Caribbean

by James Ferguson

Book Overview

A concise and authoritative history of the entire region covering the large islands such as Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas to the smaller... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1566562821
• ISBN13: 9781566562829
• Release Date: January 1998
• Publisher: Interlink Books
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.1" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

An outstanding history of the West Indies

In spite of its title, this fine book is simply a comprehensive history of the West Indies. There is scant mention of the wider, mainland Caribbean, and it's not just for travelers. That said, it is an authoritative, complete history of the area, in my view the best there is. I would like to think that travelers to the region would read a history such as this, but I'm sure they rarely do. Nonetheless, it is a very engaging read. If you like history, then by all means take it on your next cruise. The book begins with the first European contact and goes up to 2008, when it was published, covering Spanish, Dutch, British, French and American exploration and colonization of the region, as well as independence and post-independence. In addition to being well-written, I would like to note the typeface is pleasant on the eyes, the book is bound well, and it is cheap. The first edition was, in contrast, poorly bound and inclined to come apart. The second edition has a stout, seemingly plasticized cover that will travel well. Aside from that, there is little difference between the first and second editions; just a few sentences concerning recent history. I used this as a text for a course on peoples and cultures of the Caribbean and it worked well, in my opinion. You need to understand the history to understand these societies. Some of my students found it too detailed, but it is a complicated - and rather dramatic - history, with pirates, genocide, slavery and revolts.

Fascinating history

This book does a great job of tracing the history of the islands from their discovery by the Europeans, through colonial and modern times. The writing is scholarly and clear and the history is fabulously interesting. The material is actually rather intense, with topics like genocide of the locals, 100s of years of constant wars and horrific death rates for slaves, slavers and settlers but if you want to know how the islands got to their current political/cultural state you want to read this book. The history, justification and ultimate demise of slavery is exceptionally well covered. Both the larger and smaller islands get a lot of coverage and there is a tiny bit of information on Mexico, central and south America (in the context of the early explorations and European colonization). People interested in the Virgin Islands will be disappointed in the dearth of information. There is next to no history on the islands making up the USVI. While there is alot to like here, there is room for improvement. The primary problem is that there are nowhere near enough maps or drawings of famous people. The islands changed political hands MANY times and if you are not very familiar with the geography it is a bit mind boggling. A bunch of maps showing who controlled what in different epochs would have really helped. This problem is made worse because the main map on page 2 of the book shows the modern island/country names. I had to hit the web to figure out where important places are (like Saint Domingue because the map showing it is not where the territory is discussed). Similarly, there are so many important European rulers with their military commanders as well as the local leaders, it is exceptionally hard to keep track of who is who and having a face to go with the names would have really helped. Despite the shortcomings I strongly recommend this book for anyone who wants to understand the history of the Caribbean.

Good introduction to complex area

A good read, suitable for beach or pool-side, especially if in the Caribbean. Covers many topics, loops back to important islands more than once. Covers Puerto Rico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti in some detail. Dutch Caribbean also well covered. Smaller islands (Barbados, French Caribbean, etc.) not as well-covered because of smaller populations. Basically focuses most on islands, with little detail about adjoining continental nations. Very good place to start (or think about beginning) more Caribbean study.