Before I read this book, I thought the Nile River was simply the Nile River. I didn't realize it had to main tributaries- the Blue Nile and the White Nile. The river forms at the Lake No confluence, and refers to a massive stretch of river that flows from Lake Victoria until it turns into the Blue Nile. It was all really confusing to me, and I had to look up a map. At any rate, this book covers the exploration of the White Nile. There are tributaries and rapids that were previously unknown and untraveled by Europeans. Of course, the Nile was traveled by Romans and others, but not to the extent that it was in the 1800s. Missionaries traveling in the area reported some amazing sights, including Mount Kilimanjaro. That really sparked the interest of explorers and scholars, so expeditions were soon underway. Several famous names are mentioned, such as Sir Richard Burton, Henry Morton Stanley, Emin Pasha, and others. I recall listening to podcasts and reading other things about these men, but it did not register with me that their travels of the Nile were the WHITE NILE. I don't know why I didn't make the connection. I thought it was a really neat book, packed with a lot of information.