SILVER, SWORD AND STONE is a vibrant, sweeping history of Latin America, told through three compelling lenses.
The first, precious metal, of which silver is an enormous part, is an obsession that burned brightly in pre-Columbian times, consumed Spain in its relentless conquest of America, drove a system of exploitation, and has morphed into Latin America's hope for the future. The second, the 'sword', is the culture of violence: from the Aztec and Inca empires through the bloody nineteenth-century wars of independence to state terrorism, the Shining Path, and today's drug wars. The third, embodied in temples, elaborate cathedrals, or simple piles of rock, is the region's fervent adherence to religious institutions, built in stone.
The result is a dramatic portrait of a continent, brimming with colourful stories that cover a thousand years of history as well as real, living characters: Leonor González, a tiny widow and mother of five living in La Rinconada, the highest human settlement in the world, informs the history of mining. Carlos Buergos - a Cuban drug dealer who honed his knife skills in the war in Angola, brought his cunning to America, then became a police informant - echoes the violence of the Aztecs, Pizarro, Rafael Trujillo and Pinochet. And Father Xavier Albo, a Jesuit priest who lives in La Paz, has worked for forty years to keep Catholicism alive among the Quechua and Aymara of the Andes, who would rather believe what their ancestors did.
Vivid and impeccably researched, SILVER, SWORD AND STONE is the definitive narrative history of a region with a tumultuous but little-understood present as well as past.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
£ 4.50
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Book Description hardback. Condition: New. Language: ENG. Seller Inventory # 9781474600255
Book Description Condition: New. In English. Seller Inventory # ria9781474600255_new
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Marie Arana demonstrates how the presence of precious metals, violence and religious fervour have come to characterize Latin America. Tracing these themes over hundreds of years, she presents modern Latino lives which are symbolic of each one ? a mine worker, a convicted criminal and a Jesuit priest ? showing how they have been shaped by the history of the region. Seller Inventory # 512386
Book Description Hardback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. Seller Inventory # B9781474600255
Book Description Condition: Brand New. 496 pages. 9.06x6.30x1.57 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __1474600255
Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 30886002-n
Book Description Condition: New. 2019. Hardcover. . . . . . Seller Inventory # V9781474600255
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Dust Jacket Condition: New. First Edition. 1st impression. 1st UK Edition. COVID/BREXIT/ROYAL MAIL STRIKES MAY MEAN DELAYS IN TRANSIT. Priority orders will be dispatched by Royal Mail TRACKED 24 or courier (particularly if over 2kg). Standard mail will be dispatched by Royal Mail TRACKED 48 (up to 2kg), heavier items by courier . Overseas orders will be dispatched by Royal Mail International.Tracked. PLEASE CONTACT ME FOR MY PRIVACY POLICY. Seller Inventory # mon0000028002
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. BRAND NEW ** SUPER FAST SHIPPING FROM UK WAREHOUSE ** 30 DAY MONEY BACK GUARANTEE. Seller Inventory # 9781474600255-GDR
Book Description Condition: New. 2019. Hardcover. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # V9781474600255