A Survey of African Poetry in the London Times, Sunday Times, Financial Times, the Times Literary Supplement 1865-1985

A critical account by Charles Larson of the current political and economic crisis facing Zimbabwe in the wake of President Mugabe. Specifically, Larson details the failure of the International Book Fair of 2000, held in Harare. Excerpt: "I was in Harare to attend this year's Zimbabwe International Book Fair, the fifteenth, and, unsurprisingly, a shadow of some recent ones - not so much in numbers but in vitality. Known as Africa's largest book event, the annual fair suffered a significant falling off rate because of the legitimate fears of international visitors (including Africans from other parts of the continent), many of whom made their decision to attend at the last minute or to skip this year entirely... Still, this year's Book Fair ('Celebrating African Books') left one extraordinary mark on the continent itself, as well as on the international literary world. Few major writers made it to the fair, though many were asked. Ghana was the 'focus' country, but even Ghana's most esteemed writers (Kofi Awoonor, Ayi Kwei Armah and Ama Ata Aidoo), announced in pre-Book Fair press releases, did not show up..."