Out of darkness, shining light : (being a faithful account of the final years and earthly days of Doctor David Livingstone and his last journey from the interior to the coast of Africa, as narrated by his African companions, in three volumes) : a novel

Cover image for Out of darkness, shining light : (being a faithful account of the final years and earthly days of Doctor David Livingstone and his last journey from the interior to the coast of Africa, as narrated by his African companions, in three volumes) : a novel

Title:

Author:

Gappah, Petina, 1971- author.

Personal Author:

Gappah, Petina, 1971- author.

ISBN:

9781982110338

9781982110345

Edition:

First Scribner hardcover edition.

Physical Description:

303 pages : map ; 22 cm

Abstract:

"'This is how we carried out of Africa the poor broken body of Bwana Daudi, the Doctor, David Livingstone, so that he could be borne across the sea and buried in his own land.' So begins Petina Gappah's powerful novel of exploration and adventure in nineteenth-century Africa--the captivating story of the loyal men and women who carried explorer and missionary Dr. Livingstone's body, his papers and maps, fifteen hundred miles across the continent of Africa, so his remains could be returned home to England and his work preserved there. Narrated by Halima, the doctor's sharp-tongued cook, and Jacob Wainwright, a rigidly pious freed slave, this is a story that encompasses all of the hypocrisy of slavery and colonization--the hypocrisy at the core of the human heart--while celebrating resilience, loyalty, and love."--Provided by publisher.

Personal Subject:

Livingstone, David, 1813-1873-Fiction.

Livingstone, David, 1813-1873-Death and burial-Fiction.

Subject Term:

Funeral rites and ceremonies -- Fiction.

Geographic Term:

Africa -- History -- 19th century -- Fiction.

Genre:

Biographical fiction.

Historical fiction.

Summary:

Holds:

Available:*

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Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

WINNER OF THE 2020 CHAUTAUQUA PRIZE

ONE OF NPR'S BEST BOOKS OF 2019

"Engrossing, beautiful, and deeply imaginative, Out of Darkness, Shining Light is a novel that lends voice to those who appeared only as footnotes in history, yet whose final, brave act of loyalty and respect changed the course of it. An incredible and important book by a masterful writer." --Yaa Gyasi, author of Homegoing

"This is how we carried out of Africa the poor broken body of Bwana Daudi, the Doctor, David Livingstone, so that he could be borne across the sea and buried in his own land." So begins Petina Gappah's powerful novel of exploration and adventure in nineteenth-century Africa--the captivating story of the loyal men and women who carried explorer and missionary Dr. Livingstone's body, his papers and maps, fifteen hundred miles across the continent of Africa, so his remains could be returned home to England and his work preserved there. Narrated by Halima, the doctor's sharp-tongued cook, and Jacob Wainwright, a rigidly pious freed slave, this is a story that encompasses all of the hypocrisy of slavery and colonization--the hypocrisy at the core of the human heart--while celebrating resilience, loyalty, and love.

Reviews (1)

Kirkus Review

A rollicking novel that retells the history of British colonial exploration in Africa from the perspective of historical figures who have otherwise been silenced.Zimbabwean writer Gappah (The Book of Memory, 2016, etc.) tells the story of the black attendants who bore the Scottish explorer David Livingstone's corpse from present-day Zambia to the African coast in the late 19th century. As the prologue says, "This story has been told many times before, but always as the story of the Doctor." Gappah turns the tables by making Livingstone's attendants into protagonists. Our heroes are Halima, a young slave woman Livingstone purchased as a partner for his assistant, the abusive and cruel Amoda; and Jacob Wainwright, a former slave from East Africa who was educated by Christian missionaries in Mumbai. Halima is a jovial and headstrong young woman who speaks boisterously despite her status. "Why any man would leave his own land and his wife and children to tramp in these dreary swamps...is beyond my understanding," she wonders about Livingstone. Jacob is Halima's opposite, a self-serious young man who keeps a journal which he hopes will be published in the future. When Livingstone dies of malaria, his attendants decide to carry his body to the coast in a display of loyalty, so that it may be carried back to England. After burying his heart in the village where he died, the band sets off toward Zanzibar in a show of dedication. The arduous journey through hostile terrain gradually erodes their reverence for the doctor, though. Halima begins to wonder how worthy he is of her dedication. "Was he worth it? What were we doing, taking a father to his children when he had let one of those children die?" Meanwhile, Jacob reads Livingstone's journals and finds a man whose anti-slavery ideals clash with his actions as a colonialist explorer. The journey to the coast turns out to be an education in how the band is oppressed by colonial power. Along the way, though, Gappah captures the diverse cultural milieu of colonial Africa with compelling detail. The result is a rich, vivid, and addictive book filled with memorably drawn characters.This is a humane, riveting, epic novel that spotlights marginalized historical voices. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.