The Parachute Drop was written by the slain Burkinabe journalist and novelist Norbert Zongo. The novel tells the story of a corrupt African dictator toppled in a coup d'etat, who seeks to restore his presidency. In his preface, Zongo describes how he was arrested and beaten for writing this novel. Zongo was assassinated in 1998 for his journalism, which criticized Burkina Faso's president Blaise Compaore. Christopher Wise is the author of the introduction and the translator of the novel from French.