★★★★★ 4
A compact history
Format: Paperback
Sometimes we want to take a historical subject that we know little about and get a brief gloss to learn enough to discover which parts of the subject we want to delve into at greater length. "History of Ethiopia" is exactly what we need to satisfy that desire.
We get the entire history of the African nation, from the very ancient days up to this very year, 2022. naturally, we do not get many nuances. What we do get is the big picture. We know how the various periods in history fit together. From the Queen of Sheba to the nasty era of the Communist Derg, we get a little bit of everything.
One irritation that I had was the coverage of the Ethiopian-Somalia war in the 1970s. The crucial role played by the Cuban army is committed entirely. On the other hand, the 1540 Portuguese expedition headed by Christopher da Gama is briefly but adequately covered. Save for the intervention of da Gama the kingdom might well have been lost.
If you need a fast introduction to Ethiopia, this is a good place to begin. Captivating History, the maker, has dozens of similar books, often on specific, narrowly focuses topics.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2022

