My Country, Africa

Praise

“Embodying pan-Africanism, Blouin befriended, counseled or lobbied the first presidents or prime ministers of Algeria, both Congos, Ivory Coast, Mali, Guinea and Ghana.”
—Stuart A. Reid, New York Times

“An amazingly good and moving description of a childhood blighted by the horrors of colonialism, told by an extraordinary woman … Riveting.”
—Jessica Mitford

“A penetrating study of colonial society.”
—Studs Terkel

“Magnificent … Illuminates our understanding of how the politics of a country shapes its people’s lives.”
—Tillie Olsen

“Our enemies attack her all the time. Not for what she’s done, but simply because she is a woman, and she is there, in the thick of it.”
—Patrice Lumumba

“An extraordinary and vital work by one of the towering figures of anticolonial resistance. That Andrée Blouin has not been as renowned as Lumumba, Sankara, Cabral, has always been a scandalous injustice. This new edition of her memoir goes some way to redressing that, and is a publishing and political event of immense importance.”
—China Miéville, author of A Spectre, Haunting: On the Communist Manifesto

“Through My Country, Africa, Blouin’s extraordinary story is being released for a second time, this time into a world that shows greater interest in the historical contributions of women. New readers will learn of the girl who went from being stashed away by the colonial system, to fighting for the freedom of millions of black Africans.”
—Wedaeli Chibelushi, BBC

“This is a must-read for anyone interested in the intersection of race, gender, and freedom.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Measured and nuanced … My Country, Africa is an intense history of colonialism. Blouin’s story serves as a microcosm for the near misses, cycles and reason-defying hope that characterise Africa’s past.”
—Colm McKenna, Irish Times

“Bravo, Verso Books, for publishing Andrée’s, more relevant than ever, story.”
—Rosita Sweetman, Irish Independent

“All readers of this insider’s view of the fight for African independence will be inspired by the contribution made by this important and much neglected woman in the black liberation movement.”
—Roger McKenzie, Morning Star

“[Blouin’s] general lack of recognition is of course an indictment on the ethnocentric, as well as androcentric, way history is narrated … riveting”
—Tola Ositelu, Afropean

“A remarkable autobiography that feels like a relevant reflection on the present, not a historical account … Blouin’s voice rings loud and clear throughout her account of her life, conversational and at times proudly regaling. I found myself gripped, like a junior listening to a family elder, and wondered how she seemed so comfortable in her skin and in command of her story despite such painful experiences.”
—Nesrine Malik, Guardian