BOOK REVIEWS 1034. AGE : Zero renguvaTranslation must make sense and represent the customary usage of the naturallanguage; zero renguva is too literal and meaningless.5. FAITH : RutendoThe noun is from the verb kutenda (to thank); and rutendo means gratitudeand not faith.6. COMMUNION : ChidyoThe noun chidyo is from the verb kudya (to eat). Chidyo, unqualified,means anything that is edible; and that is not the idea of communion.7. FULLNESS : Kuzara kwaMwariThis does not make sense and does not represent the customary usage of thelanguage.8. LOVE : Mwari vanhu vatatu vakabatanidzwapamwe chete norudoVanhu vatatu means three human beings and so the sentence means, 'God isthree persons bound together by love.' This is not what the Trinity means.Even the Shona do not regard Mwari as munhu.I have just picked on a few of the thirty words translated by Mutyandasvika,and there are others that do not meet the criteria of a good translation.According to Nida, there are three basic requirements that a translator needsto satisfy in order to obtain the closest equivalent in translation: The trans-lation must represent the customary usage of the natural language; it mustmake sense; and it must conform to the meaning of the original. Neverthelessthis is a highly commendable attempt which should receive encouragement fromBible readers.University of Zimbabwe J. C. KUMBIRAIMuseum Memoir No. 9: Check List and Atlas of the Mammals of ZimbabweRhodesia By Reay H. N. Smithers and V. J. Wilson. Salisbury, NationalMuseums and Monuments, 1979, 193pp., ZS12.00.This book is more than a mere checklist, if by that term one understandsmerely a recital of names, dates and geographical locations relating to recordsof the mammalian fauna of Zimbabwe. It includes for each species named amap and explanatory text of its distribution as well as descriptions ofhabitats and habits, foodstuffs taken and breeding patterns.The presentation, including the chosen typefaces, is pleasing and clearwith taxonomic headings well differentiated by the size and boldness of thetype. The maps of distribution, however, are so reduced for printing that amagnifying glass becomes almost essential for the reading of place-names.Illustrations are limited to a few skulls and osteological details of systematicvalue, Indexing of both the common and scientific names of the species isprovided, with the additional advantage that both generic and specific namesare indexed separately.104 BOOK REVIEWSThe authors cannot be faulted on their selection of species to include,having taken every precaution to exclude unreliable observations. They havealso, thoughtfully, appended a short list of animals which might be expectedto occur here, on the grounds of their known proximity, although not yetreliably recorded within the borders of Zimbabwe.It is difficult to recommend this book to any particular reader. As achecklist alone it has value to the specialist who would, however, have accessto scientific literature for ecological and other information. The more generalinformation included about each species would be of value to the amateurnaturalist and conservationist, but the format does not render this a con-venient book for the identification of animals in the field, on several grounds.The book (19 X 25cm) is not of a handy size for the pocket of a bushwalker;nor does it carry illustrations of the animals. The keys which are included foridentification of species are fragmented throughout, so that, for example, onecannot identify his mouse unless he can already identify it to Family at sightand so find the entry to the keys on page 155.If the book was aimed at the wider readership, as one would hope of a.work from this particular publisher, it would have been much improved bythe addition of an identifying key system integrated in one place Š preferablyat the beginning.Descriptions are often vague, although this is a common fault andespecially so when colour is the subject. What, for example, is a 'buffytinged ochraceous colour'?Otherwise, without in any way detracting from the overall great value ofthis work, a critical reader might be irritated by the writing style which isinconsistent, and by the use of clumsy phraseology which seems to indicatea lack of care in preparation or in editing. This reviewer has a personal dis-like of phrases such as 'up to about 60 or more' which could be rewordedmore precisely.University of Zimbabwe A. S. ROEBUCKtDarkness and Dawn in Zimbabwe By H. P. Elliott. London, GrosvenorBooks, 1978, 49pp., £0.65.Fear and Fun Š Rhodesian Recollections By Kachengere (R. H. Lees).[Plymouth?], privately, 1978, 184pp., no price indicated.Both of these books are of true stories but very different in character.The first is about people working for peace and understanding in acountry divided by political strife and an escalating war in 1978. The purposeis to show that God has inspired a plan for the solution of political problems. ,While the sentiments are unexceptional the stories do not ring true; theirmessage is simplistic and seems to derive from Moral Rearmament.The second is a collection of reminiscences about the author's youth nearBulawayo and then on the Copperbelt and in Lusaka. The stories are slightbut told in an interesting and unpretentious manner; their main focus ishunting and natural history but there are also useful sidelights on the socialhistory of European society in the difficult years of the inter-war period.R.S.R.