
Book | A Continent of Islands: Searching for the Caribbean Destiny |
By | |
ISBN | 0201622319 |
ISBN-13 | 9780201622317 |
Publication | 28 March 2025 |
Number of Pages | 324 |
Format Type | Paperback |
Continent but only water island
He discusses such diverse and unexpected aspects of his subject as the politics of hurricanes how island leaders and their rivals take advantage of natural disasters to further their aims the effects of AIDS on sexual practices throughout the region the sections on Castro s handling of the AIDS emergency are particularly engrossing and the impact of American Fundamentalist proselytizing on traditional West Indian religious groups The author leavens his material by alternating these in depth discussions with amusing vignettes of some of his own experiences below the Tropic of Cancer His description of the arrival of the first McDonald s outlet on Barbados.
A continent of islands book summary
An interesting political and cultural portrait of the Caribbean English Interesting book I liked Kurlansky s Basque book the best and SALT was pretty good but this one was a bit uneven Still reading some of his observations about the Caribbean particularly environmental and anti colonial histories just got me interested in reading English Disturbing sad only read a dozen pages English I had read good reviews on some of his later stuff thought I d start with the beginning of his stuff. Continental islands in oceania It was a decent read Interesting English Kurlansky s A Continent of Islands does succeed as a history or a travelogue and it hardly current but if you want to get the flavor of Caribbean history without investing the time it takes to read through Eric Williams this book is worth ordering English A penetrating analysis of the social political sexual and cultural worlds that exist behind the four color Caribbean travel posters Page after page of highly original insights Kirkus Reviews In this richly detailed portrait of the individual countries and peoples of the Caribbean Mark Kurlansky brings to life a society and culture often kept hidden from foreigners the arts history politics and economics of the region as well as the vivid day to day lives of its citizens From the Newyoriccans of Levittown Puerto Rico to the state salaried popular musicians of Cuba to the practitioners of good political hurricanemanship who know how to stretch statistics to bring in relief funds A Continent of Islands paints portraits that will prove equally fascinating to tourists who know the Caribbean only as a string of beach resorts and to readers curious about U. Continent but only water island S efforts to influence its neighbors A Continent of Islands Searching for the Caribbean DestinyMark Kurlansky has written edited or contributed to twenty books which have been translated into twenty five languages and won numerous prizes His previous books Cod Salt 1968 and The Food of a Younger Land were all New York Times best sellers. A continent of islands searching for the caribbean destiny From Kirkus ReviewsA penetrating analysis of the social political sexual and cultural worlds that exist behind the four color Caribbean travel posters Kurlansky who reports on the Caribbean for The Chicago Tribune The New York Times etc. Book a continent of islands in europe has wide ranging interests Here for example is hilarious The Bajans originally excited at the prospect of Big Macs considered the burgers disappointing little bitty thing s when they finally appeared One of Kurlansky s major themes is the danger inherent in a tourism based island economy which he believes could lead to the corruption of West Indian culture He speaks eloquently about the cultural roots of the Caribbean peoples though he seems not fully aware of the discrepancies that lurk there pointing out for example that There are those Caribbeans usually lighter skinned who argue that Caribbeansuse their history as an excuseto avoid accepting responsibility. A continent of islands book download To fight this mentality is to fight the legacies of history Should be read by every West Indies traveler and even by old Caribbean hands who will find here page after page of highly original insights Black white photos not seen Copyright 1991 Kirkus Associates LP All rights reserved English After making a couple of cold weather escapes to Caribbean islands I decided that I didn t want to be the ugly American tourist that knows nothing about the places I visit other than I want that rum drink you people are known for and yes now please I began to look around for a comprehensive yet layperson friendly history of the Caribbean Imagine my surprise when I found this gem at my local library s used book sale I was excited to dig in but I am also just as excited to finally have finished this book While this was a great foundational read it was a bit of a slog I found myself wishing it had been of a country by country summary or big picture linear history starting pre settlement and working up to the present Instead this book examines the region through issues like hurricanes AIDS religion colonialism and politics each one typically centered in one particular island nation or territory The issue chapters are broken up by personal narratives and experiences from the author It s not a bad structure and I enjoyed the book but reading it over such a long period of time I m not sure how much of the content will stick with me and it wasn t something I couldn t wait to open each night Often my eyes would droop before I got anywhere close to my usual goal of finishing roughly a chapter per night The book also felt slightly dated I found myself wondering if the early 90s commentary still held true in today s world Still for any visitor that wants to dig in to the people and culture behind the perfect white sand beaches this is a worthwhile volume English Published in 1992 I was constantly wondering how this would read if Kurlansky were to update it for the two decades that have passed The biggest flaw is the same problem that the islands have in trying to achieve some kind of federation they are sufficiently different from one another that it was difficult to jump from one island to another in the chapters which are loosely organized by subject Nevertheless it is a convenient survey Kurlansky s suggested reading list at the end of the book runs to 11 pages English This was my first experience with Kurlansky a writer I have been very interested in reading I m not sure this was the best introduction In this one it feels like Kurlansky is trying to tackle too much This book feels disjointed and all over the place As he makes clear in the beginning the Caribbean is hard to define and encompasses a variety of nations and cultures It s clear that this book lacks a cohesive focus Kurlansky attempts to cover the politics religions music women s rights AIDS epidemic and for every country that he has defined as part of the Caribbean What we end up with is an unclear picture of a lot of things I think this would have worked better for me if Kurlansky had focused on one country or one issue across countries But still it was well written and managed to hold my interest most of the time I ll definitely be giving Kurlansky another shot English I read this book than 20 years ago shortly after it came out and read it again during a recent trip to the Caribbean it holds up well Still the only popular book I know of that looks at the Caribbean as a region and faces its tragic history Its episodic structure thematic chapters alternating with shorter vignettes seems just right for its subject which is divided by geography language race and much else but still has so much in common English
A Continent of Islands: Searching for the Caribbean Destiny By Mark Kurlansky |
0201622319 |
9780201622317 |
English |
324 |
Paperback |
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