The Mazruiana collection revisited: Ali Mazrui debating the African bibliography - Tapa dura

""Ali Mazrui's profound knowledge of Africa and the world at large, his incisive analytical powers, his communication skills, and his unwavering commitment to the continent have made him one of the towering figures of our time. Academia, politics and the media have benefited greatly from his research, prescriptions and, yes, polemics deeply rooted in African history and culture." --General Olusegun Obasanjo, former head of state, Federal Republic of Nigeria

'Few figures in political science have produced a lifetime of work that would warrant cataloguing into a reference book. Ali A Mazrui is one of those few. He (Bemath) has produced a valuable resource for those interested in the ideas of a man who helped shape African scholarship in the twentieth century,' said Professor Robert L Ostergard Jr., Associate Director to Professor Mazrui, in his review of The Mazruiana Collection (1998). The late Edward Said stated in his book, Culture and Imperialism, about Mazrui's television series, The Africans, 'Here at last was an African on prime-time television, in the west, daring to accuse the West of what it had done, thus reopening a file considered closed.'

These comments on Mazrui are reflected in The Mazruiana Collection Revisited, a four-decade annotated bibliography of his writings, covering the period 1962-2003. An expanded and revised sequel to The Mazruiana Collection, 1962-1997, this nw edition consists of 650 annotated entries covering his books, dissertations, edited works about him, major essays in books, academic journals and conference papers. Pamphlets, magazine and newspaper articles, and audio-visual recordings are also included. This is much a festschrift for Mazrui as a bibliography of his writings, as it contains essays by scholars familiar with various aspects of his writings and includes essays written by Mazrui himself.

Differs from the first volume in that it includes a separate thematic annotated section covering major themes of his writings, major works on him, and a section dealing with the compiler's interest in him.

As Mazrui puts it: 'Many People disagree with me. My life is one long debate.' May this volume contribute to the debate on Mazrui-the man and his works!