John Charles Chasteen

Born in Blood and Fire

A concise, integrated, chronological narrative—includes all the high points of Latin American history while exploring its complexities.

This amazingly brief history of Latin America will delight any reader. Fully informed by the latest scholarship, this cleverly written survey spans six centuries and covers twenty countries. John Charles Chasteen presents a compelling narrative of the Latin American experience, animated by stories about men and women from all walks of life, and enriched by insightful analysis. The famous and not so famous characters of Latin America are here: Cortés, Malinche, Moctezuma, Sister Juana Ines de la Cruz, Bolivar, Father Manuel Hidalgo, Juan and Eva Peron, and, of course, Che Guevara. This is a story of despair and hope, the processes of conquest and colonization, race mixing and class construction, revolution and republic formation, and the elusive quests for sustained economic growth and political and social equality.

This beautifully written concise history will be valuable for general readers and college students for many years to come.

"This is a superb survey that draws well on recent scholarship. Chasteen is an amusing, concise, knowledgeable tour guide, who takes the reader on a personally conducted tour of a complex, fascinating place." —Walter LaFeber, Cornell University, author of Inevitable Revolutions: The United States in Central America