Pocos libros pueden catalogarse realmente como "fundamentales" o "imprescindibles". Este es uno de ellos. El continente olvidado es una gran crónica política y económica de América Latina, desde México hasta Argentina, que con maestría narrativa e información precisa da cuenta de una historia convulsa, única y apasionante. También pone en contexto al lector sobre la actualidad del continente, qué está en juego en la región y por qué esto es relevante para la geopolítica mundial. Para el autor, América Latina ha sido a lo largo del siglo XX un perfecto laboratorio de reformas sociales, políticas y financieras, unas con mayor éxito que otras, que confirman el enorme dinamismo de las naciones que integran el área. Las dificultades que cada una ha tenido desde que se conformaron como naciones independientes para establecer gobiernos democráticos sólidos y prósperos, fenómenos como el caudillismo, el populismo, las dictaduras y también la corrupción, son analizados a profundidad desde sus orígenes hasta el presente, en medio de una realidad global que cambia vertiginosamente. Para Reid, los desafíos actuales de América Latina son enormes, si bien sus indicadores económicos, sociales y educativos sean mejores que hace varias décadas y este libro permitirá comprenderlos en todas sus dimensiones. Ilumina con claridad y mesura una historia sembrada de suspicacias, prejuicios y ciegos ardores ideológicos. Tomas Eloy Martínez.

Latin America has experienced a profound transformation in the first two decades of the 21st century: it has been fully incorporated into the global economy, while excluding regions and populations devalued by the logic of capitalism. Technological modernization has gone hand-in-hand with the reshaping of old identities and the emergence of new ones. The transformation of Latin America has been shaped by social movements and political conflicts. The neoliberal model that dominated the first stage of the transformation induced widespread inequality and poverty, and triggered social explosions that led to its own collapse. A new model, neo-developmentalism, emerged from these crises as national populist movements were elected to government in several countries. The more the state intervened in the economy, the more it became vulnerable to corruption, until the rampant criminal economy came to penetrate state institutions. Upper middle classes defending their privileges and citizens indignant because of corruption of the political elites revolted against the new regimes, undermining the model of neo-developmentalism. In the midst of political disaffection and public despair, new social movements, women, youth, indigenous people, workers, peasants, opened up avenues of hope against the background of darkness invading the continent. This book, written by two leading scholars of Latin America, provides a comprehensive and up-do-date account of the new Latin America that is in the process of taking shape today. It will be an indispensable text for students and scholars in Latin American Studies, sociology, politics and media and communication studies, and anyone interested in Latin America today.

"This book documents an encounter between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, and Aleida Guevara, daughter of the legendary revolutionary Che Guevara and a prominent figure in the antiglobalization movement. Over the course of an extended, exclusive interview, Chavez explained his fiercely nationalist vision for Venezuela, the worldwide significance of the Bolivarian revolution and his commitment to a united Latin America. Their conversation, which was at times remarkably intimate, also covered Chavez's personal political formation and the legacy of Che's ideas and example in Latin America today. Included as an appendix is an exclusive interview with Jorge Garcia Carneiro, Venezuela's minister for defense, who played a key role in defeating the April 2002 coup. Today he is in the forefront of the project to transform Venezuela's army into an army of the people."--BOOK JACKET.

"This comprehensive overview, presenting the views of eminent scholars and practitioners, explores in useful detail the new Latin America's changing relationships with the United States, Europe, Japan, and other regions. It is excellent and most timely".--Enrique V. Iglesias, President, Inter-American Development Bank. Lightning Print On Demand Title

“Latin America” is a concept firmly entrenched in its philosophical, moral, and historical meanings. And yet, Mauricio Tenorio-Trillo argues in this landmark book, it is an obsolescent racial-cultural idea that ought to have vanished long ago with the banishment of racial theory. Latin America: The Allure and Power of an Idea makes this case persuasively. Tenorio-Trillo builds the book on three interlocking steps: first, an intellectual history of the concept of Latin America in its natural historical habitat—mid-nineteenth-century redefinitions of empire and the cultural, political, and economic intellectualism; second, a serious and uncompromising critique of the current “Latin Americanism”—which circulates in United States–based humanities and social sciences; and, third, accepting that we might actually be stuck with “Latin America,” Tenorio-Trillo charts a path forward for the writing and teaching of Latin American history. Accessible and forceful, rich in historical research and specificity, the book offers a distinctive, conceptual history of Latin America and its many connections and intersections of political and intellectual significance. Tenorio-Trillo’s book is a masterpiece of interdisciplinary scholarship.