When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir of Africa | 
|  | | | Title: | When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir of Africa | | Author: | Peter Godwin | | Publisher: | Back Bay Books | | Type: | Book / Paperback | | Publication Date: | 10 April, 2008 | | ISBN / ISBN-13: | 0316018716 / 9780316018715 | | List Price: | $14.99 | | You Save: | $4.80 | | Amazon Price: | $10.19 | |
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| Editorial Review / Publisher's Information:
Product Description
Hailed by reviewers as "powerful,""haunting" and "a tour de force of personal journalism,"When A Crocodile Eats the Sun is the unforgettable story of one man's struggle to discover his past and come to terms with his present. Award winning author and journalist Peter Godwin writes with pathos and intimacy about Zimbabwe's spiral into chaos and, along with it, his family's steady collapse. This dramatic memoir is a searing portrait of unspeakable tragedy and exile, but it is also vivid proof of the profound strength of the human spirit and the enduring power of love.
"In the tradition of Rian Malan and Philip Gourevitch, a deeply moving book about the unknowability of an Africa at once thrilling and grotesque. In elegant, elegiac prose, Godwin describes his father's illness and death in Zimbabwe against the backdrop of Mugabe's descent into tyranny. His parent's waning and the country's deterioration are entwined so that personal and political tragedy become inseparable, each more profound for the presence of the other" -- Andrew Solomon, author of The Noonday Demon
"A fascinating, heartbreaking, deeply illuminating memoir that has the shape and feel of a superb novel." -Kurt Anderson, author of Heydey
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Customer Reviews:
• Compelling Personal Drama Against The Backdrop Of Zimbabwe's Recent History..... 23 June, 2008
This is a fast reading book - I couldn't put it down. With Zimbabwe showing up in the headlines almost daily (contested elections, violence against the opposition party), I thought this would be a good book to read. While the story is personal, Godwin as a journalist conveys a lot of information about Zimbabwe's more recent history, politics, and movement/violence against the white farmers. The personal side to Godwin's story is also compelling as he writes of discovering his father's Jewish past and his father's unknown past late in his father's life.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A3O4J04OZL5WA4
• An Insider's View Of Zimbabwe 26 June, 2008
While traveling on an overland safari, I ran out of books to read. (Although I brought plenty, as an English teacher, I was devouring them as we drove through the African countryside.) Fortunately, one of the French girls in the back of the truck had just finished a book and was willing to lend it to me. She said that Mukiwa was captivating and that I wouldn't be able to put it down, and she was right. Having already visited Zimbabwe several times, I was fascinated to learn more about the white experience there, especially since I had recently read Catherine Buckle's African Tears, which also describes the current land invasions. Because many tourists don't delve deeper into Zimbabwe than a quick jaunt to Victoria Falls, Godwin's memoir is an important read. Godwin describes the reality of living in a country as tumultuous as it is beautiful. The reader can't help but gain a love of the country himself and come to understand why Godwin would risk his life in returning. Fortunately, I was able to experience a glimpse of the beauty of the country myself while visiting some of their game parks. It was on one of these drives in Hwange that I first fell in love with Africa and can understand why Godwin's parents would risk their lives by choosing to remain. I enjoyed the book so much that I purchased the sequel When a Crocodile Eats the Sun at the Johannesburg Airport. I follow the news in Africa online every day--especially the news of Zimbabwe and South Africa, and cannot express how much I value the insight that Godwin provides in both of these books. I also developed a fondness and empathy for his family as they endure the turbulent times that face Zimbabwe. Despite the many problems that face the continent, I am looking forward to my eighth trip. I have been discussing Godwin's book with my honors students and told them that I plan to read his other three--Wild at Heart, The Three of Us, and Rhodesians Never Die--before I leave.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A7WPD352ZSXCS
• Terrifying Insight Into Zimbabwe 09 June, 2008
WOW! These memoirs, expertly crafted by Peter Godwin, leave the reader still haunted by its horrors, from hospital experiences to burial. The parents leave one Holocaust only to find themselves reentering another! This is a remarkable insight into Mugabe's rule and its after-affects. The Godwins are a fascinating family, each so accomplished and each so loving and patriotic to Zimbabwe. A MUST READ!!!! I LOVED IT AND HAVE RECOMMENDED THIS TO ALL MY FRIENDS WHO IN TURN HAVE LOVED IT!
- Reviewed by customer ID: A1IBF9KYVQIUYO
• When A Crocodile Eats The Sun ... 17 June, 2008
The Power of One: A Novel If you've read The Power of One, you'll have a good background for Peter Godwin's novel. This grim, factual-ish, totally absorbing work is a must-read for all who see Africa as the land of sunshine, safaris, exotic flora and fauna, and Ipi Tombi. It deals with post-war (1998-2006) Zimbabwe in an engaging, intimate, heart-wrenching fashion. It is not a political treatise. It is a stunning showcase of how "Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely." The story begins and ends with Peter Godwin's father's death in 2006. The parts in between should be taught in every Pol. Sci class. The writing is excellent, and very accessible; the accounts horrific and frustrating.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A3333FDJLDI2S3
• Best Memoir Read In Years 08 June, 2008
It opened my heart and eyes to the dire evolving situation in Zimbabwe. The book is beautifully written with passages of passionate beauty for his former homeland. The disclosure of the family secret and haunting parallel to the holocaust are gripping and frightening. Yet, the little stories of personal kindness and heroism helped me make it through the heart wrenching tragedy.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A22ZDAJJS8RXGP
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