Henry Morton Stanley, so the tale goes, was a cruel imperialist- a bad man of Africa- who connived with King Leopold II of Belgium in horrific crimes against the people of the Congo. He also conducted the most legendary celebrity interview in history, remembered in the words "Dr Livingstone, I presume?".

Or so we think: but as Tim Jeal brilliantly shows, none of these perceptions is quite true. The reality of Stanley's life- even by the exceptional standards of the Victorian age- is yet more extraordinary. Rejected by both parents at birth and consigned to a Welsh workhosue, he emigrated to America, fought in the Civil War- on both sides- before becoming an explorer.

Few people know of his dazzling trans-African journey, which solved virtually every one of the continent's remaining geographical puzzles. His journey down the Congo to the Atlantic is a heart-breaking epic of human endurance.

Now, with unprecedented access to a previously closed family archive, Jeal shows just how misunderstood Stanley's life has been both in his intimate life and his public career. In doing so, he also provides new insights into African history, and a fresh understanding of the nature of exploration. Few biographies can claim so thoroughly to reappraise a reputation, or to be as moving.