Rating: 
Summary: A page-turner!
Review: 'Facing the Congo' is a remarkable story of survival and adventure. And unlike many a travelogue, it is an exceptionally good read. American journalist and Peace Corps veteran living in Moscow, Jeffrey Tayler, reached his thirty-third year with a gnawing sense of despair. Who am I and what have I achieved in this life? Sinking into an ever-darkening pit of meaninglessness, he decided that only monumental action could lead to answers. A more monumental task than his couldn't have been found. To traverse the length of the Congo River in a dugout canoe. The second 'white' ever to attempt such madness, Henry Morton Stanley being the first.
For both book and trip, Tayler sure did his homework. In the first part, Tayler's elaborations on what drove him to such a rash act are fascinating to mull over, even if not entirely believable. Lost in a malaise of trying 'to find himself,' Tayler hopes that his journey will give him a raison d'etre. One that he hasn't found in Moscow. Months of assiduous planning pass by and then d-day hits as his plane cuts through equatorial mists above the chaos of Kinshasa, Zaire.
In lucid and gripping prose, Tayler takes us along as he soon finds himself in world that no amount of study could prepare him for. Beer-sotted, ganja-dazed soldiers nervously fondling their FAL rifles, shrieking vendors hawking everything from smoked monkey to palm grubs and shady, sunglassed characters of Zaire's secret police--SNIP--always demanding their 'matabitche.' Tayler does an amazing job in recreating this world of chilling chaos, where every 'mondele' is suspect. Catching a ride upriver with one of Mobotu's cronies, Tayler muses on the descent that awaits him. Either alone or with a guide, he is determined to make it.
The second half, while not as insightful as the first, puts the reader right beside Tayler. The vivid descriptions of mosquito storms, giant beetles and electrocuting catfish make you marvel at Tayler's endurance. And perhaps where the narrative succeeds most is where it recreates the atmosphere of fear that haunted Tayler during the whole journey. The fruit of a murderous Belgian past comes to bear as Tayler soon realizes his white skin makes him an instant threat, an easy target. Something to be feared, hated and possibly killed.
Refreshing honest, Tayler does reflect on the futility of his journey, but I kept asking for more. What drew me to the book in the first place was it's claim of self-discovery through trial. Yet, Tayler keeps you so engaged with his arduous trials that he leaves little or no space for self-reflection. Fully aware of the resentment around him on account of his color, Tayler leaves out the irony of it all. The spoiled Westerner goes to Africa to sort himself out, creating a drama where the 'mondele' directs and the locals do the dirty work.....guiding, paddling, portering, suffering, starving.....Not much has changed since Kurtz and Stanley. The lone white man willing his mission on the confused and exasperated natives, who yearn only to fill their bellies. Tayler hints at the shame he feels, but he leaves it at that. Understandable, as he too was struggling just to see the next sunrise. Yet, all the while I was waiting for 'extrapolation' (one of Tayler's favorite words) of the journey itself. Of the 'denouement' he wanted so desparately to find. Instead, he ends with a clichéd maxim: 'The best we can do is exorcise our demons through action.' True....but a little more 'extrapolation,' please.
Tayler's command of language can't be questionned. He knows his stuff. The sentences flow unto each other like the river itself, carrying you to the end before you even know it. But as one reviewer hinted, Tayler opened his Roget's once too often. Whereas a simpler, more every-day vocabulary would have more than sufficed to tell his tale, Tayler bombards you with the heavy artillery. Sebaceous...carapace...zetor...pettifogging, Tayler was definitely out to prove something.
Despite his occasional verbal over-kill, the author deserves our kudos. Firstly, for attempting such an insane test of will and perseverance. Secondly, for surviving it and keeping his crew in one piece. And thirdly, for writing such a gripping account of it. Not only can I highly recommend 'Facing the Congo' to all travellers--armchair or not--but also, it's a must read for those interested in putting their own private 'congos' to the page. Tayler provides a fine model on how to write a page-turning travelogue. So, grab your paddle and surrender to the river!
Rating:
Summary: Great story, but...
Review: ...at times Facing the Congo is an annoying read. I think the author is needlessly "wordy" in his writing. OK Mr. Taylor, we get it, you are a human thesaurus. Maybe I'm just being "saturnine," who knows. The author also takes it for granted that the reader speaks French and Lingala. Many times the reader is given absolutely no clue (literal translations or indicators within the text itself) as to the meaning of French and Lingala words used.But, I still give the book four stars because the story is just that good. It is exciting and the author does a great job with imagery. I know in the future I will read Facing the Congo many times.
Rating:
Summary: I'm Not Going There
Review: A good book. I had to put it down several times because the author's descriptions of his dealings with the Mobutu soldiers or the SNIP (Service national de investigation et protection) or just hungry people was too much for me to handle without pausing for reflecton. A better review than mine is John M. Crespi from Manhattan, KS United States, 10 June 02. All I can say further is, I will never, ever volunteer to go to the congo.
Rating:
Summary: Obsession
Review: Great read. How many others have tried this and simply disappeared because of the many dangers along the way?
Rating:
Summary: Honest
Review: 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.
Rating:
Summary: Honest
Review: 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.
Rating: 
Summary: An awesome adventure few will ever partake of
Review: I found the book to be an exciting, interesting, quick read. It helps to be somewhat familiar with The Democratic Republic of Congo, especially the Colonial-inflicted brutality the people endured.Taylor writes from the heart. You feel his fear, his frustration, his wonder, his regret as he winds his way through the waters. I'm grateful to him for his journey. You feel as if you are tagging along while enjoying the comforts we of the industrialized world too often take for granted.
Rating:
Summary: Gave me nightmares! I loved it!
Review: I love this book because it wasn't sugar coated. I had nightmares about the Congo while I was reading this book, and I still find myself thinking about Desi and the other characters. I love non-fiction travel books and this one didn't let me down. If you like a Walk in the Woods (without the comedy) you'll love this book.
Rating:
Summary: Great Read!
Review: I love travel books, and this one didn't let me down. I loved the fact that this book wasn't sugar coated. I felt he was telling the true grit of his experience in the Congo. I bought this book because the cover drew me in, and boy was I surprised by how it held me in it's grips to the end. I had nightmares about this book, and I still catch my self thinking about Desi and the other characters. If you love non-fiction travel books, like A Walk in the Woods, without the comedy, you'll love Facing the Congo.
Rating: 
Summary: A Let Down
Review: I loved the first chapter of this book, the philosophizing about the brevity of life and making something of it, but once he got to Africa (Zaire), his choice of destinations seemed a poor one. Not because of the life threatening dangers, but because there seemed to be no point in facing them beyond the mere act of facing them. Lewis and Clarke had a mission. Their journals are full of awe and respect and love of what they were doing. Mr. Tayler's book lacked in these things. It was filled mostly with fear and shaking of his head at the things he encountered. Okay, there were a few moments of awe on the river, but far too few. And in the end he seems to realize that the trip was a bad idea from the start. Duh! His inability to connect to his guide, the guide's ultimate disappearance without a goodbye make me suspect his people skills there. Not to mention a strange obsession with bathing, an obsession which undermined his description of the danger for me. If one is under possible attack from machete wielding tribesmen, one is usually not that concerned with finding a private spot in which to soap up. The book does give some interesting background on the struggles being faced by the inhabitants of whatever Ziare is called today, but too often I found myself exasperated.
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