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The Peru Reader: History, Culture, Politics (The Latin America Readers) | 
 enlarge | Authors: Ivan Degregori, Robin Kirk
Creator: Orin Starn
Publisher: Duke University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $16.15
You Save: $9.80 (38%)
New (26) Used (10) from $16.00
Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 72322
Media: Paperback
Edition: 2
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 600
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.9
Dimensions (in): 9.2 x 5.9 x 1.6
ISBN: 0822336499
Dewey Decimal Number: 985
EAN: 9780822336495
ASIN: 0822336499
Publication Date: December 1, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Sixteenth-century Spanish soldiers described Peru as a land filled with gold and silver, a place of untold wealth. Nineteenth-century travelers wrote of soaring Andean peaks plunging into luxuriant Amazonian canyons of orchids, pythons, and jaguars. The early-twentieth-century American adventurer Hiram Bingham told of the raging rivers and the wild jungles he traversed on his way to rediscovering the “Lost City of the Incas,” Machu Picchu. Seventy years later, news crews from ABC and CBS traveled to Peru to report on merciless terrorists, starving peasants, and Colombian drug runners in the “white gold” rush of the coca trade. As often as not, Peru has been portrayed in broad extremes: as the land of the richest treasures, the bloodiest conquest, the most poignant ballads, and the most violent revolutionaries. This revised and updated second edition of the bestselling Peru Reader offers a deeper understanding of the complex country that lies behind these claims.Unparalleled in scope, the volume covers Peru’s history from its extraordinary pre-Columbian civilizations to its citizens’ twenty-first-century struggles to achieve dignity and justice in a multicultural nation where Andean, African, Amazonian, Asian, and European traditions meet. The collection presents a vast array of essays, folklore, historical documents, poetry, songs, short stories, autobiographical accounts, and photographs. Works by contemporary Peruvian intellectuals and politicians appear alongside accounts of those whose voices are less often heard?peasants, street vendors, maids, Amazonian Indians, and African-Peruvians. Including some of the most insightful pieces of Western journalism and scholarship about Peru, the selections provide the traveler and specialist alike with a thorough introduction to the country’s astonishing past and challenging present.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
 Review from Branddenotes.blogspot.com September 21, 2008
Really good collection of a variety of excerpts from some interesting books. A lot of good poetry too; like Osman Morote's "A Frightening Thirst for Violence":
"The dictator
shifts his gaze
and a rose
acclaimed as fragrant
falls, in a slice,
from just one
beheading
The dictator
swivels his hands
and
one worker
falls, the wife of a
worker
falls, the children of a
worker
fall
Oh!
what a frightening thirst
for vengeance
devours me"
Morote became the second-in-command in the Shining Path, which the book treats even-handedly, except it does tend to leave out sufficient details of the kind of daily suffering due to exploitation and inequality that led people like Morote to sacrifice his life. The book does include testimony from a government soldier, casually discussing his rapes, murders and tortures, and mentions that during the war, far more people were killed by the government than by the rebels. Some surprise.
The best instance of a description of the kind of reality people lived in - terribly far away from the wealth and comfort of rich countries - that would explain a bit about why people would give up their lives in the Shining Path or the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement to create a better society: another poem, an excerpt from "The Battle of Ayacucho" by Antonio Cisneros, which strips of glory the decisive battle that won Peru independence from Spain:
"...
From a Mother
again
My sons and the rest of the dead still
belong to the owner of the horses
and the owner of the lands, and the battles.
A few apple trees grow among their bones
and the tough gorse. That's how they fertilize
this dark tilled land,
That's how they serve the owner
of war, hunger, and the horses."
 Comprehensive Overview of Peru September 4, 2008
Excellent selections that give the reader a comprehensive overview of the fascinating country of Peru. Selections extend from pre-Inca to present day and include everything from politics to poetry. Filled with primary sources, the reader should appeal to both students and travelers alike.
A mixed bag of fascinating and important information on Peru May 11, 2008
This anthology contains materials written by Peruvians and by outsiders who have studied Peru closely.
The first half of the collection contains essays and excerpts from the writings about major historical events and some historical documents.
The second half of the book contains articles on Velasco Alvardo and the military reformist government, the Shining Path and drug traffic. There are also a wide range of materials: essays, folklore, poetry, songs, extracts from novels, short stories, autobiographical accounts, a menu, a travel account, a death sentence, and photographs and other materials.
Ruben Berrios wrote a scholarly review of the 1995 edition for the "Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs", Summer 1997, which is available online.
At this writing, Amazon allows one to search through part of the 1995 edition; it is worth searching out the 2005 edition. There are not a large number of changes from the first edition, but a few contributions explore more recent developments. The cover of the 1995 edition is in black and white; the cover of the 2005 edition is in color.
The book is too rich and complex to carry to Peru on a short tour, but is a great resource when preparing for your trip.
Robert C. Ross 2008
A must read for the history of Peru October 2, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
This is a great book for the history of Peru. The chronological order is perfect. All the essays are wonderful to read. I think I learned more about Peru with this book than any other.
The Peru Reader: Start Early! January 9, 2007
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
What a wonderfully literate collection of writings which give the traveler (actual or armchair) both the information and flavor he needs to introduce him to this complex country. I started too close to my departure for Peru to read every word, but found myself unable to decide what to skip. What seemed a boring topic turned out to be fascinating! So, start early -- the book is pretty bulky to carry on your trip.
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