Ebookwormy1's Reviews > King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa

Incredibly well written, I can see why this book was recommended by numerous people, as well as cited abundantly in other works. Adam Hochschild tells the story of the "Congo Free State" (now Democratic Republic of Congo) with striking clarity, illuminating the plot lines of the tale through it's various historical figures. As with all exceptional works, the author is weaving on so many levels that many themes converge and diverge throughout the narrative: exploration, colonialism, racism, forced labor, missionary activity, capitalism, slavery, huge population reduction, perceptions of Africa, and organized human rights abuses and the movements they ignited.

There is a lot to think about here and Hochschild offers no easy, patronizing solutions laden with his own political philosophy. Rather, he provides a journalistic accounting of the situation, in all it's complexities while highlighting the values that make the heroes heroic and the villains villainous.

The documentation of this work complements other non-fiction accounts from the Congo. From the explorations of David Livingstone, to the work of Mary Slessor, to the hospital ministry of Dr. Helen Roseveare, the investments of generations in the development of the Congo harmonize with Hochschild's chronological overview of the country from exploration to independence. To see Africa itself more broadly, Martin Meredith's "The Fate of Africa" harmonizes with Hochschild's journalistic tone and expands it's field to all countries of the continent. Finally, Hochschild's journalistic endeavor also provides balance to fictional works, such as Poisonwood Bible, that are overly colored by the perspective of their author, as opposed to the historical events and settings of the Congo.

This book is worth the read for anyone who wants to know more about history, the Congo in specific, Africa in general or the development of the human rights movement. The last chapters on the fate of the principles, comparing what happened in the Congo Free State to other jurisdictions, summarizing the complexity of the challenges, and the role technology (written press and photographs) played in the advent of the human rights movement were absolutely brilliant!

David Livingstone, Wellman, 1995
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Mary Slessor: Queen of Calabar, Wellman,
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Give me this Mountain, Roseveare, 1966
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The Fate of Africa, Martin Meredith, 2006
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Poisonwood Bible, Kingsolver, 1998
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