"Warriors at Work" examines the complete functioning of the Guinean people's struggle against Portuguese imperialism. Brilliantly noting the contribution and leadership of Amilcar Cabral, Dhada, as Cabral would have approved, focuses on the mass popular contribution and national role in the process of liberation. Dhada clearly reveals the brilliance of the PAIGC effort. The fighters of Guinea while battling Portuguese aggression simultaneously created a functioning relevant and indigenously produced nation state that would replace the Portuguese colonial machine. Dhada's focus on the mechanics of this process give us the most insightful view of what made the Guinean revolution effective, unique and a theoretical model for all revolutionaries to consider.

Amilcar Cabral one of the greatest minds of the twenteth century. A complete revolutionary. His works need to be studied by every African. He is a guide for the future for the success of Cabo Verde and Guinea Bissau if they would follow his example to overcome the colonialist mentality and to change the minds and to become liberated for a new freedom of thought,for a democracy and economic development of Guinea Bissau and Cabo Verde only in their unity in the struggle for success. One can not make it without the other. The youth of both countries must come together in the movement of JAAC. The future of Africa depends on it.

Patrick Chabal's Amilcar Cabral is a first-rate political biography of Amilcar Cabral. Indeed, this work is the most thorough, critical, and objective source of information and analysis of this important African democratic revolutionary that I have come across. Chabal tells a thorough and compelling story of Cabral and critically analyzes the development of his revolutionary philosophy and political skills within the context of colonial Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau. I highly recommend this work to anyone looking for a rigorous source on this important democratic philosopher and African revolutionary. Chabal also gives us a detailed contextual account of Cape Verde and "Portuguese Guinea," and the PAIGC (African Party for the Independence of Guinea and Cape Verde) during Cabral's time.

This book is currently out-of-print, it details the thoughts of Amilcar Cabral a central leader of the revolution in Guinea-Bissau. I was personally introduced to this book by a comrade who spent a number of years in the Long Kesh prisons in Belfast. The Republican prisoners studied this book and he still reads a little most mornings to give him daily inspiration.

...brilliant words from an enlightened son of the african revolution...

I did not find the recipes hard to follow at all - there are many alternative ingredients that do not take away the spirit of the dishes in question, and they are provided in the book.
Historically, I found it more than usually accurate as far as ethnic cookbooks go, and this is more of a multi-ethnic effort united mostly by history and to a lesser degree by religion and language.
Having no prejudices whatsoever before approaching it, I honestly believe this book deserves kudos for introducing the multi-ethnic cuisine of the lusophone world to us - and as a somewhat lost vegeterian in my city of adoption I'm particularly thankful to the many vegeterian dishes from Goa, Malacca, Macao, mainland Portugal and just a bit everywhere else I was able to find, prepare and serve in the family home with more lauding than my previous vegan attempts.
So thanks for the book, and whatever species you are - carnivourous, omnivourous, seafoodivourous or vegeterian, *do* try this book!

Having bought a copy of this book in spite of one of the reviews, I feel one should challege the notion that 'very silly recipes are the norm'. It might be fair to say that the section on Portuguese colonial history is a little thin but the explanations accompanying the recipes of how the dishes have moved from one location to another and have been altered in the process, together with details of variations, go some way to compensating for this. Then again, if I were looking for information on Portuguese history, I would not begin with a cookery book. The suggestion that recipe ingredients 'do not ring true' is rather baffling. I can find similar recipes in, for instance, other Portuguese, Brazilian and Goan cookery books. Likewise, the ingredients in African recipes are often common to nearby countries which do not have the same Portuguese influence. Also, while bibliographies are not a foolproof guide to the quality of books, it would be unusual to see a bibliography as good as this in a bad book.
All things considered, this book has a fascinating range of recipes - many relatively easy to prepare - from a wide variety of countries and its ingenuity is the simple linkage of Portuguese influence. It's not perfect but is highly unusual and I am thoroughly pleased to add it to my collection of several hundred other cookery books. My advice is: when you read a review from someone who is dismissive without providing substantive reasons for being so and fails to distinguish between a bad book and one they simply don't like, ignore it. Or, to put in another way, if you're interested in something different in the cookery line, why not buy this book?

I just found a great new cookbook. In the 16th century the Portuguese developed one of history's greatest empires. The Portuguese empire, in turn, created a diverse cuisine that was influenced by the local crops and recipes of many different nations, with a strong emphasis on seafood. Cuisines of Portuguese Encounters by Cherie Hamilton is filled with fantastic, easy-to-follow recipes that capture these amazing and unusual combinations of flavors. One evening I made fish curry from Goa (p 174), a stew of whitefish and grated coconut seasoned with cumin, coriander, ginger, onions, and green chiles. As a salad I made a delicious creamy mmixture of avocado and dates (p 59), pureed and served in the avocado shells, from the windward island of Sao Vincente. This venture was such a success with my family that I next made a fish ragout from Southern Angola (p 172), that is a marvelous blend of fish and okra. The side dish for this meal was rice with split peas cooked in coconut milk (p 144), a creamy preparation from Zambesia in central Mozambique. Urged on by the praises of my family, this past weekend I made Caranguejo em Cosquinha (stuffed crab), a dish tht has traveled from Goa to Brazil (p 206). It consists of a saute of crabmeat, green and white onions, curry, and black olives in a pastry shell. Along with this, we had a fantastic Arroz de Tomate (tomato rice), a popular way to prepare rice in Portugal (p 146), which is rice prepared with tomatoes, garlic, and onions. Each of these recipes was easy and fun to prepare, with wonderfully unusual combinations of flavors. Highly recommended!!

This book is a good overview at West Africa's attempts to police itself and solve its own problems. It covers the three ECOMOG deployments to Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea-Bissau (this was written before the as of now potential ECOMOG deployment to Cote d'Ivoire) as well as adding several chapters which analyze all three of the deployments and how they succeded or failed in their missions. Finally, a brief view of how ECOMOG and the rest of the world should cooperate is peppered throughout the book. While small, the book is well researched and intelligently put together. It covers the history of each conflict well, and explores the deployments without getting bogged down in details of combat or the establishment of bases, etc. However, I would not reccomend this book to someone who does not already have a basic understanding of West Africa or else of basic peacekeeping principles from operations in other areas of the world. Without this, much of the details needed to fill in some of the gaps in the book would be missing and would bring down the value of the read. This book is not intended to educate a person on each of conflicts, but rather to provide an overview of how ECOMOG/ECOWAS responded to each, and whether lessons were learned.