Description
INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
From the acclaimed author of The Lost Pianos of Siberia, comes a new journey, following four 19th century elephants marched from the East African coast towards Congo, to tell a heartbreaking story of folly and colonial greed.
‘A beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey’- THE SUNDAY TIMES
‘Absorbing … any account of a journey in the footsteps of another is bound to be elegiac, but rarely has an elegy been so suffused with drama and pathos.’ – FT
‘History and travelogue combine wonderfully in this tale of colonial plunder and hubris…Sophy Roberts’ luminous new book is a journey through Africa from Zanzibar to Lake Tanganyika and back, retracing the steps of a long-forgotten expedition.’ – GUARDIAN
In 1879, King Leopold II of Belgium launched an ambitious plan to plunder Africa’s resources. The key to cracking open the continent, or so he thought, was its elephants ― if only he could train them.
And so he commissioned the charismatic Irish adventurer Frederick Carter to ship four tamed Asian elephants from India to the East African coast, where they were marched inland towards Congo. The ultimate aim was to establish a training school for African elephants.
Following in the footsteps of the four elephants, Roberts pieces together the story of this long-forgotten expedition, in travels that take her to Belgium, Iraq, India, Tanzania and Congo. The storytelling brings to life a compelling cast of historic characters and modern voices, from ivory dealers to Catholic nuns, set against rich descriptions of the landscapes travelled.
Roberts digs deep into historic records to reckon with our broken relationship with animals, revealing an extraordinary ― and enduring ― story of colonial greed, ineptitude, hypocrisy and folly.
