Select language, opens an overlay

Comments (32)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 32 items
Mar 07, 2024SSPL_Charity rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
Not often I say this, but, I hated this book. It was intentionally obscure, yet violent. And while it was maybe a critique of imperialism, it seemed to only be a critique of a specific type of imperialism. Despite this critique, the…
Mar 02, 2024Rudy_Best rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
This book has some epic content in terms of story, and tries to convey a pessimistic philosophy that is sobering to the reader. However, I found much of the book enormously confusing. Definitely outdated in my opinion, so feel free to skip…
Oct 19, 2022Anita_Dickey rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
I read this book for the 52 books in 52 weeks reading challenge. I used the 2022 October mini challenge prompt read a book related to the word darkness. It is also on Listopia's 300 books everyone should read once list. I both liked it and…
Feb 18, 2022richmole rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
3.5 stars...high rating for a novel that's survived all over a century of literary styles and changes. Best known today--to those who know it at all--as the novel that inspired Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now. Still compelling in…
Jun 11, 2021
“We live as we dream - alone. While the dream disappears, the life continues painfully.”
Apr 01, 2021tootiebooks99 rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
Depressing! I read this in my teenage years and hated it!
Oct 22, 2020monicajain12 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is a short, yet profoundly dark novel. It follows a seagoing narrator, Marlow, who travels up the Congo River during the height of European imperialism in Africa to reach a secluded trading post led by a man named Kurtz. Conrad…
Oct 14, 2020
Regarded by most as Joseph Conrad’s masterpiece, Heart of Darkness is a tale of colonialism and apathy. The main character is changed on his journey through the heart of the Congo, and what he sees and experiences turns him into a…
May 24, 2020papachaucer rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
There's so much going on in this short novel / story. The horror of European pillaging in Africa. The petty concerns of selfish functionaries whose only talent, only virtue, only superpower is to stay physically healthy in a place that…
Mar 27, 2020wyenotgo rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
As with much of Conrad's work, so much has been written about this short novel that I feel compelled to ignore the obvious and meander farther afield, if for no other purpose than to place "Heart of Darkness" into a more personal context,…
Aug 04, 2019aam04 rated this title 1.5 out of 5 stars
This book was a difficult read as the endless metaphors became tedious and therefore, the plot was hard to follow. I struggled to stay engaged and did not enjoy the style of writing. I may try and re-read this book in a few years, once I…
Jan 10, 2019downsman rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
One of my favourite books to read and to teach. When I first read it umpteen years ago I found it hard work, but I've since realised that that is the point, really. You have to read it slowly, reread parts of it, digest it. Put it into…
Oct 15, 2018jacekwalkowicz rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
a pleasant journey into the depth of wild +++ How the author could put that story together is a mystery.
May 17, 2018
Am I glad to be done with this awful book. To be clear, I enjoy classics. I'm big fan of The Idiot and Dracula, and I read quite a bit and usually very quickly. But this book took me a long time considering its rather short length, and…
Apr 04, 2018DPLnate rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
And this also,” said Marlow out of nowhere, “has been one of the darkest places of the earth.” Vivid, hallucinatory, haunting.
Feb 01, 2018rslars001 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This story was quite a different storyline than I had ever read before; The underlying messages and plot were not obvious, and certain scenes and phrases really made you think. This is a very challenging book, and I would not recommend…
Oberösterreich99
Jan 18, 2018Oberösterreich99 rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
However much I enjoyed the book, it seemed the underlying messages and themes were more important than the actual characters and their actions. I understood that Kurtz was corrupted by the jungle and reverted to its barbarism, whereas he…
Quidnuncle
Jun 12, 2017Quidnuncle rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Conrads semi-autobiographical novel is a must read. Although I t's a compelling, surreal story about African conquest, the true heart of darkness is that which resides within man. Read it then treat yourself to Apocalypse Now (redacted…
Mar 22, 2017patch666 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
One of 2 or 3 of my favorite books of all time . Have read it over and over since the ,8th grade. TRULY CLASSIC
Mar 06, 2017RoyalJellyIII rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
For everyone that is not familiar with this classic you may know the adaptation into film " Apocalypse Now ". Originally published in 1902 as a novella Conrad uses the story as a critique of imperialism. "Heart of Darkness" can either be…
Feb 09, 2017ArapahoeMaryA rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Conrad underscores the premise that western civilization is driven by the need to dominate others. He also makes the point that all humans have the capacity for evil. This is one of the classics that many of us had to read for high school…
Sep 08, 2016
Do not read this novel as a story – if you do, you will end up horribly uninterested and miss the remarkable true nature of this masterpiece: read this as an essay. There is a side serving of adventure to this story, but ultimately it is…
Apr 21, 2016Greisi rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
Unless you're being forced to read this for a class, stay as far away from it as possible. There was no point to this story, after reading a page I couldn't tell you what happened on that page, so it comes as no surprise that can't tell…
Folly
Dec 20, 2014Folly rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A wonderful book, older style of writing.
Jun 04, 2014mclarjh rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
My rating is for the illustrations, not the text.