Hugo Chavez: The Definitive Biography of Venezuela's Controversial President [Hardcover]

Cristina Marcano (Author), Alberto Barrera Tyszka (Author), Kristina Cordero (Translator), Moises Naim (Introduction)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 067945666X | ISBN-13: 978-0679456667 | Publication Date: August 14, 2007 | Edition: First US Edition

He is one of the most controversial and important world leaders currently in power. In this international bestseller, at last available in English, Hugo Chávez is captured in a critically acclaimed biography, a riveting account of the Venezuelan president who continues to influence, fascinate, and antagonize America.
Born in a small town on the Venezuelan plains, Chávez found his interests radically altered when he entered the military academy in Caracas. There, as Hugo Chávez reveals in dramatic detail, he was drawn to leftist politics and a new sense of himself as predestined to change the fortunes of his country and Latin America as a whole.

Portrayed as never before is the double life Chávez soon began to lead: by day he was a family man and a military officer, but by night he secretly recruited insurgents for a violent overthrow of the government. His efforts would climax in an attempted coup against President Carlos Andrés Pérez, an action that ended in a spectacular failure but gave Chávez his first irresistible taste of celebrity and laid the groundwork for his ascension to the presidency eight years later.
Here is the truth about Chávez’s revolutionary “Bolivarian” government, which stresses economic reforms meant to discourage corruption and empower the poor–while the leader spends seven thousand dollars a day on himself and cozies up to Arab oil elites. Venezuelan journalists Cristina Marcano and Alberto Barrera Tyszka explore the often crude and comical public figure who
condemns George W. Bush in the most fiery language but at the same time hires lobbyists to improve his country’s image in the West. The authors examine not only Chávez’s political career but also his personal life–including his first marriage, which was marked by a long affair and the birth of a troubled son, and his second marriage, which produced a daughter toward whom Chávez’s favoritism has caused private tension and public talk.

This seminal biography is filled with exclusive excerpts from Chávez’s own diary and draws on new research and interviews with such insightful subjects as Herma Marksman, the professor who was his mistress for nine years. Hugo Chávez is an essential work about a man whose power, peculiarities, and passion for the global spotlight only continue to grow.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Veteran Venezuelan journalists Marcano and Tyszka have aimed for rare middle ground with a biography that neither extols nor decries Venezuelan president Chávez. The account mostly moves chronologically, presenting details about Chávez's humble beginnings in the Venezuelan plains and his ascent through the military ranks. Chávez's 1992 failed coup attempt is explained in great detail, as is the attempt to oust him in 2002. The authors seamlessly weave in interviews with people who know Chávez well, offering a glimpse into his psychology. The narrative also delves into Chávez's love life, as well as the dynamics of his relationship with Fidel Castro. Though the pace of the book is inconsistent, with some events receiving a surplus of detail while others feel rushed, it's generally smart and well-written, making it a good start for those curious about Chávez, and a treat for those who closely follow the Venezuelan leader and yearn for a less biased overview of his life. (Aug.)
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From Booklist

Venezuelan husband-and-wife journalists bring an intimate sense of the culture and politics of that nation and the significance that Hugo Chávez plays in its history and that of South America overall. A best-seller in its original Spanish, the English edition includes photographs, fresh material from newly discovered documents, excerpts from Chávez's diary, and interviews. Marcano and Tyszka scored an interview with Herma Marksman, a professor and Chávez's lover for nine years, offering further details about Chávez. The Venezuelan president has gained an international reputation as the provider of low-cost oil to poor people in the U.S. and South Africa, the man who publicly castigated President Bush before the UN, and the man who some say threatens to disrupt Venezuela's political and economic stability even as he seeks to provide social justice to its most impoverished citizens. This is a fascinating biography of a complex and forceful political figure who bears watching. Bush, Vanessa

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Random House; First US Edition edition (August 14, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 067945666X
• ISBN-13: 978-0679456667
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #569,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #36 in Books > History > Americas > South America > Venezuela

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hugo Chavez Biography by Venezuelan Journalists, October 13, 2007

By 

Gibbous Maan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hugo Chavez: The Definitive Biography of Venezuela's Controversial President (Hardcover)

This book has been described as an unbiased look at Hugo Chavez but in my opinion it doesn't quite live up to that description. The Authors' Note touches upon the difficulty of such an endeavor, quoting Georg Lichtenberg from the 18th century: "Even impartiality is partial." My impression is that the authors recognized a need for change in Venezuela in the 1990s -- and may even have had sympathy for such change -- but they don't believe Hugo Chavez is the proper man to lead the nation forward.

The authors' overriding point seems to be that Chavez is power mad, driven by an unquenchable desire for ever more power. An example: "He was the man of the hour and he enjoyed it, though he never lost sight of his real goal: power and everything that went with it." But it would be the rare political leader for whom this claim could not be made, especially one seeking such a major shakeup as Chavez. And while there is little doubt that Chavez enjoys being in the spotlight, it's also true that his antics bring worldwide attention to issues he feels need to be addressed. At another point in the book, the authors relate an unflattering personal incident then add, "All of this, however, remains in the murky terrain of speculation," as if the incident was too juicy to leave out, even though it was perhaps unfounded.

Having said that, the bias I perceived did not much interfere with the book. For one thing, not all of Chavez's life story is admirable, such as the years spent plotting the failed 1992 coup while serving in the the military. As you are perhaps aware, in an odd turn of fate, this failed coup -- or more accurately, the televised "for now" speech given after his surrender -- turned Chavez into a folk hero and served as the springboard to his future political success.

It is important to note that the book is much more a personal biography of Chavez than it is an analysis of his policy initiatives. Some of the most interesting information is from his childhood. One incident regarding his first day of school stands out: He and his grandmother were turned away from the schoolhouse because the boy's shoes were too shabby. Such an event leaves a lasting impression and helps explain Chavez's bonds to the nation's poor. As he grew older, Chavez became a voracious reader and read many books from the political left, these books being readily available at the home of two of his friends.

While roughly the first half of the book is chronological, the chapters in the second half are topic oriented, such as the one devoted to Chavez's relationships with women. The departure from chronology is not much of a problem, but it did distract me earlier in the book when his second wife, Marisabel, was mentioned in passing, then mentioned again as an ex-wife -- all before she'd been introduced to the reader. I was suprised so little was written about the actual campaign leading up to the 1998 presidential election. We read that Chavez is polling at only 7% and then, before you know it, he is being sworn into office, his support having somehow risen to 56%. The 2002 coup attempt was of course covered, and here I felt the authors were quite successful in describing it with impartiality.

This book was originally written in Spanish by the two Venezuelan journalists in 2004, updated in December 2006, and translated into English in 2007. It is packed with interesting quotes about Chavez from friends, foes, and family, and the authors took great pains to point out the quotees' biases toward Chavez, often using descriptive phrases such as "friend of Chavez" or "opponent of the Chavez government." The authors also did a nice job selecting the 30+ photos included in the book.

All in all, the authors did a good job of covering Chavez, and I liked the fact that they were Venezuelan and lived through the times and events described in the book.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So you want to understand Hugo Chavez, December 4, 2007

By 

Caminante (New York (State)) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hugo Chavez: The Definitive Biography of Venezuela's Controversial President (Hardcover)

I bought this book for information for a twenty page college paper on Hugo Chavez, largely on the reccomendation of The Economist. This book was extremely helpful in providing me with an insight into Chavez's personality and potential motives. What I found most interesting was that it demolished the notion of an oil-intoxicated buffoon and replaced it with a shrewd, calculating leader who has mastered the art of theatrics for his own purposes. The authors make a strong case for regarding none of the contreversial president's actions as accidental or the rantings of a madman without sounding like conspiracy types. That being said, they also show a man with a highly unstable personality: volitile, manic,insecure, and in desperate need of affection. Chavez, by their telling, seems to be the product of a brilliant madness, one that produces a control freak who very well knows how to gain the control he needs. The book does not make this argument as carelessly as some; it draws extensively from interviews with those who knew him from childhood, or met him in the army, or through politics. The effect is that the anecdotes vividly potray the transformation from the poor llanero to the conteversial president bashing the rich while dressed in fine Italian suits. As has been stated by a previous reviewer, the book is not a political analysis, but understanding Chavez is crucial to understanding his politics. There is, for him, little seperation between personality and politics. I highly reccomend this book to anyone seeking an in-depth potrayel of the Venezuelan president.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellente Read and Extremely Informative, September 29, 2009

By 

Laurence Zimmerman "Argie" (Maryland, United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hugo Chavez: The Definitive Biography of Venezuela's Controversial President (Hardcover)

I found this book to be more impartial than Bart Jones' Biography. They present Chavez as he actually is , rather than the saint that the left portrays him to be. Chavez is a very enigmatic character. A former military man who was elected as a civilian, yet seems to distrust civilian-run governments. A man who lambasts consumerism, yet spends millions of dollars on extravagant trips abroad and his television show, while wearing the finest American-made threads. A man whose dream was to play Major League Baseball, but finds himself constantly in conflict with the United States. The authors interviewed family members, neighbors, colleagues and former classmates in order to present the most accurate picture of Chavez the man, instead of Chavez the politician. A good example of their impartiality is when they discuss Chavez's apparent relationship to Maisanta. Most other books that I have read about Chavez automatically refer to Maisanta as Chavez's great-grandfather, yet as the authors point out, it is impossible to confirm or deny that Chavez is a decendent of Maisanta due to a lack of documentation.