ilana
An introspective, idiosyncratic, emotional travelogue-cum-memoir that explores the author's personal identity as a Latin American (and US American) Jew as much as it explores the Jewish histories of various Latin American countries. I found by turns deeply moving, circuitous, and sometimes funny. It was deeply immersive, as well - I really feel, having read it, that I've somehow visited all the places Stavans describes alongside the author, and been physically present for the conversations he has with his many, many interlocutors throughout the text. The diversion toward Europe at the very end of the book was surprising and very effective in disturbing the reader, jolting me from the complacency I felt upon reaching the end of the book, which - up until the last few pages - was wrapping up in a satisfying and unsurprising way. I don't know if Stavans intended to upset the expectations of the reader, but I thought that this choice was very effective in complicating the narrative of the book up until that point (as though it wasn't already complicated enough!). A great read, on the whole.
There are a couple criticisms; there was an oddly large number of typos that should have been caught by a copy-editor (minor misspellings, forgotten prepositions, etc.). This was annoying to me, because Stavans is both an engaging storyteller and a reputable scholar, and a book by such an author should not be riddled with so many typographical errors that it puts the reader in mind of a self-published novelette on Amazon.
While the book is now a little out of date (roughly 14 years at the time I read it), this book is a fairly exhaustive, yet accessible overview of the history of the Latin American and Caribbean countries. I found it less accessible and more academic than Mann's [b:1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus 39020 1491 New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus Charles C. Mann https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1545238592l/39020.SY75.jpg 38742], and more accessible and slightly less polemical than Galeano's [b:Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent 187149 Open Veins of Latin America Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent Eduardo Galeano https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1413515169l/187149.SY75.jpg 771351]. (That it's less of a polemic than Open Veins is not necessarily a mark in its favour; it's really a neutral fact, but worth mentioning in the context of Open Veins)I read this book primarily because I wanted more insight into Latin American history and didn't know where to start. I definitely got what I needed from it, and I think it will function well as a jumping off point from which I can more easily ascertain what to read next and how to evaluate potential material.
