Customer Reviews

Bolivia: The Evolution of a Multi-Ethnic Society (Latin American Histories)

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The subtitle of this book, "the evolution of a multi-ethnic society" led me to believe that this would be more of social history than it actually was. It is very well-written and readable, which is particularly commendable since it primarily concerns questions of government and economics: who was in power when, what they did, and how many tons of tin bolivia was exporting at the time. That's slightly exagerated, as the author also very *briefly* discusses developments of early bolivia art, architecture, and literature, and mentions changes in relations between 'white', 'cholo', and 'indian' segments of the population.

This is the second edition, published in 1992; I would love to read the third edition, updated to include public uprising against neo-liberalism as in the recent controversy over privatization of the public water service.

This is an excellent book as long as it is judged by its own goals; however, if you are looking for more social analysis of this 'multi-ethnic society', you'll have to supplement this book with additional reading.

This book represents a very conscientious work on the part of the author. In the past history of Bolivia was confined to bolivian authors who wrote at their convenience based mostly on the assumptions and not necessarily based on facts. Their research was probably limited to verbal information gathered from older folks who had received those bits from older folks who assed on.

This book is clearly based on well researched facts gathered from sources outside Bolivia including libraries and government archives that are presently open to researchers. The result is a refreshing wind of information that one, as a bolivian, had not ever had the chance to know closer to the truth.

I am ever so glad the author went to the trouble of writing it. I for one will make a strong case for every Bolivian youth to read it.


Thank you, LFA