(Part 2) Best caribbean history books according to redditors
We found 367 Reddit comments discussing the best caribbean history books. We ranked the 131 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
24. Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana
2 mentions
Yeah, real back channels are official and well-documented. Look no further than the Obama-Cuba negotiations, which have been reported to death and are even the subject of books. You don't try to hide them from your own fucking intelligence agencies.
Agreed. Growing up in Miami, I read and heard several first-hand accounts of the invasion. Gray Lynch's book on the topic is probably the most telling. He was the CIA operator in charge of the mission (not Cuban). He documents a lot of small details that led to the failure of the mission, a lot of which can be backed up by the men who survived.
Bandits at Sea: A Pirates Reader https://www.amazon.com/dp/0814766781/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_0RZxCbXZ8Z2S6
I took a Piracy in the Caribbean class in college that used this as the main textbook. Has a collections of essays from various authors
You're both wrong (and right)
You can BOTH Jewish AND a pirate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_pirates
read up:
http://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Pirates-Caribbean-Swashbuckling-Freedom/dp/0385513984
Books on Pirates:
The Invisible Hook.
Villains of All Nations
The Buccaneers of America
Robberies and Murders of the Most Notorious Pirates
The Sea Rovers Practice
The Buccaneers Realm
Empire of Blue Water
There are lots of great books about Port Royal in its heyday. The first ones I'd recommend are The Sack of Panama by Peter Earle and Empire of Blue Water by Stephen Talty which both give really solid broad introductions to the politics and environment of the Caribbean and Port Royal's relationship with buccaneers during its heyday in the 1660s until 1671 when England started to crack down on them.
If you want more specialized reading exclusively on Port Royal then I'd recommend Pirate Port: The story of the sunken city of Port Royal by Robert F. Marx for some light reading, and if you want a really excessively meticulous study of everything you ever wanted to know about Port Royal from written records and archaeological findings with lots of maps and reconstructions included then read Port Royal Jamaica by Michael Pawson and David Buisseret.
Lastly, a great primary source on Port Royal in its heyday is the contemporary book The Buccaneers of America which was published by Alexandre Exquemelin in 1678. Exquemelin himself was an actual former French/Dutch buccaneer and the book contains many of his first-person recollections, such as this describing the activities of buccaneers in Port Royal in the 1660s which has clearly influenced some modern pirate tropes:
> Captain Rock sailed for Jamaica with his prize, and lorded it there with his mates until all was gone. For that is the way with these buccaneers -- whenever they have got hold of something, they don't keep it for long. They are busy dicing, whoring and drinking so long as they have anything to spend. Some of them will get through a good two or three thousand pieces of eight in a day -- and next day not have a shirt to their back. I have seen a man in Jamaica give 500 pieces of eight to a whore, just to see her naked. Yes, and many other impieties.
> My own master used to buy a butt of wine and set in the middle of the street with the barrel-head knocked in, and stand barring the way. Every passer-by had to drink with him, or he'd have shot them dead with a gun he kept handy. Once he bought a cask of butter and threw the stuff at everyone who came by, bedaubing their clothes or their head, wherever he best could reach.
> The buccaneers are generous to their comrades: if a man has nothing, the others will come to his help. The tavern-keepers let them have a good deal of credit, but in Jamaica one ought not to put much trust in these people, for often they will sell you for debt, a thing I have seen happen many a time. Even the man I have just been speaking about, the one who gave the whore so much money to see her naked, and at that time had a good 3,000 pieces of eight -- three months later he was sold for his debts, by a man in whose house he had spent most of his money.
The demographic transition in Havana in the years following the ouster of Batista resulted in many of the homes of the wealthy being occupied by the families of those who were servants; the Revolution legalized those former servants' ownership as the years progressed. A fascinating and accessible book on the Urban development of Cuba is Henry Louis Taylor, Jr.'s "Inside el Barrio"
Mama Lola, by Karen McCarthy Brown. The author was an academic who studied Vodou in Brooklyn and became very close with the titular mambo. The book is both academic and accessible, observational and multigenerational narrative.
Haitian Vodou by Mambo Chita Tann. Written by a practicing mambo this is an excellent place to start. The book covers much of the history of Haiti rather than focusing strictly on the lwa and their immediate appeal (although it covers them too). It contextualizes both the culture and practice of Vodou within Haitian society and history.
Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti, by Maya Deren. Deren travelled to Haiti in the mid 20th century to study and film Haitian dance. Which, of course, brought her to Vodou ceremonies. Deren later initiated. While it's an older book, Deren's perspective as an artist rather than an academic is original, and interesting.
Everything else aside, remember that various correspondences and so on vary from house to house and lineage to lineage. Don't let what's in print interfere with any guidance you get if you choose to join a house. When it comes to books vs your house it's like Vegas. The house always wins!
Good luck if you choose to pursue this. Learn what you can and take your time.
I'm aware of the coup in Chile, which is why it really wouldn't surprise me if the claims of US sponsored attacks in Cuba and harboring terrorists are true. I'd just hate to be biased by what I know about one area into believing things about another area that might not be true, or at least exaggerated.
Informed secondary analysis on this specific topic would be great. And I think it would benefit anyone interested in Cuba/US relations and history, regardless of where they stand on the matter.
On a side note, I actually just happened to buy a book on Cuba today. It's a few books behind on my list, but I'm really looking forward to reading it.
Read up on the adventures and misadventures of real pirates! The best inspiration is real life, and while many accounts are embellished, exaggerated, or flat out fabricated, they are all neat stories that have survived because they are compelling. I took a class my freshman year of college, and there are lots of good (and cheap) scholarly books you can use like Villians of All Nations, Bandits at Sea, and Pirates, The Complete History from 1300 BC to Present Day. These can be a wonderful source of neat ideas, not just for sidequests but the mainquest and worldbuilding. If you don't want to read any of these, feel free to ask any questions you might have and I'll answer them as best I can. I'll include some of the more ready-made sidequests below.
Allegedly, Benjamin Hornigold and his crew once boarded a ship, but according to the crew "did us no further injury than the taking most of our hats from us, having got drunk the night before, as they told us, and toss'd theirs overboard." Seems like an easy jump for a pirate captain to enlist your players in acquiring new hats after drunken shenanigans.
Another time, Hornigold and Blackbeard allegedly hunted a prize specifically because of it's cargo of Madeira wine, which they and their crews enjoyed. Booze is closely associated with pirates, and tracking down a rare kind of wine, spirit, or rum sounds like a fun sidequest.
Again, many of these stories are probably fake, drawn from sensational contemporary newspapers that were unreliable at best, or from Captain Johnson's A General History of the Pyrates (1724). Johnson is a pseudonym, but his work is one of the biggest influences on the depiction of pirates in pop culture, and has some fun stuff in it.
Well I mean, you could start here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_United_States_military_operations
Check out the horrible things we've done to Haiti. http://www.amazon.com/The-Uses-Haiti-Paul-Farmer/dp/1567513441
I highly recommend Aviva Chomsky's A History of the Cuban Revolution, it's a fantastic, readable introduction.
The Uses of Haiti by Dr Paul Farmer
My local Reformed seminary has this book from an Irish ministry to cults and this book.
I would highly recommend a book by Maya Deren called Divine Horsemen: The Living Gods of Haiti. Deren was, among other things, an experimental filmmaker, and she spent many years in Haiti living among the people there, observing and engaging in various voudoun rituals and dances.
It is by no means a comprehensive study of the religion, but Deren offers a unique perspective on the subject because she is an artist. Rather than the withdrawn aloofness that plagues so much academic and anthropological writing, Deren actually participates in the dances and rituals. So she is able to give a firsthand, experiential-based account of the religion, not just a vague interpretation.
She originally went to Haiti with the intent of studying the dance forms of the ritual. It is written in a more lyrical and poetic style, and some of the things she discusses intersect a lot with aesthetics, philosophy, and metaphysical issues. But for anyone interested in voudoun religion, this is considered a seminal work.
This is her unfinished film of the same name on YouTube, which documents her time spent in Haiti, and the dances they performed. It will be a nice addition should you decide to read the book. Enjoy! Deren was a fascinating woman. :)
Edit: grammar
You say that so confidently?...
I suggest some of these books:
Richard Gott: Cuba- a new history
Aviva Chomsky: A History of the Cuban Revolution
Marifeli Perez-Stable - The Cuban Revolution: Origins, Course, and Legacy, 2nd Edition
Eduardo Galeano: Open Veins of Latin America
Lars Schoultz: That Infernal Little Cuban Republic: The United States and the Cuban Revolution
Well, I think you need to understand the potential bias those Cubans may have. IIRC most of those Cubans are comparatively wealthy families that left after the Batista regime was overthrown and they nationalized their businesses. In other words, many left before actually really experiencing living in the socialistic Cuba. For a down to earth analysis of how everyday Cubans live, I'd strongly recommend Inside El Barrio.
As long as we keep putting people in office willing to out pace the rest of the world in defense spending, any aspiration to overthrow our government is laughable. defense spending
As far as having an open mind, I suggest you read Cuba Libre l just finished it and am forming my opinion based on a successful demonstration of revolution.
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Teško je izdvojiti ali zadnje što sam čitao je Breatheology i Pirate Hunters
The original bay of pigs invasion was set up by the republican president before Kennedy (eisenhower). Kennedy came in and changed the plan so it looked more like a defection of cuban pilots and removing American "Air Support" for the invasion making it a failure - Many folks like my grandfather spent 2 years imprisoned as a result of the failed operation. This failed operation led to the cuban missile crisis as well so it was their first dance with american politics and it didn't go well. They've held that grudge for years - but we don't have to.
Alot of older cubans are starting to realize the republicans and corporations are killing this country at least. Too bad it took 50 years and GWbush getting elected by florida.
Really short book about the bay of pigs - http://www.amazon.com/Decision-Disaster-Betrayal-Bay-Pigs/dp/1574882376
Which books have you already read and found valuable?
My recommendations:
"Cuban Revelations: Behind the Scenes in Havana" by Marc Frank
"Cuba: What Everyone Needs to Know" by Julia E. Sweig
This one is kind of dry and academic, but I found the part about agricultural policy particularly illuminating: "Cuban Economic and Social Development: Policy Reforms and Challenges in the 21st Century".
I also have "The Revolution Under Raul Castro: A Contemporary Cuba Reader" and "Back Channel To Havana: The Hidden History of Negotiations Between Washington and Havana" but haven't started them yet. They look promising.
great video, that's something I would like to try one day!
I read this book recently, called "Pirate Hunters", blew my mind. It's a real account of a duo of treasure hunter scuba divers searching for lost pirate ships, check it out:
https://www.amazon.com/Pirate-Hunters-Treasure-Obsession-Legendary/dp/0812973690
WRONG.
http://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Pirates-Caribbean-Swashbuckling-Freedom/dp/0385513984
Symbolism
More information on Low can be sourced here, here and this book here, chapt. 14.
Like this one?