The first volume of this work, subtitled The Anatomy of an Explosion, 1950-1962,described the background and the first two years of the armed struggle for Angolan independence. It was published in 1969, and left its readers eagerly awaiting the sequel. Thus, a reviewer in the Journal of Modern African Studieswrote that "...this volume was a joy to read. Its contribution to a fuller understanding of Portuguese Africa is immense, especially in light...