Koncocoo

Best Bolivian History

Exploration Fawcett: Journey to the Lost City of Z
This thrilling and mysterious account of Fawcett’s ten years of travels in deadly jungles and forests in search of a secret city was compiled by his younger son, Fawcett's companion on his journeys, from manuscripts, letters, and logbooks. This is a stirring and sensitive record, well written by a true explorer whose trail ended in jungle asterisks―a book to live in, if one has old Fawcett's heart.
Reviews
"Still reading this fascinating book, and shall pass it on to other family members that are intrigued by some of the great mysteries in this world."
"Very interesting book."
"There is a mpa included in the book with each expedition route marked."
"It is a terrific account of Fawcett's Sth American explorations - and now made even more enjoyable by the fact that many of the places he visited are now ones I have travelled to as well."
"This is among the best true adventure books ever."
"Great book!"
"Great book...........Could not put it down."
"I REALLY APPRECIATE THIS FIRST HAND ACCOUNT PUT TOGETHER BY FAWCETT'S SON YOU CAN TELL THE FRUSTRATION FAWCETT HAD OVER DEALING WITH THE DRUNKS THAT WORKED FOR HIM, AND ALSO THE ONES THAT COULDN'T TAKE THE PHYICAL ENDURANCE REQUIRED TO MAKE THE TRIP."
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Exploration Fawcett: Journey to the Lost City of Z
This thrilling and mysterious account of Fawcett’s ten years of travels in deadly jungles and forests in search of a secret city was compiled by his younger son, Fawcett's companion on his journeys, from manuscripts, letters, and logbooks. COLONEL PERCY HARRISON FAWCETT was born in 1867 in Devon, England. He found himself bored with Army life and learned the art of surveying, hoping to land a more interesting job.
Reviews
"Still reading this fascinating book, and shall pass it on to other family members that are intrigued by some of the great mysteries in this world."
"Very interesting book."
"There is a mpa included in the book with each expedition route marked."
"It is a terrific account of Fawcett's Sth American explorations - and now made even more enjoyable by the fact that many of the places he visited are now ones I have travelled to as well."
"This is among the best true adventure books ever."
"Great book!"
"Great book...........Could not put it down."
"I REALLY APPRECIATE THIS FIRST HAND ACCOUNT PUT TOGETHER BY FAWCETT'S SON YOU CAN TELL THE FRUSTRATION FAWCETT HAD OVER DEALING WITH THE DRUNKS THAT WORKED FOR HIM, AND ALSO THE ONES THAT COULDN'T TAKE THE PHYICAL ENDURANCE REQUIRED TO MAKE THE TRIP."
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Lost Ancient Technology Of Peru And Bolivia
Rather than simply being the exclusively the works of cultures such as the Inca, there are many megalithic wonders which defy both the conventional time lines and known levels of technology attributed to the ancient people of South America.
Reviews
"Very interesting and educational."
"It is an interesting book about the ancient buildings of Peru and Bolivia and who might have constructed them."
"Good photos."
"I like this book."
"Very Good Book, Very Informative a must read for any one who are interested in Ancient Civilizations / Technology.."
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Best Brazilian History

The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey
Together with his son Kermit and Brazil’s most famous explorer, Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it. Along the way, Roosevelt and his men faced an unbelievable series of hardships, losing their canoes and supplies to punishing whitewater rapids, and enduring starvation, Indian attack, disease, drowning, and a murder within their own ranks. The beauty of this story is not just that Roosevelt’s rich history could spawn a thousand adventure stories, but that Millard’s experience with National Geographic is evident in her beautiful scenic descriptions and grisly depictions of the Amazon’s man-eating catfish, ferocious piranhas, white-water rapids, and prospect of starvation.
Reviews
"I learned a lot about Theodore Roosevelt and his families’ lives, political and world events during that era , Amazon exploration, geography, and the convergence of “civilized” versus Indian cultures."
"The author also does a great job of adding color to the story by explaining things that the participants themselves had now way of knowing such as dangers of the jungle and its inhabitants that were completely obscured to the expedition party."
"Not the best book I've ever read, but a fun story and a nice start to learning about Roosevelt."
"Theodore Roosevelt, like Abraham Lincoln, was a fascinating person on many levels, and, as such, it is easy to be captivated by him. But writing about his life and his accomplishments is a lot easier than conveying the the heart and soul of the man. If all the things that occur in a person's life, the thoughts, the feelings, the events big and small, the intersecting lives, the loves, the friends, the enemies, the colleagues, the rivals all could be represented as strings, Ms. Millard shows the weaving of these strings into the rope that was the man himself. Hostile natives; blistering heat; ferocious animals, seen and unseen; rain; disease; floods."
"The end result of reading this book is a desire to learn more about Theodore Roosevelt (and maybe re-read a couple of Tarzan novels) and that, I think, is the measure of good biography."
"This book was well researched and well written with a mix of quotes from journals of the explorers with added background information on the Amazon rain forest that included research from before and since 1912."
"I had recently read Edmund Morris's second volume on TR and subsequently waded through Doris Kearns Goodwin's Bully Pulpit. She managed to make things that I would probably never consciously choose to read about (like the Amazon ecosystem) riveting to read about. In fact, I immediately ordered and read Millard's second book (Destiny of the Republic) about the assassination of James Garfield."
"Hated to see this book end but immediately purchased Millards "Destiny Of The Republic"; the story of the attempted assassination of James Garfield and its extraordinary aftermath."
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Best Colombian History

Forgotten Peace: Reform, Violence, and the Making of Contemporary Colombia (Violence in Latin American History)
Forgotten Peace examines Colombian society’s attempt to move beyond the Western Hemisphere’s worst mid-century conflict and shows how that effort molded notions of belonging and understandings of the past. In a vivid narrative that traces the interactions of local actors, intellectuals, and the Colombian state, Karl provides an entirely new explanation for the emergence of the FARC guerrillas from an ambivalent and fragmented peace process.”—Nancy P. Appelbaum, author of Mapping the Country of Regions: The Chorographic Commission of Nineteenth-Century Colombia.
Reviews
"I read Karl's book in preparation for a radio interview with the author, and as someone who lives, works and studies in Colombia I found it to be insightful, in-depth and very digestible."
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Best Chilean History

Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free
The exclusive, official story of the survival, faith, and family of Chile's thirty-three trapped miners. “Weaving together the drama of the miners' harrowing ordeal below ground with the anguish of families and rescuers on the surface, Tobar delivers a masterful account of exile and human longing, of triumph in the face of all odds. Taut with suspense and moments of tenderness and replete with a cast of unforgettable characters, Deep Down Dark ranks with the best of adventure literature. As Tobar works his way through each miner's recovery, the TV headlines recede from our memory, and a more delicate series of portraits emerges.” ― Noah Gallagher Shannon, The Washington Post. Whether the story is completely new to you, or if you were one of the millions glued to the news reports and wondering, will they make it--physically, emotionally, spiritually--you'll be greatly rewarded to learn how they did.” ― Mac McClelland, The New York Times Book Review. A novelist and Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, [Tobar] combines a historian's eye for context with a gifted storyteller's ear for minor-key character traits . “If Dante's Inferno was a real place, it would look and feel like the subterranean fever dream Héctor Tobar describes in Deep Down Dark . Taking us into the post-apocalyptic landscape of Chile's Atacama Desert and guiding us through the labyrinthine hell of the world's most famous mine accident, Tobar's taut narrative plumbs the depths not only of the mine itself, but of the 33 trapped miners' hearts and souls as they fight for life, and reconcile themselves--first, to death, and then to the far more challenging task of surviving. “Héctor Tobar takes us so far down into the story and lives of the Chilean miners that his reconstruction of a workplace disaster becomes a riveting meditation on universal human themes. “In this masterful dissection of the 2010's dramatic sixty-nine day ordeal by thirty-three trapped Chilean miners, Héctor Tobar weaves a suspenseful narrative that moves back and forth between the waking nightmares of the buried men, and those of their families on the earth's surface. “It's almost hard to believe that Héctor Tobar wasn't himself one of the trapped Chilean miners, so vivid, immediate, terrifying, emotional, and convincing is his Homeric narration of this extraordinary incident. Deep Down Dark is a literary masterpiece of narrative journalism, surgical in its reconstruction, novelistic in its explorations of human personality and nuance. In a manner that feels spiritual, Tobar puts himself at the service of his story, and his fidelity to and unquenchable curiosity about every fact and detail generates unforgettable wonderment and awe.” ― Francisco Goldman. I know 2014 still has three months left to go, but I don’t expect to find anything I liked better than Héctor Tobar’s Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free. You know the story – 33 men were buried in a spectacular mine collapse, stayed underground for two months, and then were rescued, all of them unharmed.
Reviews
"33 men: 69 days unimaginable but it happened in Chile in 2010. Until now it was one of those news stories we all remember but Hector Tobar has brought these men to live as human beings; fathers, brothers, husbands and sons. The truth about the conditions is as bad as one would imagine but to hear it told straight from the miners experiences is heart wrenching but also speaks to the human spirit and ones ability to survive even under the worst conditions. These men experienced a full gamete of emotions: hope, despair, loneliness, companionship, isolation, encouragement, depression."
"The book, a chronology of the events and a collection of portraits of the men both above and below ground, is the first of its kind, honoring an agreement the miners made to one another to tell their story only as a group. Tobar begins DEEP DOWN DARK with a description of the San José mine: a rocky, lifeless mountain situated in the Atacama Desert of Chile. Tobar, however, eagerly invites readers into this male-dominated world, exposing the dilapidation and ever-blowing dust of the mine and preparing them for the miners’ eerie descent into the depths of the earth. As they prepare to enter the mine shaft, Tobar handles their characters with great care, presenting them neither as heroes nor villains, but as regular men dealing with the monotony and banality of working life. Still, their personalities begin to shine --- from Mario Sepúlveda, nicknamed Perri (short for “Perrito,” or “small dog”) for his canine-like loyalty and aggression, to Yonni Barrios, a paunchy Romeo who moves between the homes of his wife and girlfriend depending on their moods. Tobar takes readers through the day, weaving personal details and stories seamlessly with the plot, distinguishing each of the 33 miners from one another with nicknames and humorous anecdotes. Others, like the young Bolivian immigrant Carlos Mamani, were terrified and took shelter in the Refuge, a fortified room within the mine stocked with basic medical supplies and enough food for about 15 men to survive for only a few days. His talent for pen portraits continues as he exposes the miners’ family members --- their dramas, fears and hopes --- accurately without feeling vulgar or voyeuristic. The owners of the San José appear to have completely given up, making the collapse a disaster of the people, uniting estranged families and unconnected citizens alike. It is at this point that they deliver their world famous message “Estamos bien en el refugio, los 33.” Though it seems that all will be well from now on, Tobar carefully details the dangers still present: the miners must learn to eat normally again, several of them have entered the early stages of kidney failure, and their hope is dwindling. Exposing the days of the miners post-contact is the greatest strength of Tobar’s book, as people worldwide focused only on the excitement of the men, rather than the agony of their time spent waiting for rescue even after contact was made. Tobar is quick to point out that their journey is not over, with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and the pains of celebrity making their transitions even more difficult, but they are alive and stronger than ever before."
"I have absolutely no sense of how large or small their underground space was but just the thought of being buried alive scares most people, and these guys had to endure that situation, the longer time was while they were waiting to be drilled out."
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Best Guyanan History

The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple
By the New York Times bestselling author of Manson , the comprehensive, authoritative, and tragic story of preacher Jim Jones, who was responsible for the Jonestown Massacre—the largest murder-suicide in American history. In this riveting narrative, Jeff Guinn examines Jones’s life, from his extramarital affairs, drug use, and fraudulent faith healing to the fraught decision to move almost a thousand of his followers to a settlement in the jungles of Guyana in South America. The level of research and detail in The Road to Jonestown is the best ever, and really lets readers understand not only what happened, but how and why. “Jeff Guinn offers what might be the most complete picture to date of this tragic saga, and of the man who engineered it. The result is a disturbing portrait of evil — and a compassionate memorial to those taken in by Jones’ malign charisma.” (Kevin Canfield The San Francisco Chronicle ). Guinn's exhaustive research, shrewd analysis, and engaging prose illuminate a monstrous yet tragic figure--and the motives of those who lost their souls to him." The book reads like a thriller, each page forcing your attention to the next as the Peoples Temple slowly slides from groundbreaking progressivism toward madness.” (Kevin J. Hamilton Seattle Times ). "A vivid, fascinating revisitation of a time and series of episodes fast receding into history even as their forgotten survivors still walk among us."
Reviews
"The lesson then, and it certainly applies today: when you listen only to one point of view, and surround yourself only with people who agree with you, you lose the ability to think for yourself."
"Interesting story."
"The life and times of Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple presented in a fair accounting based on the tales of those that were there."
"Great book on a very important subject matter."
"Guinn's well researched account of the life and impact of Jim Jones is a story of a descent into madness, deceit, and murder."
"A well-researched, nightmarish book."
"good book, terrible memories, how do these things happen."
"Can't wait to read it.....arrived in 2 days."
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Best Argentinian History

Hitler in Argentina: The Documented Truth of Hitler's Escape from Berlin (The Hitler Escape Trilogy)
This book not only tells of the escape of Adolf Hitler, Eva Braun and others of the Third Reich; it includes photographs, files from the FBI, CIA and OSS that show the US knew they escaped, interviews and much more.
Reviews
"Good for a self published book."
"This was given as a gift for a Birthday."
"A wonderfully researched, poorly written and possibly never edited journey back to Hitlerian Deceit."
"Bought this for my son who loves to watch Finding Hitler with us."
"Interesting and seems very likely."
"I had learned of some of this information during the 1980's, and it was good to see that substantial revision of. this work occurred in 2014 when FOIA finds were attached to the book showing that the CIA had excellent knowledge. of Hitler's presence in South America."
"I have read several books on this subject before and knew all about San Carlos de Barriloche but this provided DETAIL in a way that others don't. Because there are SO many references , it's rather turgid to read as there are, literally, pages and pages of them but I checked a few and , lo & behold, they are accurate and confirm the text."
"Mucha fantasía agregada a hechos reales."
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Best Ecuadoran History

How Forests Think: Toward an Anthropology Beyond the Human
Can forests think? The semiotics in this well-wrought book are technical, worked, demanding, tuned to form and modality, alert to emergent properties, multinaturally and ethnographically precise. Besides all that, this book is a powerfully good read, one that changed my dreams and reworked my settled habits of interpretation, even the multispecies ones.” -- Donna Haraway, UC Santa Cruz. “I can only call this thought-leaping in the most creative sense. “A remarkable aspect of [this book] is the complex – and often beautifully written – intermingling of subtle theoretical propositions with an even subtler ethnography.” — Philippe Descola, Collège de France.
Reviews
"Not a book to be read quickly."
"This work reaches beyond the limitations of language and dominant frameworks of thought."
"Dense, but amazing if you make the effort of really understanding his argument."
"In this study, ethnography is not an object, but a medium to comprehend multiple ontologies; hence, it is much different from traditional anthropological works, which mostly focus on cultural representations. Without giving up being “human,” the writer discloses how our “selves” are interwoven with other “beings.” In this sense, he offers us to approach the human and non-human as active agents in our thinking of anthropological study. Rather, Kohn criticizes human-centric approach of the Western anthropology by focusing on other-than-human beings, and he proves us the importance of studying human within a relationship with its surroundings. Therefore, he draws our attention to the revolutionary potentials and scholarly possibilities of studying another type of anthropology, in which we open up ourselves to various "selves." His study converts Redfieldian notion of “worldviews” into different “worlds” of non-human beings. Focusing on the potentials of thinking beyond human in anthropology, he provides alternative ways of thinking within scholarly language and unconventional ways of using ethnography. Is there any relationship between their colonial history and their hesitation to use power upon other beings in their surrounding? Yes, the language is tough, and it necessitates from the reader to have some background information on semiotics, ontology, and epistemology to the extent of postmodernism and posthuman critics. I do not think that the book is for the general reader, but inevitably an innovative contribution to anthropology with its writing performance. Among the non-textual ways of communication with the reader, the writer’s use of photography perfectly fits with the philosophical profundity of the text. Although his book is not considered as a traditional ethnography for the reasons that I mentioned above, since he opens up the scholarly work into dialogic epistemologies and provides multiplicity of experiences from an unconventional inter-species analysis of subject-object relationships, it must be considered one of the finest examples of critical ethnography."
"In 'How Forests Think,' the author, Eduardo Kohn, has undertaken an ambitious project, challenging anthropology to be inclusive of non-human life. To carry out this project, Mr. Kohn has employed 4 perspectives; ecology, colonial history, semiotics, and the Runa, an indigenous group in the Amazon rain forest of Ecuador. Yet, we do need to subscribe to a view that sees life as inherently symbolic, sentient, and made up of a multitude of selves that an anthropology beyond the human needs to recognize. He also seems to be saying that we need to recognize that life has some type of animating presence propelling it forward, whether we recognize this animating presence as spirit informing matter or some kind of intrinsic geometric sign system is up to us, but an anthropology beyond the human cannot move forward without adopting a viewpoint similar to this, because an anthropology beyond the human would have to honor life in all of its diverse aspects. As a reader it is challenging to mine the gems that are in this book and it may take more than one reading and some reflection to understand everything that Mr. Kohn says, since there is so much set on the feast table."
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Best Uruguayan History

Days and Nights of Love and War
Alternating between reportage, personal vignettes, interviews, travelogues, and folklore, and richly conveyed with anger, sadness, irony, and occasional humor, Galeano pays loving tribute to the courage and determination of those who continued to believe in, and fight for, a more human existence. "'Days and Nights succeeds not only because of its socio-political authenticity and lyrical style but because of its anger and tenderness, elation and sorrow.'.
Reviews
"Eduardo Galeano's 'Days and Nights of Love and War' moved me in a way few books have the power to do."
"A must read if Americans want to know the damage caused by its policies and those of its corporations in Latin America."
"Lacks the poetry and intensity of the. trilogy"Memory of fire".Its ok. but fails to take flight."
"One of the best books I've ever read."
"In fighting the dominant system, one must remember and care for the tiny and profound details that make the world a place worth fighting for."
"The personal testimony of one of Latin America's foremost contemporary political writers, Eduardo Galeano's Days And Nights Of Love And War blends memoir journaling with an eloquent history to record the lives and struggles of the Latin American people under two decades of unimaginable violence and extreme repression."
"Galeano's collection of thoughts and essays and stories stirs the emotions of the reader and forces them to consider the entirety of the Latin American canon of literature as a formidable one."
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Best Venezuelan History

Bruchko And The Motilone Miracle: How Bruce Olson Brought a Stone Age South American Tribe into the 21st Century
It shows how, despite incredible dangers and obstacles, one humble man and a tribe of primitive, violent Indians by joining together in simple obedience have been transformed forever by the sovereign will of god. Bruce Olson, born in Minnesota and now a citizen of Colombia, is a linguist and graduate of sociology from a South American university.
Reviews
"Sad that the encroachment of society is a reality."
"If you are called to missions, contemplating a call or anyway involved in missions, BRUCHKO along with this sequel are must reading."
"Amazing book."
"I think this man has had a great impact on the Motilone Indians in South America. Bruce, an American, has lived in the jungles of of Columbia and Venezuela for most of his life, giving up all the creature comforts of modern day culture. I recommend reading the first Bruchko book first, which tells about his early life and how he got to the jungle."
"This book is so good I've purchased it 4 times over the years."
"I agree with the reviewers who said this is one of the best missions books ever,."
"Worthwhile reading of the best quality."
"Also it is defining the element of power and greed and the havoc it causes to people that just want to be happy and live their life in peace."
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Best Paraguayan History

The Chaco War 1932–35: South America’s greatest modern conflict (Men-at-Arms)
The Chaco War was massive territorial war between Bolivia and Paraguay, which cost almost a 100,000 lives. - Scott Van Aken, Modelling Madness "Throughout the book are a superb collection of period photos and illustrations.
Reviews
"Bolivia and Paraguay battled for control of a vast wasteland in the interior of South America, thought to possess petroleum reserves. The book opens with an introduction to the conflict, followed by brief descriptions of the forces of each, and an extended narrative of the military operations."
"Infantry, artillery, aircraft and armor followed the same patterns used in the Spanish Civil War. The author breaks down the war into its three phases; Bolivian assault on the Paraguayan fortified line anchored on Nanawa, Fortin Boqueron and Lopez. I have suggested both the Bay of Pigs and the Chaco War at the Website since they started asking for suggestions."
"Anyone who is familiar with Osprey's Men-at-Arms series knows exactly what this book looks and reads like. The book is divided into the following sections: Introduction, Paraguayan Forces (including a section on the Navy), Bolivian Forces, Military Operations (which breaks the war into 3 phases: 7/32-12/33, 1/34-12/34, and 12/34-6/35, with a 1/2-page insert on the Mennonite Colonies), Weapons (broken out by Infantry, Artillery, and Armored vehicles), Air War (divided into Combat operations, General air support, Naval air operations, and Wartime procurement), and Foreign Involvement. It may not be very deep but it is very broad, covering pretty much every significant aspect of the war except for the home fronts. All of the other primary books in English are either out of print (e.g., Zook), very expensive (e.g., English's recent The Green Hell or Farcau's book from the 1990s), or limited to a single aspect of the conflict (e.g., Hagendorn & Sapienza's Aircraft of the Chaco War)."
"As the title states, this was South America's greatest war, and introduced the use of modern weapons there, and although I respect the bravery and toughness of those who served in it, which in some instances staggers belief, it was a cruel, ruinous and basically pointless fight, as you'll see if you buy this book."
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Best Peru History

Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time
While history has recast Bingham as a villain who stole both priceless artifacts and credit for finding the great archeological site, Mark Adams set out to retrace the explorer’s perilous path in search of the truth—except he’d written about adventure far more than he’d actually lived it. “Adams deftly weaves together Inca history, Bingham's story, and his own less heroic escapade....Those favoring a quirkier retelling [of Bingham's exploits] will relish Mr. Adam's wry, revealing romp through the Andes.”— The Wall Street Journal.
Reviews
"Mark Adams' account of his adventure has something for everyone...the middle aged male who shucks the cubicle for adventure, the adventurer who wants an authentic account of exploring the still remote corners of the globe and most...those who have long thought of making the trek to Peru and Machu Picchu."
"I now know going anywhere other than from Cusco to Machu Picchu requires preparedness and awareness to keep from getting into trouble with vicious plants and stupid mistakes that can wreck things in a hurry."
"Having been to Machu Picchu 32 years ago I thoroughly enjoyed reading Mark's account of his travels there."
"If you are a true adventurer, then this is the book for you!"
"Part travelogue, part personal narrative, part history lesson, it read like a novel and I enjoyed the author's humor and turn of phrase."
"I ordered this book on a whim 3 days before a trip to Peru, figuring I ought to learn as much as possible during my short travel opportunity."
"This book was not only an enjoyable read, but also a perfect preview before our trip to Peru."
"My wife and I were lucky enough to visit Cusco and Machu Picchu, which attracted me to the book."
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Best Surinamese History

Stedman's Surinam: Life in an Eighteenth-Century Slave Society. An Abridged, Modernized Edition of Narrative of a Five Years Expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam
This abridgment of the Prices' acclaimed 1988 critical edition is based on Stedman's original, handwritten manuscript, which offers a portrait at considerable variance with the 1796 classic. Richard Price is the author of twelve books, including an earlier work on the Saramaka people, the award-winning First Time: The Historical Vision of an Afro-American People .
Reviews
"The book enabled me to learn about the author personally plus gave more genealogy with his family noted, but also was quite enlightening about life during slavery times in the British-held possessions....It gave horrible ancedotes of the severity treatment and cruelty to others."
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