When Somalia became independent in 1960, there was some doubt whether it could achieve its ultimate goals of expanding into a greater Somalia and bringing together all the Somalis who had been artificially divided by colonialism. But there was no cause to expect that the opposite would occur, that the state would splinter into smaller entities, that rather than there being five points on the star (as represented on Somalia’s flag) there would not even be two. Alas, the unexpected happened, among terribly tragic circumstances, and the tragedy is still not over. It is hard to explain exactly what happened, let alone why it happened, and that is frankly not the purpose of this book. Its purpose, one it certainly does fulfill, is the broader goal of presenting the Somalis, primarily those within the bounds of the former Somali Democratic Republic but also many living further afield, and helping us understand who they are, who they were prior to the collapse of the state, and even who their ancestors were. It concedes the dark side, much of it political and economic, but also shows what is good and hopefully enduring in the culture and arts of Somalis.