River of Gods recounts the exploration of the source of the Nile by Richard Burton and John Speke. Burton was had an ability to pick up languages and adopt other cultures. He was able to appear as a Muslim Pilgrim to enter Mecca and get details of sites there. He was perhaps too good at learning languages and would get in trouble at school. He knew the value of local guides and employed them in his quest to find the source of the Nile. Speke had gone with Burton on an expedition. Both had health problems on the trip.
Speke later led a group to find the source. He is portrayed in a much more negative light in the book. He came across as much more "British", not caring to learn details of local language and culture like Burton. He was also a very poor writer. He did manage to lead his own expedition to set eyes on lake Victoria. The two had some conflicting ideas about what the source of the Nile was. They were set to debate them. However, shortly before, Speke died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (It was ruled accidental, though it may have been a suicide.)
Burton lived for many years later, getting married and obtaining a diplomatic appointment. He had respect for other cultures and religions, from Mormons to Muslims. He didn't like slavery. He was willing to explore controversial topics such as slavery. He had translated different "sex manuals" from other cultures. He is now best known for translating the Arabian Nights stories.
The epilogue mentions Stanley and Livingstone, two of the well known British African explorers. There experiences are briefly mentioned, but the focus is primarily on the Burton and Speke.
Old Jack had worked as a farmer in Kentucky. His life was coming to an end and he provided many memories. There were a number of events where people being "too true" to their character left them not as happy. A farmer had hired a farm hand to help him. However, he realized that the farm hand would never have the ownership needed. He wanted them to be equals, but they couldn't. This also made his wife distraught. She had hoped he would move on to the genteel class, and leave the working to the hired help. Alas, this was not to be. There were also tales of how there was love at first site as well as alienation and separation (Without divorce.) I sometimes had trouble determining whether there were new characters or just continuation of existing ones. Perhaps this was because the story just did not demand a lot of my attention.