This is a deeply informed, insightful, at times brilliant book, but it is also somewhat frustrating. The Curse of Berlin makes a contribution to the study of African politics and international relations, but the contradictions of the book are already evident from the title. Most obviously, it seeks to assess the impacts and legacies of the Congress of Berlin on Africa, but only in the post-Cold War period. Why the book is structured in this way is not explained.
The book is divided into three parts: the Quest for Security, the Quest for Hegemony and the Quest for Unity. This is a highly original and insightful structure, although it could be argued that many of the actors involved are not necessarily consistently seeking any of these three outcomes. The sections cover a variety of topics such as the role of the United Nations on the continent, with a particular focus on the two secretary-generals of the UN from Africa, and also deal with potential regional and global hegemons in Africa from South Africa to China. There is a particular focus on examining Africa's history and international relations through the lens of personalities such as Thabo Mbeki, Cecil Rhodes, Ghandi, and a whole chapter devoted to the impact of Barack Obama.
In a sense the strengths of the book are also its weaknesses. It is written in a largely non-academic style. Adebayo has a keen sense of irony and a wonderful turn of phrase: referring to (many of) Thabo Mbeki's cabinet as the ‘Xhosa Nostra’, for example. However, at times the writing style conveys a sense of imprecision and caricature as when the author refers to Boutros Boutros Ghali as a ‘pharaoh’. Adebajo rails against the ‘big man’ school of history, but arguably engages in this himself. Also, the rationale of why the African Union has to be compared to the European Union is not clear, although this is done brilliantly; for example, the author notes that the European Union represents the evolution of the desire to unite Europe, although peacefully and consensually now, pioneered by Napoleon and taken up later by Hitler.
Some of the arguments in the book would benefit from further clarification. The author writes of a Pax Africana, but it is not fully explained what this might mean. Is it analogous to the Pax Americana or Pax Britannica which brought relative extra-territorial peace during certain periods of time? Also Ghadafi's Libya is cited as a major promoter of African unity, but also a ‘spoiler’. The Presidency of Thabo Mbeki in South Africa receives particularly favourable treatment, although many might argue that post-apartheid trends in inequality and poverty along with Mbeki's AIDS denialism and policies towards Robert Mugabe's regime in Zimbabwe are sufficient to tarnish his legacy.
The book is packed with interesting facts and insights and the author has a keen sense of, and brilliant insights into, major trends and dynamics in African politics and international relations. However, its impact is lessened by its length, somewhat unclear chapter structure and repetition across chapters, particularly of quotes. Nonetheless this is an important and worthwhile book.
