From the Bookshelf of Around the World in 80 Books…

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

Adam Hochschild

Start date: June 15, 2019

Finish date: July 15, 2019

Discussion: Group Reads Discussions

Why we're reading this: June BOTM
[close] June BOTM

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 405 topics — 3,825 comments total

Group Reads Discussions

This topic has been closed to new comments.

* Links to Group Read Discussions
By Diane , Armchair Tour Guide · 3 posts · 1369 views

last updated Jan 18, 2013 07:12PM

I've Been Waiting
By Carole · 1 post · 12 views

last updated Sep 16, 2025 07:57PM

showing 10 of 12 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Apr 24, 2008 Elizabeth rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: africa

Appalling and fascinating. I had no idea that the people of Congo were treated this AFTER the Civil War and well into the 1900s. What was most interesting to me was to learn how King Leopold conducted his power-grab in Africa and sufficiently distanced himself from the actual goings on the county. (His methods for wealth extraction required forced slavery and mass killings.) That in itself says a lot about the psychology of blame. He certainly appeared to have a clear conscience. I probably neve ...more

8 likes · Like · see review

Aug 01, 2007 Kay rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: harrowing-tales, commodity_history, africa, favorites, nonfiction, european-history-civ

It's harder to say which is more disturbing -- King Leopold's genocidal rape of the Congo or the "civilized" world's almost complete ignorance of and indifference to it. Hochschild's book almost singlehandedly revived an interest in this long-neglected chapter in history. I think it's fair to say that most readers had little idea of what happened in the Congo during the late 19th century. It certainly made me go back and reread Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness in an entirely new light.
...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 26, 2012 Ruth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-i-own, favorites

For those wanting to know how and why the DRC is in shambles, read this explosive and tragic history of Leopold's Congo. ...more

Like · see review

Jul 29, 2021 Lorri rated it really liked it

How is it that I am just now learning of the atrocities committed by King Leopold? This book opened my eyes to one of the history’s most shameful periods. Beyond appalling. The book is well-written and extensively sourced.

Like · see review