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Robert Bates, who is one of my favorite authors on all things post-independence Africa, wrote a great book, When Things Fell Apart: State Failure in Late-Century Africa. He doesn't talk extensively about Benin but it seems like whenever he does he cites Christopher Allen's Benin/the Congo/Burkina Faso: Economics, Politics and Society.

I know you're looking for more recent stuff but I've read bits and pieces of Slavery, Colonialism and Economic Growth in Dahomey, 1640-1960.

Hope that helps. Safe travels and enjoy your time there.

I learned a lot about the genocide after running across this graphic novel almost twenty years ago, which is amazing and horrifying: https://www.amazon.com/Deogratias-Tale-Rwanda-J-P-Stassen/dp/1596431032

I think about it a lot. Not the graphic novel, but all the information about the Rwandan Genocide I looked up in the years after. It burned its way into my psyche, though I can't even imagine what it would be like as a person from that part of the world.

Informing my young self about these events showed me how deeply colonialism wounded the world, and how it's still infecting so many things. More people should be educated on it early on, especially in the west. Every year I see blatant signs that, for the western world anyway, "Never Again" was at best a well-meaning lie. I don't pray, but I will always hope that Rwanda's wounds are healing as much as they can.

Pakenham has a GREAT book on Baobabs.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Remarkable-Baobab-Thomas-Pakenham/dp/0393059898

Confidential and trustworthy sources tell me they are giant nuclear powered trees, so we have that going for us, which is nice.

Not sure if this is what you are after I have always found the aid situation quite interesting. I'm trying to track down the books I have read [aid and other dirty business] (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Aid-Other-Dirty-Business-Intentions/dp/0091914353) and [dead aid] (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dead-Aid-working-another-Africa/dp/0141031182/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y/277-5170026-2328035) there are many others.
There was one more that I really liked but can't think of the name. anyway they all give quite a good overview about the continent and the cultures and their histories as well as western influence.

Obviously there's Arabic but there's a bunch of other scripts : https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Writing_systems_of_Africa

There's no such thing as "truthful history" because history is always viewed through a prism, but I've heard good things about John Reader's Biography of the Continent:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/067973869X/ref=pd_aw_sim_sbs_14_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=ZC56YTYN2PH4VYTDAQCT&dpPl=1&dpID=51vnkPaUS6L

Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles was a good book on post-independence Africa. Has a good treatment of Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone, Congo, and Nigeria.

Martin Meredith is a great source for African issues. The Fate of Africa is pan-African, but he covers Benin and Kerekou a bit. Might be worth checking out.

The State of Africa by Martin Meredith is a great place to start. Gives you a fairly comprehensive overview of how countries in Africa transitioned to independence, and the problems that arose therein. Will really help you understand the complexities in different regions and gives perspective regarding current-day conflicts.

https://www.amazon.com/Black-Africa-Economic-Cultural-Federated/dp/1556520611

Read that book. Its described when diop talks about repopulating Africa to pre genocide rates.

On the same token... how about you provide some coruces. Lol only when black people make counter claims to white historic opinions are we "forced" to provide a source. Notice how you never sourced any of your claims.

I found Africa Rising interesting.