Provides the full context of traditional culture and modern practices against a backdrop of a turbulent history. Index, 204pp, USA. GREENWOOD.

Comprehensive survey of the medical system of the Tabwa in the DRC. Embraces both western and indigenous concepts, categories, approaches and systems. Map, 4 tables, 21 b/w photos, notes, bib, index, 342pp, UK. EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY PRESS.

Rich natural resources such as gold and diamonds, vast stretches of lush rain forest, and abundant timber make this huge country spectacularly beautiful. Unfortunately, due to these same resources, it is also one of the poorest nations in the world. In this information-packed book, students will be introduced to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country valiantly struggling to recover from historical abuse and ongoing war, a geographic paradise in the midst of political turmoil kept alive by the presence of the United Nations and 17,000 peacekeeping troops. 104pp, USA. CHELSEA HOUSE.

A survey of the society, history, art and recent political history of the Kuba of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Richly illustrated with colour photographs. Includes a guide to further reading and a glossary. Index, map, 64pp, USA. ROSEN PUBLISHING COMPANY, 082391996X

A survey of the society, history, royalty and art of the Luba of Zaire. Richly illustrated with colour photographs. Includes a guide to further reading and a glossary. Index, map, 64pp, USA. ROSEN PUBLISHING COMPANY, 082392002X

Features outstanding works of Luba art from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Major themes addressed include: the role of visual and performance arts in Luba traditional politics; the symbolism of the female image and why the king is a woman for Luba; the instrumentality of royal insignia in politics, problem-solving, and healing; and the use of art objects in the creation and transmission of historical knowledge in both the Luba heartland and its peripheries. Case studies from the authors long research among Luba, Tabwa, and related peoples of the Congo illuminate the complex philosophical underpinnings of Luba thought and visual expression. Col & b/w illus, 147pp, ITALY. FIVE CONTINENTS EDITIONS.

A survey of the land, social systems, economic structure and religious and cultural practices of the Mbuti of Zaire. Richly illustrated with colour photographs. Includes a guide to further reading and a glossary. Index, map, 64pp, USA. ROSEN PUBLISHING COMPANY, 0823919986

In 2005, Kate Jackson ventured into the remote swamp forests of the northern Congo to collect reptiles and amphibians. Her camping equipment was rudimentary, her knowledge of Congolese customs even more so. She knew how to string a net and set a pitfall trap, but she never imagined the physical and cultural difficulties that awaited her. Culled from the mud-spattered pages of her journals, this account reads like a fast-paced adventure story. It is Jackson's unvarnished account of her research on the front lines of the global biodiversity crisis - coping with interminable delays in obtaining permits, learning to outrun advancing army ants, subsisting on a diet of Spam and manioc, and ultimately falling in love with the strangely beautiful flooded forest. The reptile fauna of the Republic of Congo was all but undescribed, and Jackson's mission was to carry out the most basic study of the amphibians and reptiles of the swamp forest: to create a simple list of the species that exist there - a crucial first step toward efforts to protect them. Index, col photos, 328pp, USA. HARVARD UNIVERSITY PRESS.

Although many societies in the Congo were once renowned for vibrant masquerades and architectural sculpture, these phenomena have only been studied as living traditions among a handful of peoples, most notably the Pende. Building on the extended fieldwork of numerous researchers since the 1950s, this text offers a unique window into the dynamic performance contexts of both masquerade and architecture in Central Africa. As much as possible, it privileges Pende voices as it seeks to understand the interrelationship between ritual practice and aesthetic form and also records how these artistic practices have responded (sometimes unpredictably) to both colonial and post-colonial pressures. Lavish illustrations feature both iconic and hitherto unpublished masterworks, which have been selected to evoke the full range of Pende expression. Annotated bibliography, 124pp, ITALY. FIVE CONTINENTS EDITIONS.