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Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart | 
 enlarge | Author: Tim Butcher
Publisher: Vintage
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
Buy New: £1.46
You Save: £6.53 (82%)
New (32) Used (19) Collectible (1) from £1.46
Rating:  71 reviews
Sales Rank: 395
Media: Paperback
Pages: 272
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5 x 1
ISBN: 0099494280
EAN: 9780099494287
ASIN: 0099494280
Publication Date: January 3, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: UK SELLER_IN STOCK_Immediate Dispatch _ Protective packing_ Tel 01908 584 386 Cover may vary
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk
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.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
 Gripping and relevant March 16, 2008
Michael Faulkner (Strangford Lough, N. Ireland)
29 out of 36 found this review helpful
As a fan of writers like Jonathan Raban and Simon Winchester, who weave historical narrative into their own personal quests and journeys, I sent for Blood River after catching the tail end of a radio interview in which Tim Butcher described the various strands which run in parallel through his book.
I found it a compelling and satisfying read. There is the central account of the author's apparently impulsive decision to travel, against all advice, through the Republic of Congo in the first place, while it is in an on/off state of civil war; the lives of the equally intrepid Victorian adventurers who went before him; and as backdrop, the grindingly bleak and heartbreaking history of colonial, post colonial and present-day Congo. Three stories for the price of one - four if you count the heavy-hearted journey through the Congo in the late 1950's, after disappointment in love, of the author's mother.
Butcher's prose style, as you'd expect from a seasoned journalist, is crisp, economical and forward-flowing; but he is not afraid to share his vulnerabilities and his (abundantly justified) fear of what might easily have lain ahead at any point on the journey - `objective dangers', as he calls them, over which he had little control. I warmed to him for that, and for his empathy towards the ordinary Congolese he encounters: for me, they are the heroes of the story, helpless victims of an endless cycle of exploitation, violence and political bankruptcy.
Blood River is a gripping story well told; but beyond that, unlike some have-the-adventure-to-write-the-book yarns, it is highly relevant and by rights should tweak the conscience of those of us in the developed world who looked the other way.
An excellent account of an amazing journey January 10, 2008
Alastair Leithead (Kabul)
42 out of 53 found this review helpful
I was thoroughly captivated by this fabulous first hand account of an astonishing journey. I have worked in Africa and know how dangerous this kind of trip can be - it was both brave and insane, but makes for gripping reading. I was fascinated by the idea of the jungle claiming back all the development and was surprised to hear just what the Congo was like when the author's mother made her heartbroken cruise. There was a real passion about the writing which not only brought home the starkness of the lower times, but the excitement of the mission. I would recommend this to anyone (and have!)
A gripping January 8, 2008
D. D. S. Waghorn
25 out of 33 found this review helpful
I cannot remember a book I so looked forward to getting back to and which I was so sad to finish. It is an unputdownable story of lunatic bravery told with disarming honesty and frank humour. Frustrated with the difficulty of reporting the Congo on his first assigment there, the author becomes obsessed with embarking on one of the world's most dangerous journeys, retracing the route of Victorian explorer H.M Stanley along the length of the Congo, despite ample advice not to. It combines history and travel writing with a gripping tale of risk and adventure. But what makes it so compelling is the author's passion for the Congo and his empathy with the people he meets on the way, individuals trapped in a land of terrifying and gruesome decline.
An exceptional book January 4, 2008
J. Cox (Kent, England)
26 out of 36 found this review helpful
This is a remarkably captivating book, written with passion and a fine eye for detail. Both informative and entertaining, the book arouses strong emotions in the reader. It is impossible not to feel pity and despair in equal measures for the poor people of the Congo, who, as Tim Butcher points out, must be the only people on the planet whose standard of living has markedly deteriorated over the decades. The Western World has either turned a blind eye to, or its back on, the region, allowing the forces of darkness to reign. That Mr Butcher should even contemplate a trip across this benighted terrain is extraordinary enough - and some would say he was mad in attempting to retrace Stanley's footsteps - that he lived to tell the tale is verging on the incredible. I take my hat off to him and urge anyone with at least an inkling of compassion for downtrodden peoples and a taste for literary adventure to buy this quite exceptional book.
Book of the year July 15, 2007
Nick Sessions (UK)
16 out of 22 found this review helpful
I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone with half an interest in the area or travel writing in general. It motors along like it was written by Andy McNabb's brainier elder brother but it's also worth reading because it is the kind of journey most people with any choice would avoid. Because Butcher was bothered and brave enough to make the journey though, you get a real sense of the practical, everyday difficulties faced by the people he meets.
While these aren't under-estimated, Butcher's descriptions of the obstacles he comes across counteracts all the dark heart fatalism this part of Africa can attract. He manages to give you a sense of the scale of the challenges confronting the country at the same time as demystifying them. He doesn't offer a diagnosis but he does at least take the temperature. Read it.
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