Congo Journey

There are similarities between Redmond O'Hanlon's magnificent Into The Heart of Borneo and No Mercy. In both, O'Hanlon's keen naturalist eye notes the details (tiny scarlet flowers probed hummingbird-like by purple-red hawkmoths), his wit (usually at his own expense) remains funny, and his travel companions quite human and often endearing. He's off on another jungle trek, this time seeking Mokele-mbembe, the alleged Congo sauropod. But No Mercy goes deeper and darker; fear and anger intrude on the levity, rationalistic thought yields to palpable fetishistic fright the deeper in they go, and O'Hanlon emerges a changed, more compassionate man.