Facing the Congo : A Modern-Day Journey into the Heart of Darkness

by Jeffrey Tayler

Release Date: 09 October, 2001

Edition: Paperback

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Honest

Having lived along the Oubangui River (just a pirogue ride to Zaire) at about the same time that the author undertook his journey along the Congo, reading this brought back a lot of memories. I probably rated higher for nostalgia, so take the rating with a grain of salt. What I admired most about this book was the honesty that Mr. Tayler brought to it. He knows that he is a privileged, white (yes, it does matter) guy undertaking a journey for purely selfish interests among people who are literally dying around him that cannot understand the absurdity of the journey and he knows that he will never be able to explain it to them. I found it refreshing that this writer writes as much about his struggles each day with weighing these thoughts against the simple desire to complete the voyage. There's a lot to learn in this book about balancing one's selfish goals against the guilt that can come with the simple ability (financial and otherwise) to undertake them. The fact that he does so without the typical (I'm an RPCV, so I can say this) Peace-Corps-type bravado is refreshing. I won't give away the ending, but Mr. Tayler's decision allows him to face a lot more than the Congo.

Vivid portrait of a tragic country

Jeffrey Tayler, an American ex-pat. living in Moscow, decided, somewhat on a whim, to be the first non-African since Henry Stanley,to navigate a treacherous and long stretch of the Congo River. A bit naively, he seemed to think that he could do this on his own. As soon as he arrived in Zaire, a barely functioning country, he quickly discovered that his journey could not be undertaken alone and would be far more demanding thean he ever dreamed. Facing the Congo is the story of Tayler's adventure in the country then known as Zaire .And what a story it is! Difficult to put down and exceptionally well written, this book, like the best of travel writing,both entertains and educates. You come away from this book with a feeling of profound sadness over the plight of the average Congolese and the tragic waste of the energies and talents of an entire generation of people in the Mobutu era. Tayler arrived in Zaire a rather naive young man and left much wiser and definitely more humble. The reader will do the same. This is really an excellent book.