Mention Regarding Books Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart
| Title | : | Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart |
| Author | : | Tim Butcher |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Special Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 363 pages |
| Published | : | January 3rd 2008 by Vintage Publishing (first published July 3rd 2007) |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Travel. European Literature. German Literature. Literature |
Tim Butcher
Paperback | Pages: 363 pages Rating: 4.05 | 7084 Users | 644 Reviews
Interpretation In Pursuance Of Books Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart
A compulsively readable account of a journey to the Congo — a country virtually inaccessible to the outside world — vividly told by a daring and adventurous journalist. Ever since Stanley first charted its mighty river in the 1870s, the Congo has epitomized the dark and turbulent history of a failed continent. However, its troubles only served to increase the interest of Daily Telegraph correspondent Tim Butcher, who was sent to cover Africa in 2000. Before long he became obsessed with the idea of recreating Stanley’s original expedition — but travelling alone. Despite warnings Butcher spent years poring over colonial-era maps and wooing rebel leaders before making his will and venturing to the Congo’s eastern border. He passed through once thriving cities of this country and saw the marks left behind by years of abuse and misrule. Almost, 2,500 harrowing miles later, he reached the Atlantic Ocean, a thinner and a wiser man. Butcher’s journey was a remarkable feat. But the story of the Congo, vividly told in Blood River, is more remarkable still. From the Hardcover edition.
Details Books During Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart
| Original Title: | Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart |
| ISBN: | 0099494280 (ISBN13: 9780099494287) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Characters: | Henry Morton Stanley |
| Setting: | Congo, Democratic Republic of the (Congo, the Democratic Republic of the) |
| Literary Awards: | Ryszard Kapuściński Prize Nominee (2009), Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction Nominee (2008), Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year Nominee (2008) |
Rating Regarding Books Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart
Ratings: 4.05 From 7084 Users | 644 ReviewsAssess Regarding Books Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart
Inspired by Stanley, in 2004 journalist Tim Butcher decided to retrace his steps and follow the River Congo through the heart of Africa. The resulting book is part travelogue, part history, and completely riveting. Along the way he meets some fascinating people and has some quite scary adventures (Mr Butcher is clearly a lot braver than I am!!). He also writes about the Congos history, and how its violent colonial past has impacted on its present state: corruption, lawlessness, poverty, aI love travel books in general and liked this one in particular as this is not simply cultural exposure but rather a combination of history, politics and adventure faced by the author.Tim Butchers book was a very insightful and vivid writing about the authors promise to follow Stanleys footsteps and trek across the DRC. Great reading and learning about the history of this country and about the adventure that Butcher had there. His account shows the backward spiral that this country, full of
I might have read it if I hadn't first encountered it being proselytized on Listopias first. That left a nasty first impression.And most books don't get a second impression.
Some years ago I came across the term resource curse, "the paradox that countries with an abundance of natural resources, specifically non-renewable resources like minerals and fuels, tend to have less economic growth, less democracy, and worse development outcomes than countries with fewer natural resources" (thank you wikipedia). Perhaps the most obvious example of resource curse is the Democratic Republic of Congo. The DRC is insanely rich in mineral wealth and yet one of the poorest and most
I am going to preface this review by stating that the most exotic place I've ever been is probably Hawaii, and so I should not cast stones. That being said, the book was kind of disappointing. I was expecting something akin to Lost City of Z but instead I got a story that should have been entitled "It's Really Hot and This Place Sucks". I get that maybe the Congo is one of the worst countries in the world, but I guess I wouldn't have expected an Africa correspondent to be so incredibly whiny.
In 2004 journalist and historian Tim Butcher set out to retrace the 1874-77 route of legendary explorer Henry Morton Stanley (of "Dr. Livingstone, I presume" fame) across the Congo to the mouth of the river on Africa's west coast. A few years ago I read King Leopold's Ghost which spells out the horrifying years of King Leopold of Belgium's rape of the region. The history presented in this book largely picks up where that one left off, with the 1908 Belgian annexation of the region which was
What is it with me and muggy, hot, equatorial places and rivers? Like the book The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann, Blood River recounts the tale of Tim Butcher's crazy obsession to the trace the routes of a great explorer, Stanley in this case, through the Congo. While the rest of the world has become more accessible in the past half century, these two equatorial locales on different continents show that winning a battle (finding a route, establishing a
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