Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart Book + PRICE WATCH

Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart Book

JOHN LE CARRE Quite superb…..a masterpiece WILLIAM BOYD Tim Butcher's extraordinary, audacious journey through the Congo is worthy of the great 19th century explorers. Completely enthralling but also a thoughtful and sobering portrait of modern Africa ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH A remarkable, fascinating book by a courageous and perceptive writer. One of the most exciting books to emerge from Africa in recent years. THE SUNDAY TIMES Tim Butcher’s book is the latest in a long line, running through Joseph Conrad, Graham Greene, VS Nai-paul… his account of a hair-rising trip from east to west, against all advice, by motorbike and then river boat, is gripping and harshly informative… MAX HASTINGS Blood River represents a remarkable marriage of travelogue and history, which deserves to make Tim Butcher a star for his prose, as well as his courage. THE DAILY TELEGRAPH From his adventure he has plundered a wealth of terrific stories, and survived to recite a rosary of unstinting horror. FERGAL KEANE This is a terrific book, an adventure story about a journey of great bravery in one of the world's most dangerous places. It keeps the heart beating and the attention fixed from beginning to end. HATCHARDS …unputdownable… GILES FODEN An intrepid adventure... Tim Butcher has followed in the footsteps of Stanley and Conrad. It takes a lot of guts to yomp through the Congo and he obviously has plenty of those. But it is the wit and passion of the writing which keeps you engrossed. THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH ..stirring and thought-provoking. AESTHETICA MAGAZINE ….a remarkable travelogue of exquisite proportions…. highly emotive, historical and personal…Butcher’s elegant style demands the reader’s attention…….Blood River is nothing short of a modern-day masterpiece. WANDERLUST What makes Blood River such a compelling read is the fact that the journey becomes an exercise in mental terror, the author skilfully conveying the exhaustion of six weeks on tenterhooks, wondering what might happen just around the next bend. THOMAS PAKENHAM Tim Butcher deserves a medal for this crazy feat. I marvel at his courage and his empathy with the unfortunate Congolese... ESQUIRE …gripping… TRAVEL AFRICA The past meets present in this enthralling travelogue through the depths of the Congo.Read More

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    The author set out for the Congo's eastern border with just a rucksack and a few thousand dollars hidden in his boots with the idea of recreating H M Stanley's famous expedition. This book tells of the author's journey and the story of Congo; as he made his way in an assortment of vessels including a motorbike and a dugout canoe.

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    Ever since Stanley first charted its mighty river in the 1870s the Congo has epitomised the dark and turbulent history of a failed continent - from colonial cruelty under the Belgians to the kleptocratic chaos of Mobutu Sese Seko and the current post-apocalyptic riot of robber-baron politicians. However its troubles only served to increase the interest of "Daily Telegraph" correspondent Tim Butcher who was sent to cover Africa in 2000. He remembered his mother's stories of her own genteel river journey there in the 1950s and his connection deepened when he discovered that Stanley's expedition was funded by the "Telegraph".Before long he became obsessed with the idea of recreating Stanley's original expedition - but travelling alone. Despite warnings from old Africa hands that his plan was 'suicidal' Butcher spent years poring over colonial-era maps and wooing rebel leaders before making his will and venturing to the Congo's eastern border with just a rucksack and a few thousand dollars hidden in his boots. He travelled for hundreds of kilometers on a motorbike dogged by punctured tyres broken bridges and dehydration.As he drove through the most dangerous areas he stopped only to sleep - biking through the bush for hours and speeding up every time he passed a soldier. And then he reached the legendary Congo River making his way down it in an assortment of vessels including a dugout canoe.Helped along the way by a cast of characters - from UN aid workers to a campaigning pygmy he passed through the once thriving cities of this huge country saw the marks left behind by years of abuse and misrule and followed in the footsteps of the great Victorian adventurers and of the visitors - such as Katherine Hepburn and Evelyn Waugh - who had been there in very different times. Almost 2 500 harrowing miles later he reached the Atlantic Ocean a thinner and a wiser man. His extraordinary account describes a country with more past than present where giant steamboats lie rotting in the advancing forest and children hear stories from their grandfathers of days when cars once drove by. Butcher's journey was a remarkable feat. But the story of the Congo told expertly and vividly in this book is more remarkable still.

  • 0099494280
  • 9780099494287
  • Tim Butcher
  • 3 January 2008
  • Vintage
  • Paperback (Book)
  • 272
  • Reprint

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