Caribbean Books

While silk-screened images of Che abound on tee shirts around the world, few are aware of the study this leader of the Cuban revolution gave to economics, banking, finance, incentive systems, and, most important, the role of voluntary labor.

Introducing this book is a speech by Fidel Castro on the twentieth anniversary of Guevara's assassination. In it, Castro urges the world to take a good look at Guevara's contributions to creating a socialist society in Cuba. In reality, under the impact of opposing views, along with aid, from the then-Soviet Union, many of Guevara's ideas had been left by the wayside.

Castro's speech, given in 1987, was part of broad effort to return to the Guevara course-an effort to completely change society and, in the process, make it possible for human beings to change as well. The speech, and the book, take an honest look at Cuba's errors along the way -and the efforts made to correct them.

The essence of what Che stood for was well put by Castro, who said, "Che believed in man. And if we don't believe in man, if we think that man in an incorrigible little animal, capable of advancing only if you feed him grass or tempt him with a carrot or whip him with a stick--anybody who believes this, anybody convinced of this will never be a revolutionary..."

This is an award-winning book, specially praised by Fidel Castro when it appeared. It charts the revolutionary political and economic strategy that Che Guevara advance in building the Cuba revoltuion. Che besides being a political leader and an internationalist fighter, was one of the leaders of the economic struggle to build a socialist Cuba.

His ideas stand in start contrast to those that were advised by the Soviet Union and Cuban Communist Party members who had looked to the Soviet Union. Rather than the bureacuratic approach of centering on offering material incentives, and increasing social differentiation, Che put forward a strategy remarkably similar to that advanced by Lenin and Trotsky in their struggle with Stalin. Che believed that while economic growth had to be based on realism, science and the limiatations of the Cuban revolution, that the political mobilization of the Cuban masses, their attention to the world revolution, and the struggle against bureaucratic priveledge has to be at the center of the revolutionary Economy.

Tablada gives an excellent description of Che's ideas, not only in theory, but how they were practiced in the first five years of the Cuban revolution.

The publication of this book was a result of a renewed struggle by the Cuban revolutionists to revive Che's ideas and the struggle against buraucratic priviledge in Cuba after Cuba rejected the Soviet model at the end of the 1970s. This is why a Cuban socialist revolution, almost the total opposite of the Stalinist bureaucracies that collapsed in the USSR and Eastern Europe still stand.

Tablada is a clear writer who provides great explanations of complex economic concepts and clear documentation.

While this pamphlet is not always available on Amazon, it is always available from BooksfromPathfinder, an Amazon Z store that you can get to by clicking on New and Used further up this page!

This collection is a substantial contribution to this dynamic and emerging field.

Though this is a splendid academic book is easy to read and understand, Professor Angie Chabram-Dernersesian structured the book into six or seven sections, with cogent introductions for each section, she analyzes in depth such subjects as feminism, sexuality, race, power, politics, music, and culture.

This reader should be in the desks of professors and students in departments of Chicano Studies, American Studies, History, Communications, Ethnic Studies, Anthropology, Sociology and Cultural Studies for years to come.
The Chicana/o Cultural Studies Reader is a collection of works of the best Chicana/o Latina/o contemporary intellectuals.

I also recommended writings by Emma Perez, Cornell West, Larry Grossberg, Ramon Saldivar, Waneema Lubiano, Rosa Linda Fregoso, Ruth Frankenberg, Angela Davis, and Lata Mani among others. See list below:

Displacing Whiteness: Essays in Social and Cultural Criticism
White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness
Living Spirit, Living Practice: Poetics, Politics, Epistemology
Contentious Traditions: The Debate on Sati in Colonial India
Cultural Studies
MediaMaking: Mass Media in a Popular Culture
The House That Race Built: Original Essays by Toni Morrison, Angela Y. Davis, Cornel West, and Others on Bl ack Americans and Politics in America Today
Women, Race, & Class
The Bronze Screen: Chicana and Chicano Film Culture
The Decolonial Imaginary: Writing Chicanas into History (Theories of Representation and Difference)

Kudos to Chabram-Dernersesian. I strongly recommend this book . Definitely a page turner. Splendid alternative to most accounts of American & British cultural studies. First of its kind!

Book offers valuable insights into the field and supplies readers with foundational writings and debates. The multiple introductions are useful and give readers an idea of important sub-fields. The essays are refreshingly passionate and diverse. Over all this is a must for those who want to bridge ethnic, feminist, and cultural studies.

--I would also recommend the special issue of Chicana/o Latina/o Cultural Studies : Transnational and Transdisciplinary Movements (Cultural Studies : Volume 13, Issue 2)

I think this book is the best poems book that i have read,it express itself all the things you want to read either when you are feeling down or when you are feeling great, it told me a lot of things,it simply makes somebody believe in love,only for the deep meaning of every single word described on each poem....

I thinl this book is the best poems book that i have read,it express itself all the things you want to read either when you are feeling down or when you are feeling great, it told me a lot of things,it simply makes somebody believe in love,only for the deep meaning of every single word described on each poem....

The story of the first Spanish settlement in the New World and its relationship with the local Taino Indians on Hispanola. Established by Columbus in 1493 the settlement faced hard times to carve out an existence in a new land. This story uses archeological evidence and other sources to tell the story. A fascinating history that is both obscure, small and very colorful.

Seth J. Frantzman

I read it in three days.

A must have book for anyone interested in the Conquista and early colonization of the Caribbean and America in General. I also believe that anyone interested in the life and deeds of Christopher Columbus should read this work.

The authors' combination of archaeological excavation with documentary research is excellent and should serve as an example for future research projects. Furthermore, some of the discoveries they made will be quite unexpected and surprising for the general public, and even for those familiar with their work.

Despite the fact that both Deagan and Cruxent are highly regarded experts in Caribbean archaeology, they have written a book that can be enjoyed by the general public.

Its a great book in a field with very few references ( the trailer ) .
As a hollywood trailer researcher was very useful for me .
Congratulations to Lisa Kernan !

No matter whether you're a film professor, film industry professional, or just plain moviegoer, you'll never look at a trailer (movie preview) the same after reading this book. Written with academic rigor and thoroughness, it explains how previews came to referred to as trailers and analyzes trailers for their intended affect, subtext, and demographic. The book follows the author's passion for examining " the hypothetical spectator that can be read within the trailer texts themselves: an "audience study" who can read through the looking glass of the Hollywood film industry." She submits case studies of some 30 trailers, from Casablanca to Paper Moon to Air Force One, dividing them into three eras. By the end of the book you'll really appreciate these free mini-movie/commercials that we all alternately enjoy and hate yet use to decide whether to see a movie or not.

This is the best guide for Carribean Cruises! I checked out others before ordering this one and this one was the most comprehensive. I have never been on a cruise before but, after reading this book, I feel very prepared!

I'm in the travel industry and am oftentimes disappointed by the out-of-date information found in other cruise guides. I consider The Complete Guide to Caribbean Cruises, however, to be one of the absolute best resources to use when planning a cruise vacation. The guide has a great layout, is highly accurate, and provides the kind of information useful to both novice and "expert" cruisers.

In my opinion, The Complete Guide to Caribbean Cruises is a must read for anyone considering a cruise!

If you want great puertorican recipes, this is the book to buy. Great recipes, it reminds you of grandma's cooking.

This little cookbook is a work of art. As you read the recipes, all taken from San Germán local residents, you begin to get the varied flavors and influences of Puerto Rican foods in general, and local foods western part of the Island in detail. The illustrations are beautifully done, and Mrs. Vivoni's verses are the perfect accompaniment for this work of love. The recipes work, too! They were all tested and quantified. If you don't read Spanish, buy the English version. It's just as good.

This is a tremendously readable academic text. It is accesible enough for a layperson and very useful for academics.
Each spiritual tradition is placed within its historical and cultural context, and the authors very effectively trace their evolution based on the available sources.
I was especially pleased that they even mentioned some of the changes and adaptations that the traditions have experienced due to the migration of practitioners outside of the Caribbean.
An excellent place to start learning about Creole religions.

"Creole Religions of the Caribbean: An Introduction from Vodou and Santeria, to Obeah and Espiritismo (Religion, Race and Ethnicity" provides an excellent, scholarly over view of many religions and paths based on African Traditional Religion (ATR). This book paints a very clear portrait of what all of these practices have in common with each other and with ATR as well as how they differ. Anyone who studies Pan-African religions, comparative religion, African mythology and folklore or alternative spirituality, as well as those engaged in Caribbean studies will find "Creole Religions of the Caribbean" of great interest. There is no need to languish in mystery on these topics with such a solid piece of research as this on hand to resource. Written by two university professors "Creole Religons of the Caribbean" is not for the faint-hearted or light reader; this is the real deal.

More than humor, I remember this book for its poignancy, the effects on a young girl of her own culture (black, Caribbean) being denigrated and other cultures and anything associated with whiteness and England being praised. So touching was the scene where Tee is playing with dolls; so telling is her idealization of the dolls' world and the juxtaposition with her own.

Everyone wants the best for their children; this book examines how people decide what is best and how these preconceptions affect the very children they love and want to protect.

This is one of the rolicking, humorous West Indian novels in the vein of V.S. Naipaul's Miguel Street, Alvin Bennet's God, the Stonebreaker, Austin Clarke's Amongst the Thistles and Torns, and A House for Mr. Bishwas. It captures the bitter-sweet experiences of a little girl growing up in Trnidad and Tobago. An excellent Caribbean novel.

Esmeralda Santiago is one of Puerto Rico's natural treasures and one of America's favorite authors.

I'd describe this book as The American Dream, a Coming of Age story and being multi-cultural all in one, but its much more than that! What do I mean? Well, Ms. Santiago's skillful writing and ingenious use of words weave a story that beautifully frames a life from all sides: the 'ugly' is that her family lives in the most dire of circumstances both in Puerto Rico & New York, the 'bad' is that her father is a philander, the 'good' being that she comes from love and is loved. A good foundation to stand on.

Ms. Santiago is able to convey to us exactly how a young girl feels when her father is a philander (cheated and betrayed) and how she feels when her parents are getting along (happy and safe) and how fragile it all seems even through a child's eyes. Her mother's aspirations to live well and to see the beauty which frames all of life's bits and pieces no matter how dire circumstances may seem is the backbone of this story and (I believe) at the heart of Ms. Santiago's storytelling. I received both this book and 'The Turkish Lover' as Christmas gifts and I can tell just by these two books that I will add many more to my collection, the first addition being 'Almost a Woman' which is the next book after this one. Most definitely.

This is a rich and evocative memoir of the author's chaotic childhood. Growing up in rural Puerto Rico, while often living in primitive conditions, the author's lush and lyrical prose paints a vivid picture her early life. The flavor and rythms of her island home come alive under her expert hand, creating an unforgettable picture of her early childhood.

The author grew up in a poor family. During her childhood, she lived in Puerto Rico with her unmarried parents, who were always at war with each other, as her father was a somewhat irresponsible philanderer. It was her mother who centered the family and who always sought a better life for all of her children. When an irrevocable break occurred between her parents, her mother moved to New York during the nineteen sixties, eventually settling with her seven children in the mean streets of Williamsburg, Brooklyn in New York City.

The author details her life's journey from rural Puerto Rico to Brooklyn. The author was transplanted to Brooklyn at the age of thirteen, and her description of her life in Brooklyn is every bit as interesting as that of her life in Puerto Rico. Her oftentimes bewildering transition from her native, Spanish speaking Puerto Rico to an English speaking environment is engagingly chronicled. The author takes the reader on her journey through Brooklyn's public school system to the prestigious High School of Performing Arts, where she graduated and went on to attend Harvard University on a scholarship.

This coming of age memoir is so engagingly written that I was left with the desire of wanting to know more about the life of this remarkable woman. I was also very taken with her writing style. So, I went ahead and bought every book that this author has ever written and look forward to reading each and every one.