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

I had 2 interesting experiences relating to this book while I was reading it. First, I recieved a call from an Airmiles rep who spoke with a thick African accent, he had no difficulty spelling my last name. He told me he came from the Congo, previously a Belgian colony where many names start with "van", hence his ease with my name. After telling him I was reading "King Leopold's Ghost", we talked for quite some time about the state of his homeland. He remarked that the people of the Congo are in more dire straights today than when they were colonized by Belgium. He said that colonization brought many benefits such as medical care, education, and wages that were paid regularly. The present day dictatorship has all but erased these advances with selfish corruption. "Patrice" is a father of seven children, all seeking to educate themselves here in Canada. This encounter was a bit of a light bulb momment for me: reading is not just about a book or what you learn from it, it's about how it opens your world to people...
The other point of interest came on the last page of the book. The author writes, "One factor is the abysmal position of women and all of the violence, repression and prejudices that go with it." He writes this regarding the fact that Africa has not developed like many other countries that were also brutally colonized but are now democratic. For those of you who have read "Infidel", our discussion of that book included the realization that a culture/religion where women are abused, unloved & disrespected cannot thrive.
This book deserves to be read, though horrifying at times the tenacity of those advocating anti-slavery for Africa & the world came through as a light in darkness. (No pun intended, but Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" is often refered to in the book.)
For a first review I've certainly gone on for a bit, sorry!