Customer Reviews

Brazil - Culture Smart!: the essential guide to customs & culture

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I recommend this little book to businesspeople and all who want a concise but complete overview of Brazilian customs and culture. It is very good.
One comment: in the chapter Business Briefing, it is said that "it is better to be more formal and use titles (Senhor, Doutor, etc) accompanied by the (Brazilian's) last surname". But actually in Brazil we use the titles (Senhor, Seu, Doutor, etc)followed by their first name. Example: Doutor Jorge, Seu Antonio, etc). This is a formal way to address a person in Brazil.
One can use the title followed by the last surname (as the book suggests) only when the person is already known by their last surname (which in many cases is used almost like a nickname). Example: If the name of the person is Fernando Figueiredo but he is known as Figueiredo, so you could call him Seu Figueiredo (if you want to be formal).
Confused? My advice: Observe how other Brazilians address the person you are talking with, (but do not forget to consider the hierarchical status of all involved).

Dr. Virginia Pearson
Cross-Cultural facilitator
Ph.D. in Cross-Cultural Psychology and International Management
(...)

This is a fantastic book! It covers a basis of information about the country, it's history, and most importantly it's people. Covering everything from what to wear to travel safety, I found everything in this book useful. It is small, and was a quick read. In a peprfect world, i would have wanted it to go more in depth in a few areas, but I felt that the primary goal of the book was to give a basis of information, and it succeeded!

Reads quickly. About an hour. Some good tips. Pretty basic. Still, better to know something about the culture than nothing.

This book is making preparation for visiting this amazing country very thorough. An easy read and filled with useful tips.