A Review By Alex Monnington

When I asked Frances what she thought about ‘The Heart of Darkness’ she told me that she could tell me about the first two chapters but no more, this did not seem the most encouraging advice on this book but buying it and realising that it was only 84 pages long I was sure that it would be a walk in the park. When I actually got to read the book I realised that it was more like a trek through a vast and intricate jungle, which is quite apt for the content of this classic novel.

The story is told through the character Marlow who is stuck in the Thames estuary with his fellow seamen. To pass the time he recalls an adventure he had with a Belgian trading company in the Congo area. The language of the book is as you would expect for a 1902 adventure novel and it was quite hard going. But the story was excellent and perfectly describes Marlow’s surroundings in the Congo. Well worth reading and as the blurb says “it is truly the most haunting tale the human mind has ever conceived”.