The epic story of the Congo-Océan railroad and the human costs of empire.

The untold story of one of the deadliest construction projects in history. Between 1921 and 1934, French colonial interests recruited -- most often by force -- more than 100,000 men, women, and children to build a 500-kilometer stretch of rail through forests and mountains from Congolese Brazzaville to the Atlantic Coast. By the time of its completion, tens of thousands of Africans were dead, killed by mistreatment, starvation, and disease. The book recounts the experiences of local communities in the face of this amoral colonial economic development, to consider why the railroad witnessed such extraordinary violence and suffering, and explores the excuses defenders of the project used to justify the loss of so many African lives.