"The Healing Drum: African Wisdom teachings" by YaYa Diallo and Mitchell Hall offers an introspective view into the Minianka culture of Mali. As an African-American student, this book helped me to understand a lot about myself. For example, YaYa explains that in his culture, musicians have a responsibility for the affect that the music has on it's listeners. "In my culture, art is allied with morality." (94)We in the West have debated the issue of the artist's responsibility for some time now. As an aspiring actress and writer, my belief has always been that we have are responsible for the messages we send through our art. YaYa explains that music can not only heal, but also can hurt. This is evident in the complacent attitude of many of today's rap artists and it's consumers. YaYa also expounds on some of the differences between the value of time and structure in Minanka culture vs. the same concept in the West. Understanding this element of an African culture allowed me to realize that I am not as crazy as many of my peers and professsors would have me to believe. YaYa's description of the late-night festivals helped me to understand why I can stay up all night and sleep all day sometimes.
I was offended by one review which stated that YaYa's book describes Minankas as drug addicts. His description of the Minianka's use of herbs and medicines to heal is no different or worse than the Western philosophy of popping pills to make troubles disappear, i.e, prozac, ridalin, sleeping pills, etc. YaYa also emphasizes the importance of music in the healing process, and his descriptions of instances in which music was used to heal in his culture are both moving and sincere.
In light of American's recent "liberation" of Iraq, it was also interesting to read YaYa's description of the French colonization of Mali. "The French glorified their colonization of large parts of Africa as a 'mission civilsatirce', a civilizing mission...The textbooks spoke of Africa rarely enough and then only referred pejoratively to the 'natives', not the human beings who belonged to our continent." (120)
It has been long understood in the elevated members of my own culture, that Africa and America are inextricably connected. I believe a closer look at the statement above could easily be related to the reluctance of many Black youth in America to take an interest in formal education. The teachings in this book are, in many cases, universal and, in most cases, interesting and inspirational. YaYa Diallo tells his story with simplicistic eloquence,humor, and wisdom. The book offers much in the way of history and parables, without beating you over the head. Mitchell Hall has done an excellent job of translation.
I was required to read this book for an African Dance class I was taking at the University of Louisville. For any person who is interested in learning more about music, Minianka culture, or the world, I would highly recommend YaYa Diallo and Mitchell Hall's "The Healing Drumm", and for anyone in Louisville, I encourage you to take Harlina Churn Diallo's African Dance class. Bring out the Drums!

I wanted to read this book because I have recently started learning to play the djembe drum and I wished to find out more about West African culture and how traditional music is used to heal. This was the perfect book for both aspects.

The author helps us to appreciate the culture of his village through his own experiences. We read about his struggles to follow the customs and teachings of his village as he is educated to "be a Frenchman" and embrace the Western way of life.

We also gain an insight into the secret societies and social aspects of life in his village. Suspend disbelief at some of the awesome sights that he relates to us, I only wish that I could see them for myself! The sociological, psychological and religious knowledge that he reveals about his community is fascinating.

Yaya shows us that a musician in this culture does not just "play" music, music sustains the society and heals lost souls. The musician is a healer and a protector of the people. The musician cannot just play any old music, each piece of music has implications, positive or negative and the musician has a responsibility to the community to play well and appropriately.

This book has helped me to gain an insight into African culture and music; from now on my djembe playing will have more significance for me and I feel inspired by the healing potential that I now hold in my hands.

Having experienced the power and wisdom of traditional African healers, I was glad to see that Yaya took great efforts to convey the potency derived from following ancient traditions. His life story, like many other traditionalists living in the west, is one that is inspiring given all the efforts he and his tribal elders make to keep their old ways alive in the face of pressures to modernize.

As a student of cross-cultural and shamanic traditions I found this book provides clarity into the use of music and sound for enhancing and stimulating healing, as well as the need to gain sufficient mastery before using this healing modality.

This translation of the oral epic of Sundiata, the founder of the Mali nation, is African history at it's most entertaining. In 1995, while a college student, I managed to finish this one nght at a laundromat. A real page-turner and example of good history combined with good storytelling. Go for it. BTW-when you finish it, note the similarities between this and Disney's "The Lion King." Hmmmmmmmmmmm........

It is amazing how the author re-discovered such a far-away subject, revitalizing it and bringing it back to our days and our society, in a way that will be fascinating and enjoyable for the average reader. Had it not been for the book, who would ever hope to find such fascinating epic in the tradition of old Mali ? The author did a great job in finding this, and putting it down on paper for posterity.

Read the 84 pages of this text, and you've read a fine piece of West African literature remembered by poets since the 1300's. Read the eleven pages of Niane's insightful notes following this, and you've taken a crash course in the West African tribal/clan system. This epic seeks to explain the creation of the Malian empire of Timbuktu fame. Sundiata's legendary rise to power is presented chapter by chapter, in a fashion that can seem somewhat episodic at times, lending to the book's strong sense of oral tradition. Oral tradition is even defended in this text, with a brief, though thorough lambast of "Other peoples [who] use writing to record the past..."

In addition to its celebration of the adventures and eventual triumph of Sundiata, the book also tracks the adventures of Balla Fasséké, griot (royal poet) to Sundiata. As with many oral traditions from many cultures, a king without a poet to celebrate his triumphs is not much of a king. So their joint adventure, and sharing of duties, is emphasized.

Other side glimpses of West African culture provided (though not emphasized) in the text include: Islamic influences, women's social status, African society before the European invasion, West African sorcery.

In comparison to The Odyssey, this book will fall short for sheer reading pleasure. But it easily outstrips The Song of Roland, Gilgamesh, and The Tale of Kieu, and many another micro-sized epic. Roughly speaking, the epic Sundiata is what Beowulf would be if Beowulf the hero had any kind of human weakness or warmth or personality. Sundiata's conception, troubled childhood, young manhood, his dependence upon others for success, even his moment of confusion on the battlefield---all of this leads the reader to the obvious conclusion that greatness has less to do with one's ability to kill, and more to do with one's ability to remain hopeful in the face of adversity. Sundiata is a fitting hero for Africans, the African diaspora, and for anyone of any culture who is ready to see greatness drawn in human proportions.

This book was instrumental in teaching Mali to my third graders! The pictures are beautiful and the information is given at times through the eyes of a griot. The students loved social studies time! This book is the one I used daily in the classroom, and tied all of my activities to it. It makes our changing curriculum easier to adjust to!

I am an elementary school teacher in Hanover County, Virginia. I love my curriculum, especially Social Studies, because I get to take my students on imagaination journeys to faraway places such as Greece, Rome, and now Mali. When our standards were changed recently to include the empire of Mali, we were all scrambling to find good resources to use to help our students understand what life was like in this great empire. Thanks to Joy Masoff, we found an excellent one in this book. My students enjoyed learning about griots, the camel caravens that brought goods into the market places of Mali, and especially about the great mansas: Sundiata and Mansa Musa. Her new book is very child-friendly, with colorful pictures, interesting activities, and easy-to-read descriptions of what life was like there. It is definitely a book to check out!

A beautifully written and well designed book for readers of all ages! Vivid photography and kid-friendly text make Mali: Land of Gold an enjoyable and valuable learning tool. The hands-on activities and informative stories bring history to life. This book is a wonderful addition to any unit on ancient civilizations or African-American culture. Your children will love it!

FRENCH FAIENCE covers many of the major factories in France and gives brief histories, descriptions of wares, photos, and a guide to the maker's marks. If you're collecting any of these potteries - Quimper, Malicorne, Desvres, etc., you should have this book in your reference library.

This is a very well rounded book on french faience. It covers several faience companies and has an index with identification marks. I would definately recommend this book to any french faience collector.

I used this book as the text to give 28 6th Graders an introduction to the wealth of Africa's past--and they hung on every word. The mix of storytelling, political, economic, cultural and religious history served as the basis for several lively student presentations. In short, my only complaint about this book is the fact that its out-of-print status prevents me from ordering copies by the dozen for next year's class.

Publishers--Please get on the ball. With the addition of these African Kingdoms to the Virginia State Standards of Learning, you have an eager market and a product that beats anything else now on the market for this age group.

This book is gorgeously illustrated with lots of graphics taken from authentic textiles and pottery. The legends are written in an easy to read narrative style and take readers from ancient myths through to modern theories on the history of this region. Highly recommended

"In Griot Time" is a MAJOR travel literature event! Readers of V. S. Naipaul's travel nonfiction will delight in this new book written by a former student of Naipaul, Banning Eyre of National Public Radio and Boston Phoenix fame. This astonishingly good book rivals and even surpasses Naipaul in the very areas Naipaul excels. Eyre's writing recalls Naipaul's best, with a fresh new vibrance, mature with a quiet, intelligent masculinity, reflecting Eyre's years of magazine and newspaper work. The Canadian Eyre masterfully takes the best of his teacher's legacy, then expands it, using his relative youth and considerable musical and literary skills to show us a fascinating view of travel and Malian culture not just as a writer, as an outsider, but also as a working musician and student of Malian styles, a view requiring a stamina and persona more reminiscent of Hemingway than Naipaul. Eyre is truly an exciting and important new voice in travel literature. NOT TO BE MISSED. I've read and loved all of Naipaul's books--and "In Griot Time" is even better if such a thing is possible! Thank you, Banning Eyre! [Note: I'm an old friend of the author, and have read his writing from his early teenage days on. He was good to begin with, and I've watched him get better and better over the years. I'm also a long-time fan of V.S. Naipaul's works and consider him one of the great masters of 20th-century literature. Imagine my utter joy when I read "In Griot Time," and found Eyre has grown into everything Naipaul is and more! Now I can say "I knew him when..." :)]

Banning Eyre has obviously spent a great deal of time loving and learning the music and culture of Mali. His book takes you straight to the heart of what the people and their music are all about. Effortlessly, he guides you on an excursion to this unique land. You'll taste the food, feel the heat and hear the music! In fact, you can hear the music in the companion CD. I love both the book and the CD!

Just having returned from 18 days in the UK two of those spent in jet and bus travel and eight more getting the most out of an eight day Brit Rail pass that we could I must say that even though I have stopped running I feel like I am still running in place. That is how I get some of my best ideas. Those of you who know me know that I sort hang at the margins of the formal academic study of literature. I do this because language and literature study are really sort games which you have to learn the vocabulary (lexicon) if I were presenting at a conference or writing for blue noses.

Well one of the hottest games now in the world of literature is the study of the postcolonial literature of the former European colonies, South Africa, Algeria, Vietnam, or what ever. If you were a young academic then it would be well to focus your study in this area. This is especially true if you want work in something other than the house keeping and food service industries as your ultimate career goal.

That got me thinking as I re-read and loved Rip Van Wrinkle by Washington Irving in this wonderful collection that I was reading perhaps the archetypal work of post colonial literature, old henpecked Rip (a subject of George III), has a few beers with some very serious 120 year old Dutchman as he falls in with them in their the secret Hudson River Valley meeting place.

Twenty years later he wakes up to find he is an American Citizen. I don't but know for sure but, I bet a lot of post colonials feel like that They share with Rip one very large hangover. Well I could go on and play the game further but I think you have the idea, and as a dear friend of mine once said sometimes Philip a little of something goes a long way. So let me get back to this wonderful book , as I urge you to add it to your collections

American Fairy Tales is a collection has something for everyone .It is a collection of American tales, which really serves three publics. First of course the adolescent reader who may miss or only seen fragments of these wonderful stories. Next the eternal Adolescent likes my self at age 55 who loves a good story. It also serves any serious students of children's literature, this medley of stories progresses chronologically across a century, from Washington Irving's "Rip Van Winkle" to Carl Sandburg's "How They Broke Away to Go to the Rootabaga Country." From the Maleficent Witch, Mother Rigby, in Hawthorne's "Feathertop" to the ethereal fairy in "The Lad and Luck's House," Book List had some good things to say about it "A patriotic-looking jacket with blue stars and red stripes adorns this collection of 12 stories drawn from an emergent American literary tradition that includes such characters as bee-men, goose-girls, kings, fairies, and wizards." Editor Neil Philip provides an introductory essay about the "American fairy" tale" and briefly introduces each selection.

I loved the variety of stories and the collection of famous writers, including Hawthorne, Sandburg, Alcott, and Baum. McCurdy's woodcut illustrations give the stories a sense of the past yet still allow plenty of room for fantasy, woodcuts have a haunting timeless look about them. Theses stories are made to read aloud. But it must remembered that because of the time they were written but a few contain language or allusions that now seem politically incorrect. But we must be careful not to throw out the baby with the bathwater. American Fairy Tales is a beautifully Illustrated book you may have to work a bit to find it.

Philip Kaveny, Reviewer

Lawder writes beautifully of his life as an older Peace Corps volunteer in Africa. Rather than present himself as the savior of these impoverished people, he shows how he is, in a sense, saved. Adopted by a Malian family, he makes a life for himself with them, becoming a de facto grandfather. He portrays the Malians as an intelligent, warm, hard-working people living under difficult circumstances, and it's interesting to "meet" them through this absorbing book.

This is a West African variation of a wonderful old folk tale. An ambitious hatseller encounters a tree full of curious, clever and comical monkeys who not only steal his hats and make fun of him but also teach him the best way to start each day! The text is lyrical, with some African words and expressions, and the illustrations are colorful and lively. A fun read-aloud.

After reading "No Time to Die" I was not too impressed because I found the story line pretty predictable. Although, over all it was a good book. I enjoyed reading it even though it was predictable because it was interesting, the way the writer wrote the book and the way one thing led to another kept me interested. There was a loose killer in the Harlem streets and Mali's best friend was the first to be murdered. So, because Mali was on this particular case she was very intent and determined to find the murderer. Although, I don't think she realized that while she had intent to find the murderer, the murderer also intended to find her.

In the 3rd Mali Anderson books, the author goes for the suspense route instead of the mystery. We know who the killer is, now we just have to figure out why and when will he strike again and who will be his next victim. The author did a great job with the transistion from mystery to suspense, A serial killer in Harlem. As always, the reader is treated to Harlem history, landscape and nightlife. If you have never been to Harlem, you will feel like you just visited there after reading one of Grace's books. THis was an intriguing novel. I look forward to the next one.

Once again, Grace Edwards has delighted her readers with the intelligence and tenacity of Mali Anderson. The characters are keenly developed and the "plot thickened" with every page. Unlike the other perpertrators, in the Mali Anderson series, we are introduced to this sinister evil, early on. As a person very interested in the social sciences, I found myself wanting to help "Ache" and hoped he would find redemption before destruction.