Children of Cain: Violence and the Violent in Latin America [Paperback]

Tina Rosenberg (Author)

Book Description

Release date: October 1, 1992 | ISBN-10: 0140172548 | ISBN-13: 978-0140172546

An honest judge in Medellin, a Maoist guerilla of Peru's Shining Path, the fair-haired Angel of Death in Argentina's Dirty War, the pool-party rich of El Salvador, the disabused revolutionaries of Nicaragua, and the ordinary Chileans who became silent partners in Pinochet's dictatorship—these people live in Latin America, but their stories illuminate the human face of violence all over the world.

Tina Rosenberg spent five years trying to understand their world and learning to live with these "children of Cain." Their stories are disturbing precisely because these people are not monsters; the faces in Children of Cain are not those of strangers.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Rosenberg powerfully depicts the endemic violence and corruption of Latin America as well as the ambiguities of American involvement in the region.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Journalist Rosenberg asks a question asked by most foreign observers of Latin America: What inclines its citizens to commit the excessive physical violence against each other that is endemic to the region? To answer this significant question, Rosenberg, rather than focusing on the victim's point of view, the subject of such works as Jacobo Timerman's Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number ( LJ 5/15/81), instead explores the dark side of humanity, those who make such cruelty possible. He presents six fascinating characters in this extraordinary account: an honest Medellin judge, murdered for his integrity; an Argentine naval captain, responsible for the torture and death of hundreds; an active member of the mysterious, fanatic Peruvian Sendero Luminoso ; a representative of the El Salvadorean wealthy class; a Nicaraguan guerrilla turned interior officer; and a Chilean student leader. Highly recommended.
- Roderic A. Camp, Central Coll., Pella, Ia.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Books (October 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140172548
• ISBN-13: 978-0140172546
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.9 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #488,796 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best of the Bunch December 27, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Rosenberg demonstrates the extraordinary ability to reveal a nation's history through an anecdotal tale of one of its citizens. She begins with these individuals to show you the end product _ then retraces the steps of Latin America's dark, recent history to show you how a nightmare became real. Rosenberg not only tells the story of the downtrodden and displaced, but also the story of the "victors," or the elites. It would be difficult to sympathize with anyone responsible for the murder and torture that has plagued Latin America this century, yet Rosenberg reveals the fears of the persecutors, valid or not, with the same perception with which she portrays the persecuted. In addition to nightmarish governmental indifference and inhumanity from all sides, Rosenberg sums up each country's recent history in a brief and concise two or three pages. As a student of, and journalist in, Latin America, "Children of Cain" remains my most worn and dog-eared reference book. I see the faces Tina painted everywhere I go. Neophytes who yearn for a basic understanding of Latin America and seasoned scholars alike will come away with a better understanding of these national histories that seem so foreign. Reading "Children of Cain" will put everything you read afterward into context.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Thorough, brilliant and terrifying. March 1, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

This is the best book on Latin America I've ever read--it is extremely accessible for people who know nothing about Latin America, and for those who do, it is a major contribution to our understanding of the region. Rosenberg's vinnettes and explanations of the violence seemingly endemic to Latin America are brilliantly written and compelling. She captures the essense of the countries she writes about, and deftly explains their histories so that we understand the reasons for the violence. We can no longer just hear about the violence plaging Latin America and see it as irrational, wondering where it came from. Wonderful portraits of the perpetrators of violence, marking Rosenberg as different from the throngs of writers--journalists and others--who have focused on the victims of violence, on the corpses and grewsome stories. More attention needs to be given to the perpetrators and also those who live with such violence, who watch it and become numb to it, including ourselves. A major contribution to Latin American studies and the study of violence.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars FIVE STARS . . . BECAUSE TEN WAS NOT AN OPTION. BRILLIANT! December 30, 2000

By "wldavenport"

Format:Paperback

Not only has Ms. Rosenburg done a spectacular gob in writing an extremely readable book, she provides her audience vivid decriptions using a very personal approach that employs the use of specific people, their experiences and dilemmas. She also provides her audience with the neccessary historical and enviromental (social, politial and economic) information to put these personal and organizational accouts into the cotexts neccessary for reader to truely appriecate the psychology of the forces driving these extaordinary historical events.

Moreover, Ms. Rosenburg provides the reader with six different cases from six differnet countries. From Escobar's Medellin to Argentina's "Dirty War", she examines and analyzes different types of violence motivated by unique sets of circumstances.

I COULD NOT PUT THIS BOOK DOWN; A MUST READ FOR ANYONE INTERESTED IN LATIN AMERICA!