We couldn’t say goodbye to 2018 before sharing our top book reviews of the year, as voted by your clicks! Here they are:

1. Afrotopia by Felwine Sarr – Anna Wood calls “Afrotopia” an inspiring manifesto and metaphor for a new Africa.
2. The Oromo and the Christian Kingdom of Ethiopia 1300-1700 by Mohammed Hassen – Aleksander Engeskaug says this book is an important contribution to the field of Oromo studies but also to the contemporary discourse on the Oromo people and their place in modern day Ethiopia.
3. Dealing with Government in South Sudan by Cherri Leonardi – Diana Felix da Costa argues that this book offers valuable insights into processes of state formation and state-society relations across South Sudan as well as in East Africa.
4. Love does not win elections by Ayisha Osori – Bronwen Manby says this humorous book gives a unique insight into Nigerian politics.
5. Why Europe intervenes in Africa? Security, Prestige and the Legacy of Colonialism by Catherine Gegout – Maria Berta Ecija says this book contributes greatly to the conceptualisation of security, prestige, humanitarianism, conflict, and economic motivation. 
6. Why we lie about aid by Pablo Yanguas – According to Thomas Kirk, this book is an engaging rallying cry to reinterpret our discourses around aid and move away from quantifying successes based solely on value for money.
7. Understanding West Africa’s Ebola epidemic: Towards a political economy by Ibrahim Abdullah and Ismail Rashid – Jonah Lipton says that this book is a valuable contribution to the Ebola literature but also key for anyone interested in the state of Africa, epidemiology, and political economy.
8. After Rape: Violence, justice and social harmony in Uganda by Holly Porter – In reviewing  After Rape: Violence, Justice and Social Harmony in Uganda, Sverker Finnström compares the work of Holly Porter to the pioneering anthropologist Margaret Mead.
9. Creed and Grievance: Muslim-Christian relations and conflict resolution in northern Nigeria, Eds Abdul Raufu Mustapha and David Ehrhardt –  LSE’s Portia Roelofs calls this book an important new resource for those concerned with public action to build peace in northern Nigeria.
10. Women and the war on Boko Haram: Wives, weapons and witnesses by Hilary Matfess – Richard Moncrieff says this book gives a provocative insight into women’s life in Boko Haram.

The views expressed in this post are those of the author and in no way reflect those of the Africa at LSE blog, the Firoz Lalji Centre for Africa or the London School of Economics and Political Science.