In the Belly of the Congo

Written by Blaise Ndala

Narrated by Christel Mutombo

April 1958.

Organizing the Brussels World’s Fair, the biggest international event since the end of the Second World War, subcommissioner Robert Dumont cedes to pressure from the royal palace: there will be a “Congolese village” in one of the seven pavilions devoted to the settlements. Among the eleven members
of this “human zoo” assembled to put on a show at the foot of the Atomium is the young Tshala, daughter of the intractable king of the Bakuba. From her native Kasai to Brussels via Léopoldville, the princess’s journey unfolds—until her forced exhibition at Expo 58, where we lose track of her.

Summer 2004. Newly arrived in Belgium, a niece of the missing princess crosses paths with a man haunted by the ghost of his father—Francis Dumont, professor of law at the Free University of Brussels. A breathtaking series of events will reveal to them a secret the former
subcommissioner of Expo 58 carried to his grave.

From one century to the next, In the Belly of the Congo confronts History with a capital “H” to pose the central question of the colonial equation: Can the past pass?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Translator: Amy B. Reid
• Release date: Feb 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9781705087602

Blaise Ndala

Blaise Ndala is an award-winning novelist. His first novel, J’irai danser sur la tombe de Senghor, won the Ottawa Book Prize in the French Fiction category, was a finalist for the Trillium Book Award, and has been optioned by the award-winning French film director and producer Rachid Bouchareb. His second novel, Sans capote ni kalachnikov, won the 2019 edition of the Combat national des livres de Radio-Canada and was also a finalist for the Trillium Book Award, Les Afriques Prize, the Black Africa Literary Prize, and the Prix Ivoire for African Literature (Special Mention). His latest novel, Dans le ventre du Congo (In the Belly of the Congo), won the Prix Kourouma and the Prix Ivoire for African Literature, and was also a finalist for the Grand Prix du Roman Métis, the Five Continents of the Francophonie Prize, and the Porte Dorée Literary Prize. Originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Blaise Ndala emigrated to Canada in 2007. He worked as a representative in Haiti for the NGO Avocats sans frontières Canada and is now a jurist in Ottawa. Connect with him at his website BlaiseNdala.com or on Twitter at @Blaise_Ndala.