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When a Crocodile Eats the Sun: A Memoir of Africa | 
 enlarge | Author: Peter Godwin
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Category: Book
List Price: $14.99
Buy New: $8.41
You Save: $6.58 (44%)
New (32) Used (9) from $8.41
Avg. Customer Rating:  44 reviews
Sales Rank: 1176
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 368
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.4 x 1
ISBN: 0316018716
Dewey Decimal Number: 968.9105
EAN: 9780316018715
ASIN: 0316018716
Publication Date: April 10, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW
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Product Description
Hailed by reviewers as "powerful,""haunting" and "a tour de force of personal journalism,"When A Crocodile Eats the Sun is the unforgettable story of one man's struggle to discover his past and come to terms with his present. Award winning author and journalist Peter Godwin writes with pathos and intimacy about Zimbabwe's spiral into chaos and, along with it, his family's steady collapse. This dramatic memoir is a searing portrait of unspeakable tragedy and exile, but it is also vivid proof of the profound strength of the human spirit and the enduring power of love.
"In the tradition of Rian Malan and Philip Gourevitch, a deeply moving book about the unknowability of an Africa at once thrilling and grotesque. In elegant, elegiac prose, Godwin describes his father's illness and death in Zimbabwe against the backdrop of Mugabe's descent into tyranny. His parent's waning and the country's deterioration are entwined so that personal and political tragedy become inseparable, each more profound for the presence of the other" -- Andrew Solomon, author of The Noonday Demon
"A fascinating, heartbreaking, deeply illuminating memoir that has the shape and feel of a superb novel." -Kurt Anderson, author of Heydey
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| Customer Reviews: Read 39 more reviews...
The best book I've read in ages July 20, 2008
This book moved me on so many levels. I could not put it down. Godwin's aging parents, his heartbreak about the decline of Zimbabwe, his anguish about living so far away, the fascinating past of his father... it is all so beautifully described. But it is what is not said that will take your breath away. A FANTASTIC book.
Accurate picture of Zim July 17, 2008
I lived in South AFrica for 3 years and knew many Zim refugees, including a farmer's daughter who lost both her legs and her family to a land mine. I also knew many current refugees who just wanted to work and support their families. When are we going to be rid of Mugabe, who has ruined this beautiful country?
An Insider's View of Zimbabwe June 26, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
While traveling on an overland safari, I ran out of books to read. (Although I brought plenty, as an English teacher, I was devouring them as we drove through the African countryside.) Fortunately, one of the French girls in the back of the truck had just finished a book and was willing to lend it to me. She said that Mukiwa was captivating and that I wouldn't be able to put it down, and she was right. Having already visited Zimbabwe several times, I was fascinated to learn more about the white experience there, especially since I had recently read Catherine Buckle's African Tears, which also describes the current land invasions. Because many tourists don't delve deeper into Zimbabwe than a quick jaunt to Victoria Falls, Godwin's memoir is an important read. Godwin describes the reality of living in a country as tumultuous as it is beautiful. The reader can't help but gain a love of the country himself and come to understand why Godwin would risk his life in returning. Fortunately, I was able to experience a glimpse of the beauty of the country myself while visiting some of their game parks. It was on one of these drives in Hwange that I first fell in love with Africa and can understand why Godwin's parents would risk their lives by choosing to remain. I enjoyed the book so much that I purchased the sequel When a Crocodile Eats the Sun at the Johannesburg Airport. I follow the news in Africa online every day--especially the news of Zimbabwe and South Africa, and cannot express how much I value the insight that Godwin provides in both of these books. I also developed a fondness and empathy for his family as they endure the turbulent times that face Zimbabwe. Despite the many problems that face the continent, I am looking forward to my eighth trip. I have been discussing Godwin's book with my honors students and told them that I plan to read his other three--Wild at Heart, The Three of Us, and Rhodesians Never Die--before I leave.
Compelling personal drama against the backdrop of Zimbabwe's recent history..... June 23, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a fast reading book - I couldn't put it down. With Zimbabwe showing up in the headlines almost daily (contested elections, violence against the opposition party), I thought this would be a good book to read. While the story is personal, Godwin as a journalist conveys a lot of information about Zimbabwe's more recent history, politics, and movement/violence against the white farmers. The personal side to Godwin's story is also compelling as he writes of discovering his father's Jewish past and his father's unknown past late in his father's life.
 When a crocodile eats the sun ... June 17, 2008
The Power of One: A Novel If you've read The Power of One, you'll have a good background for Peter Godwin's novel. This grim, factual-ish, totally absorbing work is a must-read for all who see Africa as the land of sunshine, safaris, exotic flora and fauna, and Ipi Tombi. It deals with post-war (1998-2006) Zimbabwe in an engaging, intimate, heart-wrenching fashion. It is not a political treatise. It is a stunning showcase of how "Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely." The story begins and ends with Peter Godwin's father's death in 2006. The parts in between should be taught in every Pol. Sci class. The writing is excellent, and very accessible; the accounts horrific and frustrating.
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