for a new, racially pure Roman empire; Britain sold off its industry for scrap; the United States needed a base for its state-of-the-art spy station; and the Soviet Union used it as a pawn in a proxy war.
In I Didn't Do It for You, Michela Wrong reveals the breathtaking abuses this tiny nation has suffered and, with a sharp eye for detail and a taste for the incongruous, tells the story of colonialism itself and how international power politics can play havoc with a country's destiny.
Review(s):
“Eloquent and impassioned . . . [A] splendid account of modern Eritrean history . . . Scrupulous and honest.”
“Engaging history . . . A vivid story of a nation repeatedly trampled by foreign powers until it won its independence.”
“A gripping political thriller.”
“Contemporary history on the grand scale. I was entertained, informed and angered . . . A splendid achievement.”
“Wrong’s...original research is more illuminating, her eye more observant, her writing far more wry and witty.”
“Vivid, penetrating, wonderfully detailed. Michela Wrong...has excavated the very heart and soul of the Eritrean people and their country.”
“Engrossing, vividly written in the style of the best thrillers...It should become the standard work on the region.”
“A fascinating and tragic story . . . Wrong’s account [is] gripping.”
“A highly readable, well-researched depiction of the region’s serial exploitation by a parade of foreign predators.”
“With rich prose and the passion she brings to the subject of [Eritrea’s] independence... Wrong provides a very readable journalistic.”
ISBN: 9780060780937