Colonial Latin America [Paperback]

Mark A. Burkholder (Author), Lyman L. Johnson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0195156854 | ISBN-13: 978-0195156850 | Publication Date: October 23, 2003 | Edition: 5

Now in its fifth edition, Colonial Latin America provides a concise study of the history of the Iberian colonies in the New World from their preconquest background to the wars of independence in the early nineteenth century. The new edition of this highly acclaimed text has been extensively revised and updated to reflect the latest scholarship, with particular emphasis on social and cultural history. Discussions of race and ethnicity, gender, family, marriage, and popular culture have been expanded and illustrated with many new pieces of art, and end-of-chapter chronologies are now included. Colonial Latin America, 5/e, is indispensable for students who wish to gain a deeper understanding of the fascinating and often colorful history of the cultures, the people, and the struggles that have played a part in shaping Latin America.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Without question the best survey text of Latin American history--either colonial or national period--that has ever been written."--James Schofield Saeger, Lehigh University

"Expanded coverage of colonial social hierarchies and the family, along with a well-integrated and sensitive focus on gender, complement the lively treatment of economics, politics and popular culture that distinguished earlier editions. The fifth edition thus continues to be a mandatory read for undergraduate students and anyone interested in the story of how Spanish and Portuguese rule transformed the region."--Bianca Premo, Emory University

"The most comprehensive introduction to Latin American history. . . .no other text available is as thorough in its approach to the three centuries of development within two distinct and separate empires."--Christon I. Archer, The University of Calgary

"A well-written, engaging text that does a fine job of linking individual experience to broader themes and analysisthe book keeps getting better and better."--Ward Stavig, University of South Florida

About the Author

Mark A. Burkholder is at University of Missouri, St. Louis. Lyman L. Johnson is at University of North Carolina, Charlotte.

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 5 edition (October 23, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195156854
• ISBN-13: 978-0195156850
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,091,566 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good survey of colonial Latin America, June 21, 2001

By 

Damon Jasperson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Colonial Latin America (Paperback)

If you are a novice in the study of colonial Latin America, this book is a good place to start. Burkholder and Johnson have covered just about every aspect of society and politics in colonial Latin America from pre-Columbian cultures to the struggles for independence in the 1800's. The book covers religion, slavery, the environmental impact of Europeans, government structures, gender roles, racial issues, economics, and family history as well as developments back in Europe that had reverberations in Latin America. One very helpful aspect of the book is that unfamiliar Spanish terms are in italics and a glossary of all such italicized words can be found in the back of the book. Most people have heard of Cortes, Montezuma, and Pizarro, but Burkholder and Johnson are especially strong on the less familiar story of what happened once the Spanish and Portuguese had taken control in the New World. This book covers only Spanish and Portuguese America, so if you are interested in the French, Dutch, or English enclaves in the Caribbean, you will need to look elsewhere. Specialists will be familiar with all the themes in this book, but for beginners it is an excellent introduction to the subject. Burkholder and Johnson periodically update the book so as to keep it on the cutting edge of current scholarship. Anyone interested in doing more research will also benefit from up-to-date bibliographies at the end of each chapter.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent and informing read., May 17, 2007

By 

C. A. Temm (Salem, AL United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Colonial Latin America (Paperback)

Latin America is a fascinating area of study. My recent grad class in the subject exposed me to much new material such as this book (our basic text)

Burkholder and Johnson have done an exhausative study of both poltical and cultural history of Spanish & Portuguese colonial America. They covered the various periods of the colonies under expansionism, Imperial neglience, Bourbon reforms,and the rebellions that gave the region its freedom from the mother country.

The detail is impressive. Shipping numbers, industrial production, political reform, the lives of the majority Indians and Metizo commoners...it's all here. Slavery in all it's permutations is covered as well as the absurd attempts to name the various racial combinations that resulted in a multi cultural society.

For both the novice and the dedicated historian, this book cannot come highly recommended enough.

7 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I got an A in this guy's class !, October 6, 2004

By 

DReese (Virginia Beach, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Colonial Latin America (Paperback)

I have to give this book a good review because I got an A in Dr. Lyman Johnson's (the book's co-author with Mark Burkholder) Colonial Latin America class at UNC Charlotte - of course he made us buy this book as the required textbook! Johnson was a fasinating storyteller and quite a funny lecturer, and he really knows his stuff. He's one of the best professors on the UNC-Charlotte faculty.

The book is full of information with a simple and concise organization. Latin America's colonial period was long and complex yet simple at the same time, and this book explains it well. The Spanish conquest of Mexico has to be one of the most interesting events in human history.

My complaint is that Dr. Johnson was such a joy in the classroom, but the humor and wit did not translate to the book.