Perfect, David: "Historical Dictionary of the Gambia, 5th ed."(Book review)

• Author: Ceesay, Hassoum

Perfect, David. Historical Dictionary of The Gambia (fifth edition). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2016.

Once touted as an oasis of democracy and good governance during its first 30 years of independence from the United Kingdom on 18 February 1965, The Gambia has experienced authoritarian rule and human rights violations since Yahya Jammeh came to power in 1994. David Perfect, a researcher at the University of Chester in the United Kingdom, contends that Jammeh has crushed all "challenges posed by the opposition political parties and has managed to avoid being overthrown by force," which has allowed him to remain the undisputed ruler of The Gambia (p. 21). This antipodal experience of Gambian history is well-captured in this edition of the Historical Dictionary of The Gambia. The book provides the most up-to-date reference material on people, places, and events in this small West African country, from antiquity to the present. Its goal is to provide a dependable source of facts and figures about Gambian history. Unfortunately, even before the book rolled off the press certain entries already need to be updated. Entries such as...