Blood River: A journey to Africa's Broken Heart

Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart is first published in 2007 and is written by the British journalist and writer Tim Butcher. Butcher has been an African foreign correspondent for the British newspaper the Daily Telegraph. The book follows him recreating the expedition of explorer H. M. Stanley. Stanley’s mission was to map Central African Great Lakes and rivers. The book not only tells about Butcher’s journey discovering the Congo River but also the story of the Congo.

After Tim Butcher was sent to Africa in 2000 he became obsessed with the legendary Congo River, and the idea of recreating Stanley’s famous expedition. Everyone told him his plan was impossible and suicidal. His mother was actually his first point of research, she was raised in the Colonies and hadtraveledacross Congo in 1953. He did a few years of good research and contacted missionaries, aid agencies, diplomats and mercenaries.

In 2004 the journey could begin. Tim Butcher lived in Johannesburg and had a flight from there to Lubumbashi. From here hetraveledtoKalemiewhich is near Lake Tanganyika. This is really close to where Stanley came in the Congo. Butchertraveledby motorbike, dugout canoe, UN motorboat and helicopter and this took him 44 days from Lake Tanganyika to the Atlantic Ocean. Back in 1876 it took Stanley 999 days to complete his journey. Butcher describes in his book the gripping history of the Congo. He tells about Stanley’s journey and about the Belgian colonialism. In the first part of the book he travels to eastern Congo which is particularly devastated by the civil war. Butcher self said this wasn’t an adventures trip but one of surviving. He had to deal witch unreliable bikes, colonies of ants, contaminated fuel, rebel troops and government soldiers. He had to survive on the local diet of cassava and not enough water. On the river it was hot and he had to be careful for the crocodiles and other insects.

He alternated the history of the Congo with Stanley’s journey and his own journey, this made enjoyable to read the book. I am really impressed with the courage he had to replicate Stanley’s journey. He described Africa’s problems from a different perspective in a clear and academic way. You could say he was insane to make the trip, but he sure did write a really good book about it.