Views and Mechanics Publisher's Note Editor's Note Review of Coventry Review of Virginity Or Death! Review of Imperial Reckoning Poetry Politico By Beth L. Block Peonies By Natasha S. Garnett A Foreigner in the Street By Tony Zurlo Sand Hill Cranes and Other Eccentricities By Jaqueline Powers On Sleepless Nights By Joy Harold Helsing I Don't Want To Be Hughes By Joe Koch Fiction Baseball Games and One-Eared Cats By Pete Laffin Beige By Dawn Merrow Geezer Cage By Scott W. Alten Sandlot By J. Conrad Guest Dinosaurs and Barbie Dolls By Michelle McMahon Burlesque Show By Stanley P. Anderson About the Contributors © 2006, River Walk Journal and respective authors and artists. All rights reserved. Do not use or reproduce without permission. River Walk Journal, Inc. Board of Directors Chairman - Elizabeth Ross Vice Chairman - Joseph Koch Secretary/Treasurer - Geri Stock-Ross Editorial Director - Patti Kurtz, DA Literacy Director - Vacant Policy Director - PA State Rep. Jess Stairs Advisory Board Chairman - Patti Kurtz, DA Asst. Chairman - Dan Lachenman, PhD Samuel Hazo Christopher Leland Edwin Yoder Joseph Bathanti Journal Staff Publisher - Elizabeth Ross Editor-In-Chief - Joseph Koch Sen. Fiction Editor - Patti Kurtz Sen. Poetry Editor - Neeldhara Misra Sen. Creative Nonfiction Editor - Brenda Coxe Contributing Editor - Robert Dittman Blog Contributing Editor - Maggie Koster Publicity Director (PA) - Geri Stock-Ross For information about submissions, visit http://www.riverwalkjournal.org/subs.html. Questions about promotions, subscribers' services, and advertising should be sent to publisher@riverwalkjournal.org. River Walk Journal, Inc. is a non-profit corporation run entirely by volunteers. For information about volunteer opportunities and internships, visit VolunteerMatch. |
Review of Imperial Reckoning Imperial Reckoning: The Untold Story of Britain’s Gulag in Kenya By Caroline Elkins Owl Books ISBN: 0-8050-8001-5 All empires in history have enjoyed being credited with advancements in culture, science, art, and society in general. Then there is the other side of the coin, and in the case of the British Crown in Kenya, the flip side is splattered in blood and wrapped in barbed wire. Imperial Reckoning is a painstakingly detailed account of the atrocities committed by the British in colonial Kenya after World War II. Mau Mau was the term that struck fear and hatred in the hearts of European settlers in Kenya, particularly in the early 1950s. Through a systematic process of torture, degradation, imprisonment, and executions, the British maintained control of their colonial interests in Kenya. Skirting the edges of international treaties, barely sliding through loopholes by declaring a state of emergency, Governor Baring oversaw what can only be considered state sanctioned genocide, just on the heels of Holocaust. Caroline Elkins presents readers with a thorough history of atrocities, in spite of the destruction of multiple records of the events in 1950’s Kenya. As relevant today as in any time, Imperial Reckoning should be considered as a warning – it is a graphic illustration of what governments with minimal accountability to the governed can become – the proof of the adage that “power corrupts.” Imperial Reckoning, beyond being of interest to historical scholars, would be useful to instructors of Psychology, Sociology, Political Science, and African Studies. It is also relevant for any course covering current affairs in Kenya, if only to provide context – the effects of the events in 1950’s colonial Kenya still shape politics and culture of that nation today. |