20 Best Books On Latin American History (2023 Update)

For courses in the history of latin america and modern latin america. a thoroughly updated examination of latin american latin america: an interpretive history interweaves the story of latin america with coverage of broader themes and regional differences. building upon the work of original author e. bradford burns, current author julie charlip presents latin american history as a continuum to help students make connections among time periods and events, and see the impact of the past upon the present. a new closing chapter examines in detail the "pink tide"–the swing left in latin america that began at the end of the twentieth century and has continued over the last 15 years.

The classic survey of latin america's social and cultural history, with a new introduction by isabel allende – since its u.s. debut a quarter-century ago, this brilliant text has set a new standard for historical scholarship of latin america. it is also an outstanding political economy, a social and cultural narrative of the highest quality, and perhaps the finest description of primitive capital accumulation since marx. – rather than chronology, geography, or political successions, eduardo galeano has organized the various facets of latin american history according to the patterns of five centuries of exploitation. thus he is concerned with gold and silver, cacao and cotton, rubber and coffee, fruit, hides and wool, petroleum, iron, nickel, manganese, copper, aluminum ore, nitrates, and tin. these are the veins which he traces through the body of the entire continent, up to the rio grande and throughout the caribbean, and all the way to their open ends where they empty into the coffers of wealth in the united states and europe. – weaving fact and imagery into a rich tapestry, galeano fuses scientific analysis with the passions of a plundered and suffering people. an immense gathering of materials is framed with a vigorous style that never falters in its command of themes. all readers interested in great historical, economic, political, and social writing will find a singular analytical achievement, and an overwhelming narrative that makes history speak, unforgettably. – this classic is now further honored by isabel allende’s inspiring introduction. universally recognized as one of the most important writers of our time, allende once again contributes her talents to literature, to political principles, and to enlightenment.

This narrative history of latin america surveys five centuries in less than five hundred pages. the first third of the book moves from the americas before columbus to the wars for independence in the early nineteenth century. the construction of new nations and peoples in the nineteenth century forms the middle third, and the final section analyzes economic development, rising political participation, and the search of identity over the last century. the collision of peoples and cultures–native americans, europeans, africans–that defines latin america, and gives it both its unity and diversity, provides the central theme of this concise, synthetic history.

The decades since the 1980s have witnessed an unprecedented surge in research about latin american history. this much-needed volume brings together original essays by renowned scholars to provide the first comprehensive assessment of this burgeoning literature. the seventeen original essays in the oxford handbook of latin american history survey the recent historiography of the colonial era, independence movements, and postcolonial periods and span mexico, spanish south america, and brazil. they begin by questioning the limitations and meaning of latin america as a conceptual organization of space within the americas and how the region became excluded from broader studies of the western hemisphere. subsequent essays address indigenous peoples of the region, rural and urban history, slavery and race, african, european and asian immigration, labor, gender and sexuality, religion, family and childhood, economics, politics, and disease and medicine. in so doing, they bring together traditional approaches to politics and power, while examining the quotidian concerns of workers, women and children, peasants, and racial and ethnic minorities.this volume provides the most complete state of the field and is an indispensible resource for scholars and students of latin america.

Latin american history goes to the movies combines the study of the rich history of latin america with the medium of feature film. in this concise and accessible book, author stewart brewer helps readers understand key themes and issues in latin american history, from pre-columbian times to the present, by examining how they have been treated in a variety of films. moving chronologically across latin american history, and pairing historical background with explorations of selected films, the chapters cover vital topics including the spanish conquest and colonialism, revolution, religion, women, u.s.-latin american relations, and more. through films such as city of god, frida, and che, brewer shows how history is retold, and what that retelling means for public memory.from apocalypto to selena, and from christopher columbus to the slave trade, latin american history goes to the movies sets the record straight between the realities of history and cinematic depictions, and gives readers a solid foundation for using film to understand the complexities of latin america's rich and vibrant history.

Surveys the development of this vibrant and dynamic field of study in north america, latin america, and europe. after briefly sketching the growth of the topic up to the 1960s, marshall eakin focuses on the past half-century, from the dominance of social history to the cultural turn. he surveys innovative work on topics including slavery, indigenous peoples, race, the environment, science, medicine, and gender, and ends with a discussion of the emergence of the concepts of borderlands, the atlantic world, and transnational history – that both enrich and challenge the very idea of latin america. this concise volume offers the first broad overview of latin american history and historiography for students, scholars, and the general reader, outlining the key social, cultural, and political forces that have shaped both latin america and its study.

This field guide to oral history in latin america addresses methodological, ethical, and interpretive issues arising from the region's unique milieu. with careful consideration of the challenges of working in latin america – including those of language, culture, performance, translation, and political instability – david carey jr. provides guidance for those conducting oral history research in the postcolonial world. in regions such as latin america, where nations that have been subjected to violent colonial and neocolonial forces continue to strive for just and peaceful societies, decolonizing research and analysis is imperative. carey deploys case studies and examples in ways that will resonate with anyone who is interested in oral history.

Latino usa represents the culmination of ilan stavans's lifelong determination to meet the challenges of capturing the joys, nuances, and multiple dimensions of latino culture within the context of the english language. in this cartoon history of latinos, stavans seeks to combine the solemnity of so-called serious literature and history with the inherently theatrical and humorous nature of the comics. the range of topics includes columbus, manifest destiny, the alamo, william carlos williams, desi arnaz, west side story, castro, guevera, the bay of pigs, the cuban missile crisis, neruda, garcã-màuez, the mariel boatlift, and selena. stavans represents hispanic civilization as a fiesta of types, archetypes, and stereotypes. these clichãigurines include a toucan (displayed regularly in books by garcã-màuez, allende, and others), the beloved latino comedian cantinflas (known as the hispanic charlie chaplin), a masked wrestler, and captain america. these multiple, at times contradictory voices, each narrating various episodes of latino history from a unique perspective, combine to create a carnivalesque rhythm, democratic and impartial. for, as stavans states, history, of course, is a kaleidoscope where nothing is absolute. latino usa, like the history it so entertainingly relates, is a dazzling kaleidoscope of irreverence, wit, subversion, anarchy, politics, humanism, celebration, and serious and responsible history.

Movies are meant to be entertaining, but they can also be educational. people are naturally curious to know how much of what they see on their screens might be historically true. in latin american history at the movies, experts on latin america focus on five centuries of history as portrayed in feature films. an introduction on the visual presentation of the past in movies sets the stage for essays that explore sixteen of the best feature films on latin america made from the 1980s to the present.

"born in blood and fire" spans six centuries and covers twenty countries in a concise, compelling narrative of the latin american experience, animated by stories about men and women from all walks of life and enriched by insightful analysis. — from publisher's description.

Colonial lives offers a rich variety of archival documents in translation which bring to life the political and economic workings of latin american colonies during 300 years of spanish rule, as well as the day-to-day lives of the colonies' inhabitants. intended to complement textbooks such as burkholder and johnson's colonial latin america by presenting students with primary sources — the raw materials on which the facts in other textbooks are based — this reader strives to illustrate the impact of issues such as race, class, gender, sexuality, culture and religion in the daily lives of both natives and colonists alike. the concerns, struggles and perspectives of the inhabitants of colonial latin america are reflected in transcripts of civil and criminal court cases, administrative reviews, ecclesiastical investigations, inquisition trials, wills, and letters the editors have included in this reader. each document is prefaced by an introduction that places it in the social and political context of the period. the book also includes a glossary of terms and lists of suggested further readings. most uniquely, the book offers helpful thematic cross-referencing sections and an index of themes which allow instructors to easily adapt the book to their courses and to assign readings according to the criteria of their own specific curriculums.

New concerns with the intersections of culture and power, historical agency, and the complexity of social and political life are producing new questions about the united states' involvement with latin america. turning away from political-economic models that see only domination and resistance, exploiters and victims, the contributors to this pathbreaking collection suggest alternate ways of understanding the role that u.s. actors and agencies have played in the region during the postcolonial period.exploring a variety of nineteenth- and twentieth-century encounters in latin america, these theoretically engaged essays by distinguished u.s. and latin american historians and anthropologists illuminate a wide range of subjects. from the rockefeller foundation's public health initiatives in central america to the visual regimes of film, art, and advertisements; these essays grapple with new ways of conceptualizing public and private spheres of empire. as such,close encounters of empire initiates a dialogue between postcolonial studies and the long-standing scholarship on colonialism and imperialism in the americas as it rethinks the cultural dimensions of nationalism and development.

Some notable women featured include mexican painter frida khalo, nobel peace prize winner rigoberta menchu, grammy-winning musical icon celia cruz, and renowned pilot hermelinda urvina. the true biographical stories of these outstanding women are presented in rhyming verses. additional educational resources are offered at the end of the book, including a bibliography reference page. . recommended for children ages 5-8, grades k-3rd.

The third edition of u.s. and latin american relations offers detailed theoretical and historical analyses essential for understanding contemporary us-latin american relations. utilizing four different theories (realism, liberal institutionalism, dependency, and autonomy) as a framework, the text provides a succinct history of relations from latin american independence through the covid-19 era before then examining critical contemporary issues such as immigration, human rights, and challenges to us hegemony. engaging pedagogical features such as timelines, research questions, and annotated resources appear throughout the text, along with relevant excerpts from primary source documents. the third edition features a new chapter on the role of extrahemispheric actors such as china and russia, as well as a significantly revised chapter on citizen insecurity that examines crime, drug trafficking, and climate change. instructor resources include a test bank, lecture slides, and discussion questions.

Within these pages students will meet bartolomé de las casas, the stout defender of the indigenous americans in 16th-century spanish america, and antonio vieira, his 17th-century counterpart in brazil. they will critically examine columbus's role in the iberian conquest of america, and encounter isabel moctezuma, a "pioneer of mestizaje"; juan garrido, a black conquistador; sor juana de la cruz, "supreme poet" of the 17th-century spanish world; tupac amaru, the leader of the last inca rebellion; and the german savant alexander von humboldt. finally, they will read about the nameless men and women — spanish, portuguese, indigenous american, and african — whose collective stories make the history of 300 years ago more comprehensible to our contemporary mentalities.

Since 1999, the u.s. latino & latina wwii oral history project at the university of texas at austin has captured the untold stories of this wwii generation. altogether, the project videotaped more than five hundred interviews throughout the country and in puerto rico and mexico. this volume features summaries of the interviews and photographs of the individuals. among the people included are mexican american civil rights leaders such as pete tijerina and albert armendariz of the mexican american legal defense and educational fund (maldef) and virgilio roel of the league of united latin american citizens (lulac). others are community leaders such as pete and elena gallego of alpine, texas, and military leaders such as colonel hank cervantes and flying ace richard candelaria. women who served in the military are also included. there are academic trailblazers, too, such as frank bonilla, who became a major figure in puerto rican studies. and there are a few latinos who describe serving in segregated "colored" units during the war, as their physical features placed them in african american communities. overall, the vast majority of the men and women interviewed in a legacy greater than words led private lives, and their stories chronicle the everyday existence of latinos in the 1930s and 1940s—stories that generally have been omitted from historical accounts of either the great depression or world war ii.

Winner, american library association booklist’s top of the list, 2019 adult nonfiction longlisted for the 2020 andrew carnegie medals for excellence against the background of a thousand years of vivid history, acclaimed writer marie arana tells the timely and timeless stories of three contemporary latin americans whose lives represent three driving forces that have shaped the character of the region: exploitation (silver), violence (sword), and religion (stone). leonor gonzales lives in a tiny community perched 18,000 feet above sea level in the andean cordillera of peru, the highest human habitation on earth. like her late husband, she works the gold mines much as the indians were forced to do at the time of the spanish conquest. illiteracy, malnutrition, and disease reign as they did five hundred years ago. and now, just as then, a miner’s survival depends on a vast global market whose fluctuations are controlled in faraway places. carlos buergos is a cuban who fought in the civil war in angola and now lives in a quiet community outside new orleans. he was among hundreds of criminals cuba expelled to the us in 1980. his story echoes the violence that has coursed through the americas since before columbus to the crushing savagery of the spanish conquest, and from 19th- and 20th-century wars and revolutions to the military crackdowns that convulse latin america to this day. xavier albó is a jesuit priest from barcelona who emigrated to bolivia, where he works among the indigenous people. he considers himself an indian in head and heart and, for this, is well known in his adopted country. although his aim is to learn rather than proselytize, he is an inheritor of a checkered past, where priests marched alongside conquistadors, converting the natives to christianity, often forcibly, in the effort to win the new world. ever since, the catholic church has played a central role in the political life of latin america—sometimes for good, sometimes not. in silver, sword, and stone marie arana seamlessly weaves these stories with the history of the past millennium to explain three enduring themes that have defined latin america since pre-columbian times: the foreign greed for its mineral riches, an ingrained propensity to violence, and the abiding power of religion. what emerges is a vibrant portrait of a people whose lives are increasingly intertwined with our own.

Winner, american library association booklist’s top of the list, 2019 adult nonfiction longlisted for the 2020 andrew carnegie medals for excellence against the background of a thousand years of vivid history, acclaimed writer marie arana tells the timely and timeless stories of three contemporary latin americans whose lives represent three driving forces that have shaped the character of the region: exploitation (silver), violence (sword), and religion (stone). leonor gonzales lives in a tiny community perched 18,000 feet above sea level in the andean cordillera of peru, the highest human habitation on earth. like her late husband, she works the gold mines much as the indians were forced to do at the time of the spanish conquest. illiteracy, malnutrition, and disease reign as they did five hundred years ago. and now, just as then, a miner’s survival depends on a vast global market whose fluctuations are controlled in faraway places. carlos buergos is a cuban who fought in the civil war in angola and now lives in a quiet community outside new orleans. he was among hundreds of criminals cuba expelled to the us in 1980. his story echoes the violence that has coursed through the americas since before columbus to the crushing savagery of the spanish conquest, and from 19th- and 20th-century wars and revolutions to the military crackdowns that convulse latin america to this day. xavier albó is a jesuit priest from barcelona who emigrated to bolivia, where he works among the indigenous people. he considers himself an indian in head and heart and, for this, is well known in his adopted country. although his aim is to learn rather than proselytize, he is an inheritor of a checkered past, where priests marched alongside conquistadors, converting the natives to christianity, often forcibly, in the effort to win the new world. ever since, the catholic church has played a central role in the political life of latin america—sometimes for good, sometimes not. in silver, sword, and stone marie arana seamlessly weaves these stories with the history of the past millennium to explain three enduring themes that have defined latin america since pre-columbian times: the foreign greed for its mineral riches, an ingrained propensity to violence, and the abiding power of religion. what emerges is a vibrant portrait of a people whose lives are increasingly intertwined with our own.

Combining history with discussions of dramatic cinema, based on a true story: latin american history at the movies examines how film has portrayed latin america from the late fifteenth century to the present. the book opens with an introduction on the visual presentation of the past in the movies, while the rest of the book consists of essays that explore the best feature films on latin america from the professional historian's perspective.

Combining history with discussions of dramatic cinema, based on a true story: latin american history at the movies examines how film has portrayed latin america from the late fifteenth century to the present. the book opens with an introduction on the visual presentation of the past in the movies, while the rest of the book consists of essays that explore the best feature films on latin america from the professional historian's perspective.