In this insightful and well-documented book, Daley promotes a more shaded vision on genocidal violence in Africa that moves beyond single explanatory factors like primordial hatred, ecological scarcity and greed. While she is not the first to argue for multi-dimensional and contextual interpretations of African conflicts, this case study of Burundi convincingly illustrates the necessity of such a paradigmatic shift. Grounded in a feminist, geographical tradition, Daley analyses the historical intersection of ethnicity, state formation, masculinity and militarism, contributing to exclusion and genocidal politics in Burundi. She places her analysis in the context of the colonial past, international diplomatic and military intervention, and humanitarian assistance. Daley argues that genocidal violence is explained not by ethnic strife but by the exclusive character of the state. The colonial powers played a key role in institutionalising social and ethnic differences. In the post-colonial period – when Burundi was governed by a sequence of military dictatorships – and during the democratisation process of the 1990s, this militarist and exclusionist character of the state was reinforced.

Daley manages to bring a multitude of important debates on Burundi history and politics to the attention of the reader, illustrated with many anecdotes. The book also makes a significant contribution to understanding genocidal violence, demonstrating how images of masculinity and femininity are reflected in oppressive and exclusionist politics. Daley points out how programmes for DDR, democratisation and peacebuilding can only be effective if they contribute to the structural transformations of state and society, in particular the meanings of masculinity. She shows how Western support to militarisation and African ‘strong men’ has been contra-productive in this respect.

A limitation is Daley's focus on the political elite and its motivations. A more profound analysis of what her argument implies for ‘normal’ Burundians is lacking. Little attention is given to how masculinity and militarisation work out among local community members. How is masculinity constructed in everyday life, and what does this imply for the participation of local young men in army or rebel movements? In what ways are traditional institutions masculinised? How do disputes about land, which often involve disputes about the rights of women, get interwoven with the militarisation of society? Daley's work is mainly based on a review of literature and interviews with political actors and NGOs, rather than on extended fieldwork in local communities. As such, it is a call to sociologists and anthropologists to do field research from a similar theoretical framework.

Daley is very critical of the interventions of regional bodies, the international community and humanitarian agencies, which she sees acting mostly out of their own interests, and contributing to the disempowerment and dehumanisation of Burundian citizens. Unfortunately, she is often unspecific about the aid interventions she is referring to, and fails to distinguish between humanitarian agencies, Western governments and the UN. Finally, her analysis provides little in terms of alternatives for those actors. She emphasises that peace requires a change of mindset in the region, and that better analyses are necessary. How this should be shaped in practice she does not discuss. A practical question like ‘how can women be included in making peace’, posed on the back cover, remains unanswered.