The Wonga Coup: Guns, Thugs and a Ruthless Determination to Create Mayhem in an Oil-Rich Corner of Africa: Book Review

• Author: Adam Roberts
• First Published: 2006
• Genre: Historical Non-Fiction
• Rating: ★★★★★

Do you enjoy fast-paced action where governments could topple and riches could be had? How about multi-national coup plots full of chaos, intrigue and deception? What if I told you that you could have all of these things, and it'd be a real event? Welcome to the Wonga Coup.

This was not a book that was on my radar because of my vested interest in oil -because that doesn't exist- but because Goodreads recommended it to me since I've enjoyed books in the past about the blood diamond industry -don't get me started, it's a whole thing-. This has been sitting on my to-be-read shelf for a short while, but I decided that since this year I'm trying to clear off my to-be-read shelf -ha!- that I should tackle this one while I have some lighter material to follow up with were it emotionally heavy. Boy, was it not emotionally heavy, but instead it was exhilarating! Adam Roberts does an expert job at weaving this narrative of the plotters' coup plans while explaining the finer nuances of the political history of Equatorial Guinea, the surrounding area, and even brief histories of the major players involved. For someone who didn't know much about Equatorial Guinea before reading this, it was much appreciated and really added another level of understanding to the scale and magnitude of the events that transpired. He also does a fantastic job of laying everything out in an orderly fashion, and even when he backtracks in order to give the reader some background information, he always brings it back around and wraps it with a nice, neat bow.

I have nothing negative to say about this book. Roberts added plenty of detail without bogging it down and droning on about unnecessary things. He was also very good about reminding the reader of how the players involved were related to each other -this was key considering that there's 20+ names mentioned, all with important parts to play in this event-, and even added a post-script detailing some of the events that took place after he'd completed and published his first batch of this book. Not once was I bored, and not once did I think he was using this as a way to inflate his own self-worth. Only a few times did he mention himself, and always just in passing, usually when referring to an interview he did with someone or that information was from a document he received and was publishing information from for the first time.

This is honestly a book that I would recommend to just about anyone, but definitely for those who enjoy non-fiction novels, especially when they involve military, politics, and greed. This would also be a good book for those considering getting into non-fiction who want something that will be able to keep their attention and not read like a university textbook.

Have you heard of this coup? Does this sound like a book that would interest you? What type of non-fiction are you drawn towards?

Cheers!