Over the last decade, economic growth and higher incomes have led influential intergovernmental commentators (such as the African Development Bank) and numerous media outlets to claim that there is an expanding middle class in Sub-Saharan Africa. The originality of this edited volume lies in its problematisation of the prevalent over-emphasis of the relationship between national growth and the formation of middle classes. The book analyses how recent economic transformations have influenced prospects for upwards social mobility in the ‘continent of hope’. Its combination of broader regional approaches and case studies from six countries provides an unprecedented overview of the relationships between contemporary economic, political and social circumstances and local constructions of class.

The book consists of 10 chapters, in addition to the editor's introduction and conclusion. Among the chapters, Sirkku Hellsten argues that analyses of class and its historical embeddedness in local contexts are necessary to overcome Western categorisations that presume a relationship between middle class and attitudes towards ‘democracy, liberal values and market economy’. An alternative, non-Western standpoint is examined by Nkwachukwu Orji who describes how political mobilisation through social media reflects being middle class in Nigeria. Other approaches include Jon Schubert's analysis of how material uncertainty and political subjectivities intersect with being middle class in Angola, and Vicensia Shule's account of people's interest in video-films in Tanzania highlights the ways in which class relations are shaped through consumption.

Yet despite the chapters’ refreshing approach, the authors are inconsistent in how they define and use the books’ key concept of middle class. Most of them refer to ‘the middle class’, with a definite article, but several variations are found throughout the book. These include: ‘middle class(es)’, which suggests that there may be multiple middle classes, or; ‘the emerging middle class’, indicating that the middle class is in the process of becoming. In addition, some authors occasionally use inverted commas to indicate that the concept is problematic (the ‘middle class’). These are not merely differences in semantics, but they reflect a collective ambiguity towards what it means to be middle class. It is only in the conclusion that the editor highlights the importance of engaging with the works of Marx, Weber and Bourdieu to develop sociocultural analyses of middle class. Two of the chapters refer – albeit rather superficially – to these theoreticians, and a solid theoretical framework defined earlier on would have enabled a more robust analysis. Consequently, the book does not sufficiently demonstrate the social processes of differentiation and falls short of its promise to convey the ‘realities’ of being middle class.

That said, the narratives of expanding middle classes with transformative power and democratic values are delegitimised as a myth entangled in the recurring discourse of ‘Africa rising’. The book constitutes a valuable read for those seeking to grasp the diverse contemporary social processes that inform class relations and it breaks new ground by pointing out that the use of middle class serves as an ideological smokescreen amidst widening inequalities and limited employment opportunities.