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Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight

An African Childhood

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About this listen

In 1972, when Alexandra Fuller was two years old, her parents finally abandoned their English life and returned to what was then Southern Rhodesia and to the beginning of a civil war. By the time she was eight, the war was in full swing.

Her parents veered from being determined farmers to being blind drunk, whilst Alexandra and her sister, the only survivors of five children, alternately take up target practice and sing Rod Stewart songs from sun bleached rocks. This memoir is about living through a civil war; it is about losing children and losing that war, and realising that the side you have been fighting for may well be the wrong one.

 Africa Art & Literature Authors Cultural & Regional Education Higher & Continuing Education Heartfelt

Critic reviews

Book Sense Book of the Year Award Winner, Adult Non-Fiction, 2003

"A classic is born in this tender, intensely moving and even delightful journey through a white African girl's childhood." (Publishers Weekly)

"This was no ordinary childhood, and it makes a riveting story thanks to an extraordinary telling." (School Library Journal)

"In this powerful debut, Fuller fully succeeds in memorializing the beauty of each desert puddle and each African summer night sky while also recognizing that beauty can lie hidden in the faces of those who have crossed her path. Highly recommended." (Library Journal)

"An honest, moving portrait of one family struggling to survive tumultuous times." (Booklist)
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The strength and resilience of the whole family is remarkable. If you know life in Africa you will enjoy this account of the innocence of the children and the weariness of the parents battling the odds day in and day out. Wonderful. Loved it. Recommended to Zim friends.

Raw Africa

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The story is extremely interesting and the narrator is absolutely brilliant including the noises she makes imitating the animals that the author encounters. It is someone's memory so it does come with a little judgment but it makes the story even more authentic.

Post-colonial memories of a British girl

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The story is so well written that you can see, smell and touch the scenery. However the storey itself wasn't captivating and ended quite sharply in my opinion. Worth listening to none the less

Beautifully written

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really good story including some of Zambia and Zimbabwe's history. it seems it cut off the last minute of narration however.

Decent book, but cut short

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Wonderful glimpse into a time that despite all the downsides the right people excelled in .

Don’t let’s go to the dogs tonight

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