Product Description

Faced with an identity crisis in his work and his life, seasoned traveler and journalist Jeffrey Tayler made a bold decision. He would leave behind his mundane existence in Moscow to re-create the legendary British explorer Henry Stanley’s trip down the Congo in a dugout canoe, stocked with food, medicine, and even a gun-toting guide. But once his tiny boat pushed off the banks of this mysterious river, Tayler realized he was in a place where maps and supplies would have no bearing on his survival. As Tayler navigates this immense waterway, he encounters a land of smothering heat and intense rains, wary villagers, corrupt officials and dead-eyed soldiers demanding bribes, jungle animals, mosquitoes, and, surprisingly, breathtaking natural beauty.

Filled with honesty and rich description, Facing the Congo is a sophisticated depiction of today’s Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country brought to its knees by a succession of despotic leaders. But most mportant, Tayler’s stunning narrative is a deeply satisfying personal journey of fear and awakening, with a message that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt compelled, whether in life or in fantasy, to truly explore and experience our world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #133057 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-09
• Released on: 2001-10-09
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Inside Flap Copy
Faced with an identity crisis in his work and his life, seasoned traveler and journalist Jeffrey Tayler made a bold decision. He would leave behind his mundane existence in Moscow to re-create the legendary British explorer Henry Stanley?s trip down the Congo in a dugout canoe, stocked with food, medicine, and even a gun-toting guide. But once his tiny boat pushed off the banks of this mysterious river, Tayler realized he was in a place where maps and supplies would have no bearing on his survival. As Tayler navigates this immense waterway, he encounters a land of smothering heat and intense rains, wary villagers, corrupt officials and dead-eyed soldiers demanding bribes, jungle animals, mosquitoes, and, surprisingly, breathtaking natural beauty.

Filled with honesty and rich description, Facing the Congo is a sophisticated depiction of today?s Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country brought to its knees by a succession of despotic leaders. But most mportant, Tayler?s stunning narrative is a deeply satisfying personal journey of fear and awakening, with a message that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt compelled, whether in life or in fantasy, to truly explore and experience our world.

From the Back Cover
“One of the best travel books of 2000.”
—The New York Times Book Review

“Heart-stopping, breathtaking adventure. Facing the Congo is a book worth reading and rereading.”
—Morning Edition, National Public Radio

“Facing the Congo does what a travel book is supposed to do. It presents a vividly described world that brings the reader as close to the Congo as words can do, inspiring the type of wanderlust that can only be sated by one’s picking a spot on a map and just going.”
—CNN.com

“Tayler goes off the beaten path to give us a much deeper version of the truth, and unlike so many other gonzo travel writers, he is not politically naïve.”
—Robert Kaplan, author of Balkan Ghosts

About the Author
JEFFREY TAYLER is the author of Siberian Dawn: A Journey Across the New Russia. He writes for Condé Nast Traveler, Spin, Harper’s, and other publications and is a commentator on NPR’s All Things Considered. Two of his essays appear in the inaugural edition of The Best American Travel Writing. He lives in Russia.

Customer Reviews

Honestly?
This is an interesting story but it reads like an unfinished story. When Tayler's guide Desi falls ill the trip comes to a screeching halt. Was Desi really ill or was he merely demoralized and if so why? Or was he faking illness(he springs right back as soon as he boards the barge)? No matter. Did the author really have no choice but to abandon his quest after the first sign of trouble and danger - real or perceived? Couldn't he have procured a substitute guide at one of numerous riverine villages or a town? Didn't Henry Morton Stanley warn him enough of the dangers he would face? Was the pull of Tatyana and the crisp air of Moscow so irresistible after so many days of heat, humidity, bugs and hostilities? I was deeply disappointed at the abrupt end to the story. It is one thing for Tayler to paddle down the Congo river or any river on earth but as a reader I expected more after having followed him over 250 pages of his travelogue. Was the story worth writing? Obviously the answer to this question is 'yes' - the book is written. Was it worth reading? Here the answer is also affirmative. There is much to be gleaned from his encounters with the army, security, police and other forms of thuggery for anyone crazy enough to retrace his steps or even go beyond and actually complete it - in person. His description of the beach scene when he first arrives in Kinshasa is memorable if gut-wrenching. There is much to ponder about the glimpse of the welcome and the abundance of hostilities. Is the authhor exaggerating the latter to justify abandoning what he set out to do? And was he too paranoid to see much of the former? If nothing else the book shows the anxiety and trepidation that will surely visit a mere mortal traveler off the beaten path and the toll they take on one's psyche.
Tayler's quest for traveling the length of the river both up and down is no doubt greatly facilitated by an army officer whose motives in lending him help remain mysterious. Whatever the motives, such help may have come at a price even when no money is demanded. Left to his own device Taylor may have been more motivated to reach out and connect with the fellow travelers on the way up the Congo river from whom he may have gotten a better sence of what to expect and how to prepare himself for his trip down.

Read After "The Heart of Darkness"
Tayler's subtitle puts it in perspective.

This is the story of a modern traveler taking on a part of the Congo River in recent times, the bigger story is its comparison with Joseph Conrad's "The Heart of Darkness". Conrad's 1890's short novel sets the stage for Tayler's update of conditions in equatorial Congo. Without Conrad's work, Tayler's book is merely an interesting travel adventure. If Tayler makes you uneasy, Conrad will make you gasp.

Next best thing to a Congo journey
If you can't afford a trip to the Congo, this book is the next best thing. Tayler's descriptions are excellent, and they combine just the right measures of knowledge and fascinated innocence. What struck me most was how little Brazzaville had changed in the ten years since I lived there.