This work is a fascinating hybrid. The first half (pp. 1–240) comprises an updated version of Madagascar Rediscovered, published by the same author in 1978, covering the history of Madagascar from a British perspective up to the French conquest of 1895. The justification for the 1978 work was twofold: the sparsity of modern literature in English on the history of Madagascar and the considerable, yet underrated, British influence there prior to 1895. The title of the book currently under review indicates a much more ambitious aim – that of presenting a general history of Madagascar. In this light, the revision only partially rectifies the bias of Madagascar Rediscovered.