Crossing the Heart of Africa: An Odyssey of Love and Adventure
Smith’s strong interest in the forgotten, nineteenth-century Victorian explorer Ewart Grogan compelled him to attempt a similar journey in 2007. Both walked across Africa, covering more than 4,000 miles through eight countries, though Grogan attempted to become the first person to walk across Africa. Both men had something to prove: Grogan wanted his fiancée’s family to know that he was more than a gold digger, and Smith wanted to experience the journey before his own marriage. The interwoven stories contrast an early adventure with a modern Africa, with the remnants of Burton and Speke’s search for the source of the Nile running through it. Grogan’s adventures in Africa are carefully researched: from dodging cannibals, wild animals, and multiple illnesses to his death, when he was virtually forgotten. Smith, an award-winning journalist, tells his own story nearly a century later, as well as revealing a modern continent going through constant change. --Jay Freeman