Sunjata is a major African oral epic which details the exploits of its eponymous hero who started life as a gluttonous and slow-witted child and went on to defeat his greatest adversary and establish himself as master of the growing Mali empire. The tale remains central to the culture of the Mande-speaking peoples. This Penguin Classics edition contains two very different renditions of the tale, which have been transcribed and then translated from live performances by African Griots or bards.

This edition is fully edited, with an introduction, explanatory notes, maps and chronological trees.