Focusing on love"s importance to power, Hanson suggests new interpretations of the history of Buganda. She traces an African habit of thought - the idea that people ought to be tied by bonds of affection - to show how people used this idea to knot together a kingdom and criticize colonial practices of power. Scholars and students of Buganda, as well as readers intrigued by comparative study of social structure, power, and power"s practices in Africa, will find Hanson"s vital analysis extremely valuable.