Madame Livingstone
The Great War in the Congo
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Madame Livingstone is based on the true story of the unlikely partnership between a Belgian and an African who were responsible for the sinking of a German battleship in the Congo during the First World War. Aviator Gaston Mercier, lieutenant in the Royal Belgian Army, arrives at Lake Tanganyika, Congo in 1915 on orders to sink a critical German warship, the Graf Von Götzen. To find out the ship’s exact position, he is assigned a guide, an enigmatic, mixed-race African and the supposed son of the famous explorer David Livingstone who is nicknamed “Mrs. Livingstone” for the Scottish kilt he wears. Little by little, while the war between Belgian and German colonial powers rages on and the pair hunt down the Graf Von Götzen, the young Belgian pilot learns more about the land around him from Mrs. Livingstone and discovers the irrevocable and tragic effects of colonialism on the local people. A historical fiction story of adventure and friendship against the backdrop of World War I in Africa, Madame Livingstone was originally published in France by Glénat in 2014. The graphic novel is authored by historian and comics specialist Christophe Cassiau-Haurie and Congo's unique beauty is presented in full color illustrations by beloved Congolese artist Barly Baruti.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The complexities of war are explored with a curious what-if twist in this elegantly drawn adventure. When Belgian military pilot Gaston Mercier flies into Albertville on Lake Tanganyika in the Congo in 1915, he finds himself at the distant end of two European empires (Belgian and German) carrying on their continental conflict with thousands of African proxies. While the plot focuses on Belgian efforts to sink the heavily armed German ship Graf Von Götzen, the heart of the story is Gaston's growing friendship with "Madame Livingstone," a kilt-wearing multilingual Congolese guide who claims to be a son of Doctor Livingstone, and who attempts to avoid picking sides in European fights ("this is my country, I go where I like. The borders are your doing"). As their relationship deepens, Mercier confronts his country's bloodstained history in the region. Congolese artist Baruti—who has an intriguing autobiographical connection to one of the protagonists—washes rich colors over the pages, which mix sumptuous landscapes with tightly framed dramatic action. Cassiau-Haurie's dialogue can be stiff, and his script veers awkwardly between rollicking adventure tale and interrogation of colonialism. But overall it's a well-researched drama of human connections forged in an inhumane period.
