Gabon is a small country located in Central Africa, bordered by Cameroon to the north, Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, and the Republic of Congo to the east and south. The country has a land area of 267,667 square kilometers, with a population of approximately 2.2 million people. The capital city, Libreville, is situated on the coast and is the largest city in the country. Gabon's economy is heavily dependent on oil production, which accounts for approximately 80% of the country's export revenue. However, the government has made efforts in recent years to diversify the economy by encouraging investment in other sectors such as transportation, telecommunications, and tourism. Additionally, Gabon is home to a significant portion of the Congo Basin rainforest and has been recognized for its efforts to conserve and protect its natural resources. Despite challenges such as poverty and political instability, Gabon remains an important player in the region and has significant potential for economic growth and development in the future.

Millions of African Christians who consider themselves genealogical descendants of one of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel—in other words, Jewish by ethnicity, but Christian in terms of faith—are increasingly choosing a religious affiliation that honors both of these identities. Their choice: Messianic Judaism. Messianic adherents emulate the Christians of the first century, observing the Jewish commandments while also affirming the salvational grace of Yeshua (Jesus). As the first comparative ethnography of such "fulfilled Jews" on the African continent, this book presents case studies that will enrich our understanding of one of global Christianity’s most overlooked iterations.

Rodent Malaria reviews significant findings concerning malaria parasites of rodents, including their taxonomy, zoogeography, and evolution, along with life cycles and morphology; genetics and biochemistry; and concomitant infections. This volume is organized into eight chapters and begins by sketching out the history of the discovery of rodent as well as aspects of parasitology, immunology, and chemotherapy. These concepts are investigated two decades following Ignace Vincke's major discovery and Meir Yoeli's successful establishment of the method of cyclical transmission of the parasite. The following chapters focus on the taxonomy and systematics of the subgenus Vinckeia, with reference to the concepts of species and subspecies of animals and the degree to which they apply to malaria parasites, in particular to those of rodents. The discussion then shifts to how the rodent malaria parasites provide a unique insight into the subcellular organization of Plasmodium species, the use of rodent malaria as an experimental model to study immunological responses, and infectious agents that interact with malaria parasites. The book concludes with a chapter on malaria chemotherapy, with emphasis on the value of rodent malaria in antimalarial drug screening and the use of antimalarial drugs as biological probes. This book will be of interest to protozoologists and physicians as well as those from other disciplines including biochemistry, immunology, pharmacology, cell biology, and genetics.

With just 1.63m people, Gabon is the second-smallest member of the six-country Central African Economic and Monetary Community in terms of population, after Equatorial Guinea. However, the country’s well-developed hydrocarbons sector has made Gabon the second-largest economy in the sub-region. The economy of Gabon has largely developed on the back of the country’s substantial oil and gas resources; however, declining production levels are leading the government to pursue a strategy of economic diversification. While efforts to encourage new investment and offshore oil exploration may yet yield results, the development of other industries, including forestry and mining, is being encouraged. Meanwhile, like many African countries, Gabon is working to ensure that a larger percentage of natural resource wealth is channelled into the national economy.

Wisdom and Initiation in Gabon: A Philosophical Analysis of Fang Tales, Myths, and Legends is a study of the philosophical significance of Fang mythology and the rituals of Initiation that lead to Wisdom. Bonaventure Mvé Ondo argues that Fang tales, myths, and legends are components of the foundation of a worldview that sustains and protects a unique, historical Fang identity. For Mvé Ondo, the contemporary challenges to the existence and identity of the Fang require, perhaps more than ever, recognition of the central role of mythology. At an historical moment when Africans are faced with the challenges of westernization, the metaphysics of the Fang, illustrated and preserved by tales, myths, and legends, is a critical element of Fang survival. Mythology is far more than a collection of amusing or awe inspiring stories, they are profoundly important moral lessons for the Fang in their continuing encounters with such contemporary challenges as materialism and, as the “stories” in this book illustrate, the constant struggle to live lives of purpose and meaning. For Mvé Ondo, the critical, central issue for the Fang is to focus on the distinction at the heart of his analysis, i.e., the crucial distinction between “to have” and to “to be.” The lessons transmitted from generation to generation by these marvelous stories are, Mvé Ondo argues, central to living lives that reflect and perpetuate the eternal truths of the Fang experience.

Women Writers of Gabon: Literature and Herstory demonstrates how the invisibility of women (historically, politically, cross-culturally, etc.) has led to the omission of Gabon’s literature from the African canon, but it also discusses in depth the unique elements of Gabonese women’s writing that show it is worthy of critical recognition and that prove why Gabonese women writers must be considered a major force in African literature. This book is the only book-length critical study of Gabonese literature that exists in English and although there are titles in French that provide analyses of the works of Gabonese women writers, no one work is comprehensive nor is the history of women’s writing in Gabon considered in the such a manner. Throughout the various chapters, the book explores, among other things, contributions that are unique to Gabonese women writers such as: definitions of African feminisms as they pertain to Gabonese society, the rewriting of oral histories, rituals, and traditions of the Fang ethnic group, one of the first introductions of same-sex couples in African Francophone literature, discussions on the impact of witchcraft on development, and the appropriating of the epic poetry known as the mvet by women writers. The chapters explore works by all major voices in Gabonese women’s writing including Angèle Rawiri, Justine Mintsa, Sylvie Ntsame, Honorine Ngou, and Chantal Magalie Mbazoo-Kassa and the book concludes with brief introductions of a younger generation of Gabonese women writers such as Edna Merey-Apinda, Alice Endamne, Nadia Origo, Miryl Eteno, and Elisabeth Aworet among others.