Dancing in the Glory of Monsters

The Collapse of the Congo and the Great War of Africa

By: Jason Stearns

Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain

At the heart of Africa is Congo, a country the size of Western Europe, bordering nine other nations, that since 1996 has been wracked by a brutal and unstaunchable war in which millions have died. And yet, despite its epic proportions, it has received little sustained media attention.

In this deeply reported book, Jason K. Stearns vividly tells the story of this misunderstood conflict through the experiences of those who engineered and perpetrated it. He depicts village pastors who survived massacres, the child soldier assassin of President Kabila, a female Hutu activist who relives the hunting and methodical extermination of fellow refugees, and key architects of the war that became as great a disaster as - and was a direct consequence of - the genocide in neighboring Rwanda.

Through their stories, he tries to understand why such mass violence made sense, and why stability has been so elusive. Through their voices, and an astonishing wealth of knowledge and research, Stearns chronicles the political, social, and moral decay of the Congolese State.

©2011 Jason K. Stearns (P)2017 Tantor

A good summary of the Congo Wars

To me this was a good summary of the Congo Wars as one who came in knowing very little about them. It would be nice if it were updated to include the last decade of Congo history, it stops in October 2010. The story tries to capture the nuances of the wars and therefore is not super linear but I was still able to keep track of most things.

A tragic history largely ignored...

I'd read this book some years ago and was happy to have chance to listen to it via audio format. It is at once a highly informative and well researched book bringing to light a horrendous series of wars that swept the Congo and most of its neighbours in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide.

It's an incredibly dense book in some ways and it can be overwhelming at times. Particularly when the examples of the waves sadistic and senseless violence are continually piled up to the extent that you begin to wonder just how do human beings become so savage towards their fellow man....

For those who are new to the history of the Congo this is a decent place to start. Although a better first read/listen would be King Leopold's' Ghost which outlines the history of the Congo under the rule of the Belgian king and helps set the stage (somewhat) for the Congo of today.

The narration is ok but not great. Mike Chamberlain has a terse and somewhat monotone style that gives the feel of a military officer delivering an after-action report to headquarters. Fine for a 20 minute presentation. Not so good for a 15 hour book. That made the book a bit of a slog for me - and as mentioned I've already read the book before as well as some others about the Congo...

In either audiobook or print format I would listen to or read the last chapter first. It gives a very nice summary and will help frame the entire book for you.

This book lets the people who were actually there tell us what they personally experienced

Riveting story-telling. The author captures the complexity of life in the Congo and explains why Western news outlets don’t give it much attention.

valuable and informative

This is a book on a subject -Congo over the past 20+ years and the history leading to that era-that is hard to cover and hard to find honest information about. The book covers the Congo without trying to tell everything. It isn't a history book that distills a thousand narratives. it presents narratives from different sides, comes to some of its own conclusions, and let's the reader come to some. I find it valuable because it attempts to explain what happened with the Congo without making it about the West. The story is miraculously about the Congo and the Congolese and it's neighbors and for that it deserves credit.

Fantastic book

More people should be informed about the history of the Congo. As the author states, it is complicated. Narrator did a great job with pronunciation.

Excellent

This is a very clear account of a complex situation. No hyperbole, just plain facts. Narrator is excellent!

Great overview of a complicated topic

Fantastic book. I like the approach of not trying to oversimplify the conflict. I will follow this with Jason Stearns 2021 book on the Congo.

Great analysis of events

I’ve been interested in the situation in Congo for quite some time. This story covers all the bases and does a great job of explaining this complex and delicate subject. I highly recommend to anyone.

An excellent, challenging book

This book is great, excellent narration, recommend listening with a map of the Congo to guide you. The subject can become a bit overwhelming, due to the nature of the abuses, cruelty and the internationals communities willingness to turn a blind eye.

Brilliantly and compassionately breaks down complexity

Stearns does not shy away from complexity, but provides context and linkages to aid us to better understanding of the Congo. For those who have little knowledge of the recent bloody history of this region, this is an excellent and comprehensive work. Dismantles the quick and easy explanations for the chaos.