This collection from editors De Maio, Scheld, and Spencer-Walters focuses on the concept of re-membering—the act of deliberately reasserting one's membership within a given community—in order to reintroduce a series of perspectives on African studies, orality, and literacy. This concept is valuable in and of itself for the way in which it focuses attention on the individual in a type of standpoint epistemology. All in all, the text contains well-written pieces that argue for more application of critical theory to the study of Africa, and, more importantly, for the need to hear African voices in African studies. Recommended. General readers and undergraduates.

Choice Reviews

Given an African continent that was dis-membered by the violent histories of slavery, colonization, postcolonization and modern forms of economic dispossession, racial hatred and marginalization, and geopolitical sabotage by the West, Critical Dimensions of African Studies: Re-Membering Africa undertakes the huge task of re-membering—putting back together—Africa as an indispensable center of interest in global politics, language, pedagogy, and culture. This book’s theoretical approach of interdisciplinarity not only gives it a competitive edge in both African studies and African diaspora studies, it also paves the way for collaboration between the two disciplines.

Samuel Kamara, Minnesota State University, Mankato