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Toby Green's groundbreaking book, 'A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution,' offers a transformative perspective on the history of West and West-Central Africa. By the late 19th century's 'Scramble for Africa,' the region had already been globally interconnected for centuries. Its gold had fueled the economies of Europe and the Islamic world since around 1000 AD, and its sophisticated kingdoms had traded with Europeans along the coasts from Senegal to Angola since the 15th century. Until at least 1650, this was a trade of equals, utilizing various currencies – most notably cowrie shells imported from the Maldives and nzimbu shells from Brazil.
Green's work reconstructs the world of kingdoms whose existence revolved around warfare, taxation, trade, diplomacy, complex religious beliefs, royal displays of extravagance, and the production of art – much like their European counterparts. Over time, the relationship between Africa and Europe increasingly centered on the slave trade, eroding Africa's relative political and economic power as the terms of monetary exchange shifted drastically in Europe's favor. Despite these growing capital imbalances, longstanding contacts ensured remarkable connections between the Age of Revolution in Europe and America and the birth of a revolutionary 19th century in Africa.
Drawing not just on written histories but also archival research in nine countries, art, praise-singers, oral history, archaeology, letters, and the author's personal experiences, 'A Fistful of Shells' creates a new perspective on the history of one of the world's most important regions. Described as 'astonishing' and 'staggering' by Ben Okri in the Daily Telegraph, this book has been shortlisted for numerous prestigious awards, including the Wolfson History Prize, Cundill History Prize, Fage and Oliver Prize, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and the Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award. It has also won the Historical Writers' Association Non-Fiction Crown 2020, the American Historical Association's Jerry Bentley Prize in World History 2020, and the Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize for Global Cultural Understanding 2019.
Toby Green's groundbreaking book, 'A Fistful of Shells: West Africa from the Rise of the Slave Trade to the Age of Revolution,' offers a transformative perspective on the history of West and West-Central Africa. By the late 19th century's 'Scramble for Africa,' the region had already been globally interconnected for centuries. Its gold had fueled the economies of Europe and the Islamic world since around 1000 AD, and its sophisticated kingdoms had traded with Europeans along the coasts from Senegal to Angola since the 15th century. Until at least 1650, this was a trade of equals, utilizing various currencies – most notably cowrie shells imported from the Maldives and nzimbu shells from Brazil.
Green's work reconstructs the world of kingdoms whose existence revolved around warfare, taxation, trade, diplomacy, complex religious beliefs, royal displays of extravagance, and the production of art – much like their European counterparts. Over time, the relationship between Africa and Europe increasingly centered on the slave trade, eroding Africa's relative political and economic power as the terms of monetary exchange shifted drastically in Europe's favor. Despite these growing capital imbalances, longstanding contacts ensured remarkable connections between the Age of Revolution in Europe and America and the birth of a revolutionary 19th century in Africa.
Drawing not just on written histories but also archival research in nine countries, art, praise-singers, oral history, archaeology, letters, and the author's personal experiences, 'A Fistful of Shells' creates a new perspective on the history of one of the world's most important regions. Described as 'astonishing' and 'staggering' by Ben Okri in the Daily Telegraph, this book has been shortlisted for numerous prestigious awards, including the Wolfson History Prize, Cundill History Prize, Fage and Oliver Prize, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and the Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award. It has also won the Historical Writers' Association Non-Fiction Crown 2020, the American Historical Association's Jerry Bentley Prize in World History 2020, and the Nayef Al-Rodhan Prize for Global Cultural Understanding 2019.