mattd97's review
4.0
The most depressing book on foreign policy I've read in a while. The book focuses mostly on the commonalities between the Reagan/Bush administration's dealings with Central and South America. Certainly helps explain and provide context for the current situation.
jackwwang's review
3.0
An unfortunately forgettable book on a topic that deserves better. Grandin gets in his own way by not organizing the rich history he's mining from in a coherent way. American Imperialism in Latin America has way too much history to fit in 300 pages, I was hoping that this book would give me a good survey of the basic contours, but while the author DOES cover each country where the US had a significant influence, I came out of each story with more confusion. The author does not set enough context before each chapter, but dives right into indignant diatribes. I'm not saying the apparent anger in the text isn't warranted, but it gets in the way of readers looking to learn more about just what US involvement in this part of the world has been.
The most riveting parts of the books are on the period of violence, civil war, and death squad in Guatemala and El Salvador. There are some truly disturbing episodes described here, but, I suspect like many other Americans, the labels and the sides are muddled for me. I kept asking myself, just who are the Sandinistas? Which side is who on? It's a lot to keep track of.
Would have liked for the book also to cover more of US-Mexican relations going back two centuries, and also on the narcoviolence in the 90s in Colombia as well. On to the next bleak account of American neoimperialism....
The most riveting parts of the books are on the period of violence, civil war, and death squad in Guatemala and El Salvador. There are some truly disturbing episodes described here, but, I suspect like many other Americans, the labels and the sides are muddled for me. I kept asking myself, just who are the Sandinistas? Which side is who on? It's a lot to keep track of.
Would have liked for the book also to cover more of US-Mexican relations going back two centuries, and also on the narcoviolence in the 90s in Colombia as well. On to the next bleak account of American neoimperialism....
mrpink44's review
4.0
Grade: B+
A fascinating look at America's foreign policy and imperialist desires towards Latin America and how it shaped the war in Iraq. Grandin draws the line from 1970s America through the 1980s in Latin America and into the 21st century and the Iraq war. The promiment figures from the Iraq war (Cheney, Rumsfeld, Negroponte, etc...) all cut their teeth in Latin America during the 1980s; here they developed the propaganda, military techniques, and economic repression that would be brought to bear on Iraq. Bringing democracy, freedom, and free-market economics to Iraq in order to stabilize the region has resulted in the same outcome those objectives were supposed to meet, but failed, in Latin America. My only compliant - book could have easily been doubled in pages, if not tripled, in order to expand and espouse on his theories.
A fascinating look at America's foreign policy and imperialist desires towards Latin America and how it shaped the war in Iraq. Grandin draws the line from 1970s America through the 1980s in Latin America and into the 21st century and the Iraq war. The promiment figures from the Iraq war (Cheney, Rumsfeld, Negroponte, etc...) all cut their teeth in Latin America during the 1980s; here they developed the propaganda, military techniques, and economic repression that would be brought to bear on Iraq. Bringing democracy, freedom, and free-market economics to Iraq in order to stabilize the region has resulted in the same outcome those objectives were supposed to meet, but failed, in Latin America. My only compliant - book could have easily been doubled in pages, if not tripled, in order to expand and espouse on his theories.
quech87's review
2.0
The history of USA meddling in Latin America is as old as the US itself. And because of its ubiquitous nature it is missing from the daily news unlike the Middle East even though the strategies for the Middle East are formulated and tested in Latin America. This premise of the book is interesting and very important and the book should have been a great one considering the deep research author has done but for me the writing falls flat. Every chapter left me more confused than the previous one and after a few pages it was difficult to give the book required attention. The book is not contextualized properly though there is enough information for the reader to parse through on every page. I wish the book was more detailed and clear in its approach and writing. A big disappointment!