This book is great to explore the diversity of the lake Malawi cichlids. Very helpful to have around when doing a trip to the fish store. Concise informations on the requirements and diet of all Malawi cichlids. The only thing laking is male/female pictures of all fishes. There is usually only the picture of the male of each species. A great book!

Though there isn't a lot of general cichlid keeping information, this book is invaluable to the enthusiast who wants species particular information for the keeping of these beautiful fish. Great pictures and information from a man who's done on the site research. A perfect addition to any cichlid library representing the latest science.

Exhaustive guide to the cichlids of lake Tanganika. Includes hundreds of pictures including many color variations. Information on many of these fish can't be found anywhere else. Focuses mainly on the individual fish, but does give some info on the technicalities of keeping them as well. Highly recommended!

Excellent book, a must for MBUNA keepers, especially for exact identification of these confusing fish. When is the Tanganykan version coming out?

A fantastic collection of poetry from Jack Mapanje arguably Malawis finest poet. The poems are vividly descriptive echoeing Mapanjes thoughts and feelings during his time as a political prisoner under (the ex-Malawian president) Bandas regime. He manages to evoke feelings of hatred and disgust at the treatment of the prisoners as the reader shivers at descriptions of weavel filled bowls of rice and feelings of hope as he receives a postcard from Holland. I would thoroughly recommend this collection of poetry to anyone with an interest in human rights.

this is the best book ever written,only for intelligent people though!. gives an accurate picture of Malawi and its people. no other book compares to this one, written by a world class author.

Poor countries that make huge investments in education of their citizens expect them to contribute to building up their own nations. A significant outflow of educated people (a 'brain drain') is therefore a serious threat to the future of a country.

The Swedish geographer Reidar Oderth has written a very worthwhile study on the migration of graduates and university students from Malawi. Malawi, for decades suffering under dictatorship that forced many intellectuals into exile, passed through a process of democratisation during the beginning of the 1990's. A new, freely elected government gained power in 1994.

Oderth's thesis evaluates the impact of these political changes upon the migration of graduates and students, with emphasis on the UK as one of the major recipient countries. The study indicates that the brain drain from Malawi did not decrease after 1994, rather the opposite. The impact of the democratisation has been strongly counteracted by a deterioration of the economic situation in the country. Further, the abolition of currency and administrative restrictions in Malawi has facilitated emigration.

The study reviews the present state-of-the-art concerning theories to explain the observed migration patterns. These include, among others, theories based on the push-pull model as well as micro, meso and macro concepts. Theories of time-geography have also contributed to give a new dimension to migration research.

While it is obvious that the limitations in Oderth's survey data partially made the study difficult, he has put a lot of effort in collecting and analysing statistical data, interviews and literature. The study therefore gives an important contribution to our knowledge of the extent of migration of educated citizens of a poor African country as well as some indications of their causes and consequences. Further studies to deepen our knowledge of the processes of migration and brain drain should therefore have a high priority in research on development issues of the Third World.

Per Lindskog, PhD in Geography
Linköpings universitet, Sweden

Lindskog has worked at the University of Malawi during five years as lecturer

To all those who help in taking power from Dr Banda I have to hand it to them for a job well done. This book proves how Dr Banda and his so called government treated people in Malawi and how Africa dictators are so greedy and have lack of human respect.

Once again esteemed Professor Colin Baker of Glamorgan University in Wales, utilized his outstanding research capability and clarity of expression to bring to life another of Nyasaland's last three British governors. Dr. Baker's accurate and vibrant depiction of the earnest and dedicated Sir Glyn Jones, the last Governor/Governor General of the Protectorate, is a highly readable tribute to a most skillful and tenacious Civil Servant.

Since I knew Sir Glyn and the book's entire cast of characters for many years, I have a particularly keen sense of appreciation of this biography. The reader will be absorbed with Sir Glyn's masterful orchestration of colonial Nyasaland's transition to independent Malawi, tactfully working with the brilliant but mercural Dr. H. Kamuzu Banda, Malawi's Founding Prime Minister then President, outraged European settlers, bumbling Colonial Office officials at Whitehall and the jealous Nyasa elite vying for personal power.

Professor Baker's outstanding books are written against a background of exceptional documentation and scholarship, yet are all thoroughly enjoyable reads by anyone interested in British Colonial and/or African history. Once begun , you cannot and will not put them down!

This book is excellent for someone who is more interested in identifying lake malawi fish as opposed to general information on how to properly keep these fish in a home aquarium. For someone who is not a beginner, this definitely is a must have book. The pictures are great and there is a whole lot of information on lake malawi and the general characteristics of each fish. Buy this book, it will be a decision you will not regret.

Ad Koning's Book of Cichlids and All Other Fishes of Lake Malawi is a fantastic book, and a "must-have" in my opinion.

The book is designed to be enjoyed by -- and put to good use by -- anyone interested in the cichlids of Lake Malawi. It covers all aspects of the fish including maintenance, breeding, behaviors, taxonomy, etc.. The over 1000 photos -- almost all taken in Lake Malawi -- are absolutely beautiful. And the cichlids of Lake Malawi are among the most beautiful, diverse, and interesting fish on this planet.

The book is a worthy counter-part to Pierre Brichard's Book of Cichlids And All Other Fishes Of Lake Malawi. Together, these 2 books provide the most beautiful, comprehensive, and thorough books on the African Cichlids of the Rift Lakes of East Africa. There is no overlap between the books -- one is on Lake Malawi, the other Lake Tanganyika -- yet they are remarkably similar.

I own both this book and Brichard's, and they are the most interesting coffeetable books I own. I flip through them often, whether idly reading, identifying fish I've just seen in a fish store.

This book is expensive, but entirely worth it. You can buy a less expensive book on the subject, but you'll always know you have an inadequate subset of the ultimate book on the subject.

This is one of my favorite books. Once again Ad Konings does a wonderful job of presenting the fish of Lake Malawi.

This book provides the Konings typically wonderful photos of virtually all of the fish and color morphs. The information provided on each fish is excellent as well.

This is a must have for the serious cichlidiot.

Dr. Donoso has written a wonderful account of his medical experiences in refuge camps in Malawi. His writing style is engaging for both the medical professional and the layman. He has enough detail (and footnotes if you really want them) so that you can look critically at his efforts. In addition, at times, his writing is fluid and even poetic. I gave the book only 4 stars because at times the translation was a little rough. I'll bet that this book is really beautiful in the original version. Anyway, if you are interested in the details of delivery of healthcare under trying circumstances, get this book and read it.

An Eloquent Book by a Doctor in the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize Winning Organization, Les Medicines Sans Frontieres

Across the Footsteps of Africa by Dr. Benjamin Puertas-Donoso

Les Medicines Sans Frontieres have won the prestigious and much deserved Nobel Peace Prize for 1999. I would like to congratulate them and praise their dedicated doctors. I was especially touched by this eloquent and beautiful memoir of an Ecuadorian doctor who worked with the American Refugee Committee in Malawi and with Les Medicines Sans Frontieres in Mozambique near the end of their long, brutal civil war in 1993 and 1994.

Dr. Puertas is a gifted writer. The refugee camps where Dr. Puerts worked were not pretty places. But Dr. Puertas took the inconveniences, risks and deprevations of the work in stride. His warm personality bursting with optimism, energy and humility, not only charmed his refugees and coworkers, but captivates his readers as well. However, of course, his success in taking on the gargantuan task of saving lives in wretched conditions was not due to charm alone. In fact he has a genius for organization and administration.

Dr. Puertas does not focus the book on his own accomplishments or dwell on the dirt on the floor in the hospitals. His book is very intelligent and shares with the reader a little of the history of the countries he worked in, their governments and politics and he gives the reader a respectful and balanced idea of what the people, the food and the native cultures are really like. He was very impressed with the good natured people and their incredible strength to endure each day. He traveled quite a bit in the region, met a lot of interesting people, and is a good travel guide for the reader sitting comfortably in his armchair.

Years ago I too lived and worked in Africa. I served as a Peace Corps teacher in Ethiopia. I was teaching English to children who were starving, with many unnamable and unreatable diseases and living without adequate shelter. I can vouch that every word in Dr. Puertas' book resonated true to my experiences in Africa. Africans take their hard life pretty much in stride, but it is indeed very hard. It is organizations like Medicines Sans Frontieres that bring the doctors with skills and abilities to make things happen to improve their lives. Dr. Puertas is to be commended for giving his time and gifts to humanitarian efforts and also for writing such an inspiring and exceptional account of it. It is Dr. Puertas' great gift as a writer to make this story, necessarily suffused with so much human pain and suffering, a great triumph to the human spirit and a romantic adventure. Dr. Puertas is so likeable, his narrative creates suspense because the reader really cares about what happens to him. This book would make a great movie!

This book's first edition in spanish showed me the crude reality of the african health system. This delightful narrative experience of Dr. Puertas' incredible adventure in Africa is very well written. It's contents may prove useful to anybody in the medicine, public health, and medical anthropology fields, especially if related to third world countries.

great book

JLBE

Good little book, but some stunning errors in husbandry descriptions which could be a potential disaster for beginning Mbuna keepers. I highly recommend that aquarists look for at least a second opinion before choosing individual species as described in this book.

This is THE best little cichlid book for Lake Malawi. But don't let the word little fool you, this book is packed with information on dozens of Lake Malawi cichlids. I especially like that the book breaks down the lake's cichlids into the two main categories of mbuna and Haplochromines. There are over 100 excellent color photos of the most popular species accompanied by descriptions of natural habitat, size, husbandry requirements, diet, and breeding. I always take this book with me when I go to a fish auction or my local aquarium society meeting. There are other books that contain information on more species but none that gives you this much information at such a great price!

Book Lake Malawi Cichlids describes natural habitats of Lake Malawi, different groups of cichlids and gives very good instructions how to set up aquarium that will match fish's natural requirements. It contains beautiful photos (some of them also taken in the nature!) and descriptions of some aquariums cichlids. It contains a lot of information given in very understandable way, I missed that in many other more comprehensive books. I recommend this book to all beginners and also to more advanced aquarists.