"On a summer morning in Sarajevo almost a hundred years ago, a teenager took a pistol out of his pocket and fired not just the opening rounds of the First World War but the starting gun for modern history. By killing Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Gavrilo Princip started a cycle of events that would leave 15 million dead from fighting between 1914 and 1918 and proved fatal for empires and a way of ruling that had held for centuries."--Publisher's description.
Tim Butcher Book order (chronological)
November 15, 1967
Tim Butcher is a British author, journalist, and broadcaster known for his compelling narratives from conflict zones and his adventurous travels. His writing is characterized by meticulous observation and a deep exploration of the places he visits, often delving into the history and impact of conflicts on ordinary people. Butcher's style is both analytical and engaging, offering readers insightful perspectives on complex social and political landscapes.
Facing down demons from his time in Africa as a journalist, Tim Butcher heads deep into this combat zone, encountering the devastation wrought by lawless militia, child soldiers, brutal violence, blood diamonds and masked figures who guard the spiritual secrets of remote jungle communities.
Blood River
- 384 pages
- 14 hours of reading
A compulsively readable account of an African country now virtually inaccessible to the outside world and one journalist's daring and adventurous journey. When Daily Telegraph correspondent Tim Butcher was sent to cover Africa he quickly became obsessed with the idea of recreating H.M. Stanley's famous expedition - but travelling alone. Despite warnings that his plan was 'suicidal', Butcher set out for the Congo's eastern border with just a rucksack and a few thousand dollars hidden in his boots. Making his way in an assortment of vessels including a motorbike and a dugout canoe, helped along by a cast of characters from UN aid workers to a campaigning pygmy, he followed in the footsteps of the great Victorian adventurers. VINTAGE VOYAGES: A world of journeys, from the tallest mountains to the depths of the mind
Heart of darkness
- 188 pages
- 7 hours of reading
Englische Literatur in Reclams Roter Reihe: das ist der englische Originaltext – mit Worterklärungen am Fuß jeder Seite, Nachwort und Literaturhinweisen. Conrad verarbeitet in diesem grandiosen kleinen Roman sein eigenes Kongo-Abenteuer, von dem ihm eine zeitlebens zerrüttete Gesundheit und alptraumhafte Erinnerungen geblieben waren. Der Erzähler Marlow geißelt in der Figur des pervertierten Handelsagenten Kurtz den europäischen Kolonialismus, aber dem Autor geht es um mehr: die Fahrt in den urweltlichen Dschungel wird zur Entdeckungsreise ins Ungewisse der eigenen Existenz, in die Untiefen des Halb- und Unterbewußtseins, ins finstere Labyrinth von Lüge und Schuld. Englische Lektüre: Niveau C1 (GER)