Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood

Alexandra Fuller: Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight, Random House, Copyright 2001, 301 pages.
Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight illustrates the life of a child living in colonial Rhodesia, during the country's 13-year civil war. Fuller gives the reader insight on how her life, and family were affected during and after the war. She teaches the reader brief historical facts about the time without creating a history book. The book also holds strong themes of coming of age as Bobo becomes more mature and begins to understand the world around her. Her writing style is almost poetic, and she is adept at describing her childhood memories. Sometimes the writing may seem to be too descriptive and the point of the passage a bit vague. Overall it was quite well written and understandable, thought it did contain some higher-level vocabulary. Readers that would enjoy this book would include those who enjoy history, childhood memories and stories of growing up. Those who are college age and up would also appreciate this book more than high school or younger since they would be able to compare their life to the author's better than those who have not experienced as much in their life.
The book is narrated by a young Alexandra Fuller or Bobo, as she was called by her family and friends. She begins by describing her life on a farmhouse in the Burma River Valley, bordering the guerrilla-friendly Mozambique to the East, and continues throughout the book to recount her life in various other farms. She becomes accustomed to the way of her life is during the war and writes about the mines, strict officers, and a spy who comes to live with her family. Her story also depicts the ways her life changed when Rhodesia became Zambia. As Bobo grows older she reveals the hardships her family has gone through inside their home and out. She shows the struggles her family went through after losing three children and is brutally honest in describing her family and the lessons they gave her. Both her parents smoked and drank heavily and allowed her to do so at a young age too. A typical night with the Fullers would find them drinking beer, smoking and playing poker, in the morning Bobo's mom would be drunk and gleefully happy. Although her mother went through manic depression she instilled in her daughters a love of reading, and taught them to how to embrace life wholeheartedly, and be strong-willed and resilient. Even in dark times Fuller is able to rejoice when there is nothing to celebrate, and make light of situations. She uses humor throughout her various accounts and shows her strong bond to the country.
For the most part, I enjoyed the book. I liked her style of writing though in some places I felt as though it was a bit too descriptive. The higher-level vocabulary helped the book stand out among others. The topic was very interesting and it was fascinating to be introduced to history I had not learned in school in this way. Some parts were entertaining, such as the scene when white missionaries come to the farm and Bobo and her mother entertain them, other parts sad, such as the retelling of how Olivia (Bobo's youngest sister) died. It was honest and powerful. Fuller not only told the story of her life but also revealed the important lessons she learned and taught them to the reader. She accurately describes life during the civil war through the point of view of a young girl yearning to grow up. It was interesting to see how the protagonist began to understand the world around her and how her views on what was happening changed, as she grew older. Although the book was a little difficult to get in to, I highly recommend this to anyone who likes the art of storytelling.

My first reaction to this frank and frequently painful memoir is a strong desire to pick Alexandra Fuller's brain. And ask things like, “Describe your changing perception of racial inequality in post-colonial Mozambique/Zambia/Zimbabwe. Go!” and “Have you ever been in therapy? If not, how have you survived?”. I imagine there are people in her life who read her account of a childhood filled with upheaval and felt pain and anger at what she has written. However, I think Fuller has managed, and written about, what so few of us are able to do: to understand that whatever our pasts hold, they are absolutely necessary in making us who we are today. That the acceptance is crucial to the moving on. If you are at all interested in post-colonial studies (which it is a veritable goldmine for), or would just like to read the memoir of a woman with a strong sense of self, I'd strongly recommend this book.

This book makes an interesting
counterpoint to my last read,
If a Place Can Make You Cry.
An English family, in this
memoir, moves to Africa and,
despite war and mosquitos
and disease and deadly snakes,
Africa rapidly becomes home.

awesome. just a really good book. it's a really provocative depiction of growing up in Africa in a family of ex-patriats moving around Rhodesia, Zimbabwe, Zambia. By the end of the book you've been exposed to so many anicdotes and beautiful depoictions of the hot and throat scalding African experience that it really feels gratifying to have read the book.