Madagascar: a short history is an incredibly detailed examination of the history of Madagascar from ad 400 to date; the authors manage to cover 1,600 years of history, but readers are still left with a sense that they have been given an in-depth understanding of the country. The writing style is very engaging, taking us through hundreds of years of history at a good pace. Madagascar is often overlooked by scholars interested in Africa, and by those interested in Asia and the Indian Ocean region; the country's location and history mean it has a unique mix of cultures which has a lot to tell us about the cultural, political and economic histories of each of these regions. The aim of the book is to show how Madagascar has accommodated different cultures and been heavily influenced by global dynamics for hundreds of years. Randrianja and Ellis skilfully use the history of Madagascar to disrupt and challenge ideas of fixed ethnic identities and the impacts of colonisation.

One of the main themes of the book is a challenge to ideas of ethnic identity and ethnically based conflict. For anyone interested in debates about the relationships between ethnicity and conflict in Africa, this book is a must. It carefully shows how the currently accepted ‘ethnic’ groups of Madagascar developed. For example, chapter four on the rise of slave trading kings between 1700 and 1816 clearly demonstrates the role that slaving played in the development of political units and communities that went on to become the current ‘ethnic identities’ in Madagascar, such as Tanala and Betsileo. This shows any reader that to characterise politics in present day Madagascar as about ethnicity (Merina versus cotières) fundamentally misunderstands the complex dynamics at play.

Another major theme centres on how Madagascar has been integrated into the global economy from an early stage in its history. Here Randrianja and Ellis excel in a discussion which draws on wider debates about the relationship between Africa and the global system. They argue that the people of Madagascar were not simply passive victims of global forces; instead, various elites and groupings actively engaged with trading networks, colonial powers and, now, donors and private capital. For example Chapter 2 demonstrates how Madagascar was fully integrated into the Indian Ocean trade in ivory, slaves, gold, beads and ceramics from 1100 to 1599; similarly Chapter 5 on the development of the Kingdom of Madagascar (1817–95) highlights the influences of imperial competition between Britain and France in the Indian Ocean. All of these global dynamics have left an indelible mark on Madagascar which shapes its political, economic and social life today.

One theme, though, seems out of step with an otherwise very sophisticated and nuanced analysis of the history of Madagascar and its place in the world today; in a few places in the book the authors make reference to population as being at the core of Madagascar's problems. To me this jars with the rest of the argument, which demonstrates the complex engagements between local dynamics and global networks. It is a little too easy to blame Madagascar's ills on its (admittedly spectacular) population growth, leading to land degradation and a very young population with few prospects. This falls into an easy Malthusian trap, which is at odds with the rest of the analysis. However, this should not deter readers: this is a thoroughly excellent book, and anyone who wants a better understanding of Madagascar's current politics would do well to start here.