Product Description
This book examines the economic and political continuities between the U.S. military government and subsequent regimes, including the infamous Trujillo dictatorship (1930-1961). ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Book is great----
Book is great.Delivery was horrible!And I still had to pay for it.I'm really disappointed because I needed the book right away and had to wait for it.I didn't receive any notification from Amazon that it wasn't in stock until I went hunting for an answer as to where my book was.Pretty disappointed, my assignment was late.

stops in 1991!!!!
As the only comprehensive history of the DR, you have little choice. However, if you actually want to know what has happened in the last 20 years, I suggest you look elsewhere. I recently purchased the 2006 edition of this work, shocked to discover history stopped in the early 90's. Rather disappointing.

What the Hispanic-American historical review thinks of the book
"Frank Moya Pons is the best-known contemporary Dominican historian. The author of many books and articles, he is a recognized scholar both at home and abroad. Moya Pons latest book is based on his well-known Manual de historia dominicana (1992), now in its tenth edition and considered a basic text in Dominican historiography. But his new book is more than a simple translation of the old classic; it is a revised and expanded edition, with new sections, detailed historical maps, and a comprehensive bibliographic essay.

The book follows two parallel historical tracks. On the one hand, it is divided into thematic chapters that examine the distinct political periods in the country's history, such as the Spanish, French, Haitian, and U.S. occupations and the several periods of self-rule. On the other hand, it pursues a socioeconomic history by establishing links, when pertinent, between socioeconomic conditions and political developments. Another notable feature of the book is that it examines contemporary events up to 1990. This remains the standard Dominican history textbook, in both English and Spanish. The general reader will find in this book an agreeable, clearly written history of the Dominican Republic, while the experienced scholar will find an indispensable reference."
-HAHR (Hispanic-American Historical Review)

dominican republic...a history
The book is well documented and is one of the classics in the discovery of America.

There are typos and occassionally the author lets out his biased opinions...that have a touch of racism.

I am personally grateful to the author for this documentation especially since my anscestors were part of the founding and landing parties of the Americas.

Magnificent account of a proud country's history!!!!!
Dominican writer Frank Moya Pons presents great insight into the historical, economical and political conditions of the Dominican Republic in a clear and concise way.

A must own for any proud Dominican seeking knowledge on their country's turbulent but exciting history, and a great addition to anybody who wants to indulge themselves in the rich heritage and legacy of this Beautiful country. I strongly recommend it!!! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

Good text
I found this book to be an excellent text--especially from a historical perspective. There is of course a good bit of "bias", which cannot be completely avoided in anything. It is a fairly scholarly read, but not unapproachable. The author spends nearly the entire book giving a detailed account of the country from its founding to today (and includes a good bit about Haiti as well). Though the culture of a country is certainly affected by its history, there was little "practical information" on the people and culture today. This was my main disappointment. The end of the book contains a helpful glossary of "frequently used Dominicanisms" as well as a section on "What makes the language of Quisqueya different"

Historical and Cultural Jewel
This particular book by Professor Cambeira is truly a jewel in terms of its historical and cultural content and its unique treatment. Unlike any other book of this kind that I have read for its clarity in presentation. This is not your ordinary history textbook, but rather a highly personalized and lucid and informed interpretation of a community's evolution. I like how the Professor, who is Dominican, convinces the reader of his honesty. He says what many other Dominican writers don't say about our country, especially concerning certain questions of identity and the notion of inclusion in the formation of what we call dominicanidad. I also like the way Cambeira's writing style flows so gracefully. His nonfiction style is like his lyrical fiction that I found in his novels Azucar! The Story of Sugar and the sequel Azucar's Sweet Hope...Her Story Continues.

Cambeira is a wonderful writer in every sense.

High Recommended Reading.

His latest novel Azucar's Sweet Hope...Her Story Continues is the Best Novel I've read in a long time !

Intelligent Focus
This definitely is a timely book with very valuable and insightful information given the current very tragic situation in the island shared by the two republics. Cambeira's intelligent focus and keen interpretation of the island's development in every sense helped me better understand especially the Dominican culture that most of us know so little about. I am sure many readers who are curious about Caribbean cultures will find this work extremely informative.
I also recommend this writer's new novel Azucar! The Story of Sugar.

Suggested Reading for a Popular Play
I am very impressed by this unusual perspective on Dominican history and culture by the Dominican writer Alan Cambeira. Cambeira's work is not your conventional history text. It reads more like an interest sustaining novel; It also presents some cultural aspects most writers on the subject usually omit or avoid altogether. I also found a surprising side issue: the theatrical version of Mario Vargas Llosa's La Fiesta Del Chivo (The Festival of the Goat) is in production by the well respected Repertorio Espanol and has an accompanying Study Guide done by Iliana Fuentes. I see that Ms Fuentes also lists Cambeira's book as a part of the suggested reading in this regard. To me, then, Cambeira has a winner. His book is definitely worth the read. ...

Bravo Cambeira!

Quisqueya La Bella"Athens of the New World"
Everybody called Quisqueya the "Athens of the New World".
It is a country with beautiful beaches and beautiful people and a complex history. The island's ethnic mix of indigenuous, European (mainly Spanish) and African cultures and their merger across time resulted in the distinctive Dominican culture that we know today. Cambeira's passion for his native island is evident on every page. This book gave me a really different and fresh perspective from other books on the subject by otherauthors that I have read. This is an excellent personal interpretation that I'm recommending to anyone interested in learning about the Atena del Nuevo Mundo.Thanks to the Author. My next reading will certainly be his novel that everybody is talking about: Azucar! The Story of Sugar. ... Read more

Product Description
Combining intellectual and social history, Teresita Mart­nez-Vergne explores the processes by which people in the Dominican Republic began to hammer out a common sense of purpose and a modern national identity at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries.

Hoping to build a nation of hardworking, peaceful, voting citizens, the Dominican intelligentsia in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries impressed on the rest of society a discourse of modernity based on secular education, private property, modern agricultural techniques, and an open political process. Black immigrants, bourgeois women, and working-class men and women in the capital city of Santo Domingo and in the booming sugar town of San Pedro de Macor's, however, formed their own surprisingly modern notions of citizenship in daily interactions with city officials.

Mart­nez-Vergne shows just how difficult it was to reconcile the lived realities of people of color, women, and the working poor with elite notions of citizenship, entitlement, and identity. She concludes that the urban setting, rather than defusing the impact of race, class, and gender within a collective sense of belonging, as intellectuals had envisioned, instead contributed to keeping these distinctions intact, thus limiting what could be considered Dominican. ... Read more

Product Description

The Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, has a rich history beginning with the first inhabitants, the Taíno indians, to the Spanish conquistadors, African slaves, and numerous waves of immigrants. Culture and Customs of the Dominican Republic is the first book to encompass the vibrancy of the land, its people, and their cultures and customs. It surveys the daily lives of average Dominicans and also the unusual folk practices of the rural populace. Attention is also given to the thriving Dominican community in New York City,the Dominacanyors.

Students and interested readers will be intrigued by this insider's affectionate portrait of the Dominicans. This little-known culture is illuminated with chapters on the land, its history, and people; religions; social customs; media and film; literature; performing arts; architecture, art, sculpture, and photography. Culture and Customs of the Dominican Republic is a major contribution to the understanding of the developing Caribbean and Hispanic peoples.

Customer Reviews (1)

Useful Source Of Information
This book provides a good general overview of the history, politics, religion and art of the Dominican Republic. The DR is a vibrant, unique and fascinating nation which relatively little has been written about.

I read this book during a recent visit to the country and found it to be a useful source of information which enriched my travelling experience. But I did find a few shortcomings. For one almost half the book is devoted to the creative arts, with a particular focus on the so-called "high arts" such as theater, sculpture, ballet and opera. I think a more reasonable disturbution would have included more on economics, anthropology and social issues, with about 1/4 of the book devoted to creative endeavors. Also in this artistic section more should have been written about the popular forms of music and dance, such as merengue, bachata and mambo. These performing arts are, by far, the most important to the majority of the Dominican people. They, especially merengue, are also hugely popular and influential throughout Latin America.

In terms of social topics, Brown does best when discussing the complex issue of race in the Dominican Republic. Brown emphasizes the extent to which Dominicans have gone to emphasize their white European heritage and to downplay their black African heritage. This has been increased by the fact that the DR shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Haiti and the DR have a long history of political and military conflict, including a Haitian invasion and conquest of the DR in the early 1800's. Most Dominicans are mulato. But Brown says many darker skinned people prefer to call themselves "indios" rather than identify as black. This despite the fact that the indigenous Tainos were practically wiped out a relatively short time after the arrival of Colombus and the Spanish. My sense is that this is gradually changing, as young people seem less concerned than their elders about skin complexion. But, truthfully, I didn't discuss this topic with enough Dominicans to develop a well informed opinion.

In terms of gender roles Brown has a a rather extreme perspective, saying that "Dominican men treat Dominican women abysmally." However, she may not be far off the mark as practically every Dominican woman I talked to referred to Dominican men as "machista" (sexist). On the other hand, the tourist zones were full of young white women, mostly European, who had hooked up with Dominican boyfriends while on vacation.

A very common social problem that Brown doesn't address is the extremely high percentage of single mothers in the country. This often involves young women who have several children at a young age and then are abandoned, along with the kids, by the boyfriend or husband. Of course, this helps continue the cycle of poverty and leads many women into prostitution and other desperate efforts to provide for their offspring.

There are a few other areas which I found myself disagreeing with Brown's analysis. But for those seeking to learn more about the DR this is one of the few useful sources available and worthwhile picking up from the library though I wouldn't pay the price listed on Amazon. ... Read more

Product Description
First US paperback edition, Spring 2006. Reprint of the 1984 edtion with a new introduction by the author ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

An excellent research
This book gives readers a lot of details about the events before and during the intervention in the Dominican Republic by the US Marines from 1916 to 1924. It shows the disagreements of the State Department with measures that the military authorities in the island considered appropriate for the economic stability of the country. It also shows the need to import foreign civilian executives mostly from Puerto Rico and the Philippines to administer the various departments of the government in lieu of Dominicans who did not cooperate with the military authorities. The attitude of superiority of the imported executives plus the already behavior of the military produced a sour response from Dominicans. This did not help to build bridges between the population and the interventionists.In fact, it produced fights where Dominicans took the worse part.The book describes also the support the occupiers got from some sectors of the population. Naming the fighters in the Eastern part of the island as guerrillas instead of bandoleers positions the former more as patriots though some were really members of bands. The prohibition to carry arms to the civilian population, the highways built, the telegraph system and the elimination of the local army and navy placed the republic in the hands of General Trujillo who lasted 31 years in power heading a cruel dictatoship. You can agree or not with the positive measures of the intervention and the negative ones but no doubt Calder gives you enough information so you can make up your mind with the necessary information. Excellent research made by the author.There should be a Spanish translation so it can reach most Dominican readers.

"A comprehensive and tolerant study"-New York Times Book Review
"A comprehensive and tolerant study, devoid of jargon. . . . Calder,
a historian at the University of Illinois at Chicago, fairly describes
the mixed results of the occupation. . . . Some readers may disagree
with Mr. Calder's assessment of the occupation's long-term
costs--Dominican hostility to the United States and, less directly,
the Trujillo regime that began in 1930--but this is nevertheless an
excellent study." --The New York Times Book Review

The Impact of Intervention
Updated and enlarged Paperback edition with a new introduction.
Just published
Reviews of the hardcover edition:

"A comprehensive and tolerant study, devoid of jargon. . . . Calder,a historian at the University of Illinois at Chicago, fairly describes the mixed results of the occupation. . . . Some readers may disagree with Mr. Calder's assessment of the occupation's long-term costs-Dominican hostility to the United States and, less directly, the Trujillo regime that began in 1930-but this is nevertheless an excellent study." -The New York Times Book Review
"A work of exceptional historical analysis. . . . Calder is to be commended for his forthright analysis of the American occupation." -American Historical Review
"A particularly good summary of U.S. imperialism at the turn of
the century and a clear description of Dominican society and the
political system at that time." -Political Science Quarterly

BRUCE CALDER, University of Illinois, the author of Politics of Spirit,wrote a new introduction to this book.

Learn From History
It's pretty depressing that this book is number 1,773,851 on the Amazon sales list.Let's see: Invade and occupy a country to bring it stability and democracy, provoke a stubborn insurgency, antagonize the populace, find it difficult to complete ambitious infrastructure plans, alienate your allies.Where have I heard this before?Let's hope the epilogue-- a 31-year rule by a brutal despot-- doesn't repeat as well. This is a superb treatment of the US occupation of the Dominican Republic that began in 1916; it's thorough, fair, and well-written.If more citizens--and more policy makers--read books such as this, America would be a humbler, wiser, and stronger country.Why has the Uiversity of Texas Press stopped printing it? ... Read more

Product Description

Trujillo made sure to keep favor in Washington by employing a powerfullobby made up of retired American military officers andindustrialists. The strategy worked for decades, until Trujillo'sexcesses became too much to excuse. Then, Roorda writes, presidentsEisenhower and Kennedy gave aid to Trujillo's enemies, who eventuallysucceeded in assassinating the dictator in 1961. This well-stated,cautionary tale of foreign policy gone awry has implications for ourtime, and it makes for fascinating reading. --Gregory McNamee ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

I'm just not a policy wonk
I'm torn about giving this book 2 stars. It's obviously well-researched by someone who's spent a lot of time thinking about the subject but it's not the story of Dictator Trujillo or the Dominican Republic or even a story at all -- there is no narrative. It's a book about policy written for policy wonks. It is not a coherent history, but rather an extensive thesis on how the different perceived goals of the military and state department interwoven with the personal biases of individuals create policy, using the Dominican Republic as a case study. It questions the perceived wisdom that propping up dictators and strong men in non-democratic nations at least create a framework of stability that benefits a country, if not the individuals within a country.

Recommended as a sleep aid because it's the driest thing I've read in a year.

authors who sometimes reveal truth rather than gossip, speculation and innuendo!
This book is very informative on the history of my beloved country. Mr. Roorda did extensive research regarding the history of the Domincan Republic which makes it essential to fully understand the reasons behind my uncle's way of governing.Americans still to this day need to better understand the way, the hispanic mind thinks, and the way we are! Once americans understand this, they will be better informed when they opiniate on latin american affairs.When you research the past before my uncle, it becomes quite clear the reason that when you read into the inaffective governments before him, nothing was accomplished. How many weak Ceo's in American Corporations have been successful? My uncle built a country out of manure! clear and simple! Mr. Roorda has my compliments.
It will provide a better understanding to Dominican history, for individuals who have a love of world history. Mr. Roorda states in the begining of the book, that my uncle made it difficult for American Companies to do business in the Dominican Republic, of course! his main concern was for the best interest of his country, period! so, Mr. Roorda, my compliments.
Sincerely and Respectfully,
Danilo Lynen Trujillo

WHOEVER SAID HISTORY WAS BORING????
No wonder this book has won so much praise in the history community! Not your usual history book...A must for students of Caribbean history, and an eye-opener for the rest of us.
Highly recommended!

An essential read
There are very few actually good readable books on the Caribbean islands.There are even fewer books on the Dominican republic and Haiti.The only books that come to mind besides this one are `Why the Cocks fight' by Wucker and `death of a dictator' by Diederich.This book is a very good account of the early years of Trujillo and his relations with America.Trujillo is best remembered for the massacre of the Haitians, immigrants who had invaded his country.Other topics are covered in detail including the Jewish refugees, WWII and FDR interest in the Caribbean.An essential history of American involvement and the history of this important country.

Thrilling views on a crucial issue, but poorly substantiated
This book approaches a topic which deserves serious attention by scholars of international relations - much more than is happening.It approaches this topic from an interesting and rather revisionist point of view, offering the author's views and some interpretations.Yet, the study is not so subjective, and not at all substantiated by facts.All in all interesting reading, new views to talk and argue about, but nothing really new or inspiring. ... Read more

Product Description
In this book, _lvarez-L-pez details the history of revolution in the Dominican Republic, an infant independent nation struggling to preserve its political independence from Haiti and from the expansionist policies of northern European countries and the United States. ... Read more

Product Description
This book analyzes the formation of the Dominican state and explores the development of state-society relations since the late nineteenth century. Emelio Betances argues that initial state expansion occurred between 1886 and 1924, as governments opened the economy to foreign capital, entered the international credit system, and extended the role of the military. During this period, however, the social and economic base of national elites was not strengthened, creating an imbalance in state-society relations that provided the structural framework for the emergence of the Trujillo dictatorship. The author also explores the impact of foreign intervention and socioeconomic change on the process of state and class formation since 1961. ... Read more

Product Description
Since the first edition of this book was published ten years ago, democratic government has become more firmly established, if no less contentious, and the fragile economy, though still the definitive element in Dominican life, has benefitted from changes in global trade patterns and corporate investment. Yet the Dominican Republic remains a country mired in poverty and social tension. The authors explore the changes in governance in the Dominican Republic since the beginning of the 1980s: the economic transitions that have made the country an attractive site for foreign business and tourism yet have contributed to social unrest and emigration; the social and political conflicts created by debt, austerity and economic reform, and the Dominican Republic's relations with its neighbours and major trading partners. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good Introductory Work
I have long been a fan of Howard J. Wiarda.This was the second book about the Dominican Republic that I ever read.By far this is the best introductory book (200 pages or less) on Dominican history and society in my collection.Given his extraordinary depth of knowledge of the DR he has delivered a very concise and well thought out piece.The only problem with it is the fact that it is now almost 10 years old.

Table of Contents:

1. INTRODUCTION.

2. THE LAND, THE PEOPLE, THE CULTURE.

2a. The Land.2b. Life in the Dominican City.2c. The Dominican People and Their Culture.

3. THE PATTERN OF HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT.

3a. The Colonial Era.3b. The Independence Era.3c. The Trujillo Era.

4. CONTEMPORARY DOMINICAN HISTORY.

4a. After Trujillo.4b. Democracy and Revolution.4c. The Unfinished Revolution.

5. SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND SOCIAL GROUPS.

5a. Social Structure. 5b. Urban and Rural Poverty. 5c. The Emerging Middle Class: Agent of Change? 5d. Class and Class Conflict. 5e. Group Dynamics and the Dominican Social System.

6. THE ECONOMY.

6a. From Politics to the Political Economy. 6b. The Export Sector: The Old and the New. 6c. The Impact of Trade Imbalances: Debt and Devaluation. 6d. Roadblocks to a Sound Economy: Inflation and Unemployment. 6e. Government Programs to Strengthen the Economy. 6f. The Future of the Dominican Economy.

7. POLITICAL INSTITUTION AND PROCESSES.

7a. The Tension of Competing Political Philosophies.7b. The Rules of the Game.7c. The Character of Leadership.7d. The Contest of Power.7e. The Decisionmaking Process.

8. PUBLIC POLICY AND POLICYMAKING.

8a. The Public Policy Environment.8b. Agricultural Versus Industrial Development. 8c. The Place of Social Welfare Programs in a Modernizing Economy. 8d. Austerity and the Quality of Economic Growth. 8e. Four Policies: Population, Energy, Education, and Taxation. 8f. Public Policy and the Future of Dominican Development.

9. THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC IN THE INTERNATIONAL ARENA.

9a. Dominican-US Relations.9b. The Dominican Republic's Relations with Its Closest Neighbors.9c. The Dominican Republic in Relation to the Caribbean and the World.9d. Recent Trends in Dominican Foreign Policy.

10. CONCLUSION. ... Read more

Product Description
This updated and expanded edition extends the narrative from 1990 to the first decade of the present century, beginning with the collapse of the Dominican economy. In addition to the electoral fraud and constitutional reforms of 1994 and the return administration of Leonel Fernandez, the updated chapters focus on financial crises, the economic reforms of the 1990s, the free trade agreement with the United States, and party politics. They also take account of the recent Dominican electoral processes, the colossal and fraudulent banking crisis of 2002-2004, and the perpetuation of corruption as part of Dominican political culture. ... Read more

Product Description
In a landmark study of history, power, and identity in the Caribbean, Pedro L. San Miguel examines the historiography of Hispaniola, the West Indian island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. He argues that the national identities of (and often the tense relations between) citizens of these two nations are the result of imaginary contrasts between the two nations drawn by historians, intellectuals, and writers.

Covering five centuries and key intellectual figures from each country, San Miguel bridges literature, history, and ethnography to locate the origins of racial, ethnic, and national identity on the island. He finds that Haiti was often portrayed by Dominicans as "the other"--first as a utopian slave society, then as a barbaric state and enemy to the Dominican Republic. Although most of the Dominican population is mulatto and black, Dominican citizens tended to emphasize their Spanish (white) roots, essentially silencing the political voice of the Dominican majority, San Miguel argues. This pioneering work in Caribbean and Latin American historiography, originally published in Puerto Rico in 1997, is now available in English for the first time. ... Read more

Product Description

The Dictator Beat, a nonfiction historical thriller by an award-winning foreign correspondent, and set in the second-largest island of the Caribbean, is akin to a Hitchcockian suspense drama. Two side-by-side dictators—Francois (Papa Doc) Duvalier in Kreyòl and French-speaking Haiti and Generalissimo Rafael (Chapita) Trujillo Molina in the Spanish-speaking Dominican Republic, sharing the island that Columbus named Hispaniola—were in the year 1960 each endeavoring to crush rising dissatisfaction among their peoples.

Though very different in their personas, the two tyrants bore the same contempt for human life, which filled their respective countries with the unmarked graves of their countless victims.

In Haiti, Papa Doc Duvalier, though elected president three years earlier, had assumed virtually absolute power. His murderous “Tontons Macoutes” thugs roamed at will, striking fear into all. On the Dominican side, Trujillo, after nearly three decades in power, was finally losing his grip. Yet his dreaded secret police still cruised the streets at night, reinforcing Trujillo’s long siege of terror. The question was: What would be the fate of these two tyrants themselves? The answer is provided in this mesmerizing book by Author Bernard Diederich, who spent years reporting from both countries.

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Facinating (if you are interested in these subjects)
As a resident of Sosua, I found this book very interesting. It is very meticulous and goes into exacting detail as to all the players(U.S., Europe, Dominican Republic) involved in the creation of this unique city in the Dominican Republic.
It is not for everybody but if you happen to be interested in this unique situation, as I am, you to might find it interesting. Note that although I was a little familar with the situation before I read this book, what I thought I knew was a gross simplification of the often unpleasant realty.
... Read more

Product Description
This is a guide to one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Caribbean, the Dominican Republic, which has much more to offer than its idyllic beaches. The site of the first European settlement in the Americas, the country has a long and often turbulent history, marked by dictators, foreign invasions and popular uprisings. For almost two centuries the country has shared the island of Hispaniola with Haiti, a proximity which had led to friction and occasional conflict. Despite efforts to abandon dependency on sugar and to modernize the economy, the Dominican Republic still faces considerable poverty and social tensions. Migration, legal and illegal, provides a lifeline to many poor communities. Yet this often difficult past and present have created one of the most distinctive and vibrant cultures in the Caribbean, where 16th-century colonial architecture contrasts with modern office blocks, and where Spanish, African and American influences are apparent in music, food and art. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Elementary school level
I ordered this book because I thought it would provide an introduction to the politics of the Dominican Republic. When I got it, it reminded me more of a mixture between a tacky guidebook and an elementary school social science book. It does present some insight into the historical, economical and political conditions of the country, some of them even differing from the mainstream image, but it is all very limited in scope and not very useful. If you want a guidebook, I'd suggest Lonely Planet a million times before this one. When it comes to a political review of the country, I have unfortunately had difficulties in finding one. But surfing the web for a couple of hours will certainly provide more useful information than a copy of this book.

Facinating
This book is a much needed new insight on Dominican Republic where I travelled a lot a few years ago.It is very interesting situation with haiti and the author adresses cultural issues sensitively butinformatively.The book is very easily to read and has a good order.

Summary
This book has dealt well with subjects like the economy, politics, and local places to visit.Unfortunately, I found the information on the history and cultural identity of the Dominicans to be lacking information.For example, When Howard spoke too briefly of the Taino Indiansor howthe Dominicans have a need to be more "Indian". He was totallyincorrect.The author does not hold a strong enough argument or facts tosupport this. He leaves the reader with much confusion about the Dominicanidentity. ... Read more

Product Description
The vanquished Ta¡no Indians, the Spanish conquistadors, rebellious slaves, common folk, foreign invaders, bloody dictators, gallant heroes, charismatic politicians, and committed rebels all have left their distinct imprint on Dominican society and left behind printed records. Nevertheless, the five-hundred-year history of the people of the Dominican Republic has yet to be told through its documents. Although there has been a considerable production of documentary compilations in the Dominican Republic particularly during the Trujillo era few of these are known outside the country, and none has ever been translated into English. The Dominican People: A Documentary History bridges this gap by providing an annotated collection of documents related to the history of the Dominican Republic and its people. The compilation features annotated documents on some of the transcendental events that have taken place on the island since pre-Columbian times: the extermination of the Ta¡no Indians, sugar and African slavery, the establishment of French Saint Dominique, independence from Haiti and from Spain, caudillo politics, U.S. interventionism, the Trujillo dictatorship, and contemporary politics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

December 5th of 1492 NOT the 6th!
IT was very disapointing for me to start reading the introduction and find what I though it was a TYPO but then when I kept reading realized that it was not a typo but a fact that they were listing December 6th of 1492 as the day that Columbus landed in the island! If they had properly done their "homework" would have figure it out that the day that Christopher Columbus actually set feet in the island of La Hispaniola was DECEMBER 5th, OF 1492. I stopped reading right there because that led me to question what other facts they got totally wrong?????

two reviews in leading journals
Ernesto Sagas and Orlando Inoa have compiled a concise and satisfying anthology of documents on Dominican history. To the extent to which a collection of docu-ments can have an argument, this one does: that while authoritarian and undemo-cratic politics are deeply ingrained in Dominican culture, democratic institutions have been slowly but surely taking root over the past several decades. Thus, the overwhelming majority of the documents are political in nature and trace the ori-gins and character of this authoritarian political culture. Several elements stand out in the history these documents exemplify: Spanish and French colonialism, the Dominican Republic's uneasy relationship with its neighbor Haiti, and U.S. influence form the scaffolding around which Dominican history unfolds. The editors use public speeches and proclamations, treaties, and laws to chronicle the country's shifting relationships with these different external actors and the ways that its political leaders responded, both internally and externally. Many of the documents also suggest the limited economic alternatives open to the country, although economic issues receive more attention in the pre-twentieth-century sections. Still, the links between foreign economic dependence and political authoritarianism are evident. Dominican elites-the political class-could only maintain their status through collaboration and manipulation; most of the population remained alienated from the political system.
There are many areas of Dominican history that get short shrift, however. Although the introduction announces the editors' intent to include the history of ordinary Dominicans alongside documentation of "high politics," the latter comprise the bulk of the selections. The lives of those outside the formal political sphere-that is, the majority of the Dominican population-remain elusive. The editors explicitly acknowledge their decision to avoid any discussion of Dominican culture in the volume. This decision gives the collection a curiously unidimensional quality and seems to preclude the use of these documents to develop a more in-depth or multilayered analysis of the country's history in the classroom. History, in this collection, is a series of political events rather than a study of people and society.
Even in the realm of traditional politics, some key issues remain unaddressed and key questions unanswered. Why did Trujillo suddenly adopt viciously anti-Haitian ideologies and policies in the late 1930s? Why did the United States accept the loss of control over the sugar industry under Trujillo? Why did the population seemingly acquiesce to the destruction of a populist, social democratic alternative in the i96os? How violent was the repression of the Left after 1965? Why is there no contemporary Dominican movement to uncover the history of this repression or to punish the guilty, as has emerged in other Latin American countries? How and why did political alignments shift in the 1990s so that Juan Bosch's leftist PLD and former Trujilloist Joaquin Balaguer joined forces in the 1996 elections? The contemporary Dominican diaspora is also entirely absent from the volume.
The lack of an index-and the fact that the table of contents does not list the authors of the different documents-makes the collection somewhat difficult to navigate, especially since many readers will want to use the anthology as a reference, rather than reading it cover to cover. However, within the parameters that the editors have set for the volume, it makes a useful and comprehensive contribution.
In particular, the editors' introductions to each document do a solid and convincing job of providing the necessary background and context so that the anthology does provide a coherent narrative, in documents, of Dominican political history.

AVIVA CHOMSKY, Salem State College

This book fits into the long tradition, in Latin American historiography, of publishing primary sources. It presents in something less than three-hundred pages a wide variety of documents on the history of the Dominican Republic. Starting with excerpts from the writings of the first Spanish colonists, the editors patiently move through (and provide insights into) colonial history, the nineteenth century, the U.S. domination at the beginning of the twentieth century, the notorious Trujillo dictatorship, and the turbulent political period that followed Trajillo's assassination in 1961, including another U.S. intervention in 1965. Although at the end of their overview they present some sources on contemporary politics, the more recent period after the end of the so-called twelve years of Balaguer (1966-78) remains largely out of sight.
The book is aimed at a general public of students and foreigners interested in the Dominican Republic. The didactic purpose of the authors is evident from the explanatory texts that surround the sources. Where many earlier historians were convinced that "the sources speak for themselves," Sagas and Inoa clearly believe otherwise. Providing the readers with succinct and generally well-written introductions to the sources, they construct a fragmented but coherent historical interpretation of Dominican history.
Almost inevitably, this vision of Dominican history is mainly political and institutional. The editors attempt to present some sources on social and economic history, but that is by definition very difficult in this kind of collection. Adequate political declarations and institutional texts are much easier to find and to select than texts on sugar production, social change, or racial prejudices, which are often long and drawn out. The greater availability of texts concerning modern history has also led to a preponderance of twentieth-century materials. More than half of the book is dedicated to this period.
In order to present a coherent and succinct story, the editors include excerpts from some well-known secondary sources. There is, for example, a long fragment on the fortune of Trujillo written in the 1950s by the then-exiled opposition leader and historian, Juan Bosch, as well as an excerpt from the famous dissertation by Jesus Galindo who was later murdered by Trujillo. The choice to include such materials implicitly demonstrates the limitations of relying on primary sources for periods of dictatorships.
Anyone who has been involved in this kind of publication knows how much work - selecting, editing, and translating - is involved in its preparation. The editors should be congratulated for producing a well-edited volume that many interested observers of Dominican history will find useful for a long time to come.

MICHIEL BAUD, New West Indian Guide

Dominican People
The Dominican People: A Documentary History
Reviewed in HAHR (Augus 2004?)

"Ernesto Sagas and Orlando Inoa have compiled a concise and satisfying anthology of documents on Dominican history. . . . the editors' introductions to each document do a solid and convincing job of providing the necessary background and context. . ."
---HISPANIC AMERICAN HISTORICAL REVIEW

Sharply drawn and informatively clear insights
The collaborative editorial effort of Ernesto Sagas and Orlando Inoa, The Dominican People: A Documentary History is an annotated collection of documents directly related to five hundred years of Dominican society. From the extermination of the Taino Indians, to the rise of sugar farming, the spread of African slavery, independence from Haiti and from Spain, caudillo politics, U.S. intervention, the Trujillo dictatorship, down to the modern day, The Dominican People offers primary sources that give sharply drawn and informatively clear insights into the crucial events that have shaped this history, politics and culture of a proud nation. A valued and very recommended addition to school and community library World History library collections, The Dominican People: A Documentary History is also available in a hardcover edition.

my review
Dr. Ernesto Sagás co-authored "The Dominican People: A Documentary History," a book made up of texts from the history
of the Dominican Republic that includes such hits as a presidential inaugurate speech in all its full glory. The texts are
preceded by short commentaries (sometimes just one paragraph) that offers very little insight into texts that are poorly
chosen to begin with. The claim to fame of this book is that it is contains these texts translated into English for the
first time.... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Another side of the DR
The prose wasn't fantastic, but I read this book straight through.It's a must read for anyone wanting to dig a little deeper into the DR - a fascinating look at DR in the 1980s.Thanks for writing this book and sharing your experiences. ... Read more

Product Description
Following the 1961 assassination of dictator Rafael Trujillo, the Dominican Republic descended into a period of national turmoil and political instability, culminating in 1965 when a catastrophic civil war engulfed the capital city of Santo Domingo. The intervention of foreign troops, particularly U.S. troops, played a critical role in the multinational effort to allow presidential elections to take place in June 1966. The result was the installation of Joaquin Balaguer in the presidency. Subsequently, this skillful civilian leader defeated both a right wing coup and a Cuban-based guerrilla expedition, and successfully gained control of the chaotic Dominican officer corps by the mid-1970s.

In this comprehensive study of the Dominican Republic's Balaguer era, the author draws upon declassified U.S. State Department and military documents and his own experiences as an army attache in the U.S. Embassy, Santo Domingo, during the early 1970s. The result is a unique, inside look at Balaguer's presidency, his skillful manipulation of rival officers and cliques, and American involvement in the political history of the Dominican Republic. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not the whole story
The author was an Army Attachee assigned to the american embassy in the Dominican Republic. If you expect to gain some insight into how the attachee or his peers played a part during the Balaguer period or its influence on the relationship among the rivaling dominican officers, you will be disappointed. Not a word.
Keep a couple of facts in mind before you read this book:
Firstly, Truman initially allocated $38 million for military aid in Latin America; Eisenhower increased this amount to over $400 million and by the time Brian Bosch arrived in the D.R., aid had steadily increased. Secondly,the American ex-embassador in the D.R, John B. Martin, had written his book describing how he, personally, and the military advisors played into the dominican politics. The number of American military advisors had risen in the D.R from a dozen to about three hundred. The story in Bosch's book, however, leaves out mention of the role of the military advisors and the American embassy. He makes it seem as if it is purely a Dominican affair between Balaguer and the conflicting Dominican officers. That may have been part of the story, but it is hard to believe that this is the whole story.
The disqualifying description of some officers involved in the 1965 Constitutionalist Revolt is merely the repetition of another author's opinion who, in fact, never interviewed the officers he accused of flawed character. The author should have been more careful in validating another author's opinions.
The military reader might find some interesting details about the Dominican military.

The relevance of the book is very limited. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Do you ask yourself why?
For me this book was an eye-opening history of the foundation of Generalissimo Trujillo's long-lasting power.When I picked up this title I sought to know, beyond the oppression and excesses, HOW and WHY Dominicans put up with the guy for thirty years. As with Fidel Castro that long a reign takes much more than troops and torture to maintain. Turit's book offered many lessons on statecraft, nation-building and Trujillo's role in their development in DR. The largest lesson from this book was that despite the cruel and twisted aspects of his story Trujillo was actually a highly effective head of state whose early policies did great good to the infant nation. His regime sped up and solidified economic processes that unshackled DR from being a marginal backwater. Principally this meant 'domesticating' our Dominican grandparents who were for the most part stubbornly nomadic ranchers and gatherers. None had succeeded in this for centuries. He drew the Dominican national boundaries, both territorially and tragically in the sense of identity. He almost literally created the state apparatus of DR. Most shockingly to me he successfully redistributed land to the common man the way so many Latin-American movements of the left promised and often failed to deliver. This last point is the one around which Foundations is centered. Clearly Trujillo acted out of greed and self-interest, but his cunning was in seeing where his interests aligned with those of our then often impoverished, landless Dominican grandparents.

Foundations is written in an academic, densely foot-noted style and doesn't have a thrilling narrative. Unless you bring your own curiosity as I did you won't find it as gripping as titles on Trujillo's lurid dark side. Still to me all histories ultimately begin with the material and economic facts, the broad determinants as illustrated by documented particulars, and on that level Turits very much delivers. Read this book to begin to understand the structural reasons why DR generated, accepted and even needed a Generalissimo Trujillo. Fellow Dominicanos will be gladto find that contrary to stereotypes around our history in this work the Trujillo regime is explained not just a puppet government installed over a hapless banana republic by the US State Department. Alongside El Jefe, in this piece of history the unlikely co-protagonist was the Dominican campesino and not the big bad empire. ... Read more

Product Description
This account of the 1965 Dominican intervention is a case study in U.S. crisis management. Schoonmaker analyzes the role and management of U.S. military forces in the Dominican crisis. Like other Cold War interventions, the Dominican intervention demonstrated the use of rapidly reacting, joint military forces to achieve limited political objectives. It also represents a good vehicle for analyzing U.S. civilian-military relationships during this kind of military operation. While civil strife continued in Santo Domingo, U.S. military forces engaged in a variety of duties, both combat and peacekeeping. ... Read more