Gabon remains one of the least-researched countries in Africa and this historical dictionary aims to provide general reference information to audiences outside of Gabon. The book includes maps; a timeline of Gabon's history from 1472 to 2006; an introductory essay that provides a brief political history of Gabon over several centuries; over 300 pages of reference entries; appendices of French governors, Gabonese presidents and prime ministers, Roman Catholic bishops, and economic statistics; and a comprehensive bibliography of 1,400 French and English works. This third edition of the book incorporates recent research and includes alphabetical entries that range from a few sentences to a few pages. The entries in the historical dictionary are on selected people, places, events, institutions, ethnic groups, political parties, movements and economic, social and cultural dynamics in historical and contemporary Gabon.

Reflecting the unevenness of historical sources on Gabon, the book details little about precolonial history, is more abundant about the colonial era, and is most informative about postcolonial political and economic change. The introductory essay and entries are particularly informative on the impact of oil, minerals and economic–political change under the leadership of Omar Bongo. Little research has been done on women in Gabon, but there are numerous entries on women politicians and artists. Entries also detail key dynamics in the realms of education, culture, language and religion, as well as the impact of Europeans and foreign Africans on the history of Gabon.

The historical dictionary would be useful to scholars of Gabon and Central Africa, and researchers and teachers of African studies seeking to add material about Gabon to their curriculum. The well-organized and clearly written entries should also make this text a useful reference book in university and public libraries. This text would also be of interest to business and tourist travelers to the region. However, an index of entries might have been useful for readers who are not familiar with the history of Gabon. This text is the only one of its kind and provides a broad and accessible survey of Gabonese political, economic, cultural and social history.