Chavez gives Obama a book at summit: PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CNN) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez gave U.S. President Obama a book Saturday on Latin America.

The leftist leader, who once likened President George W. Bush to the devil, shook Obama’s hand and handed him “Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent,” by Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano.

Asked later what he thought of the book, Obama jokingly said he thought it was one of Chavez’s books. “I was going to give him one of mine,” he quipped.

Obama and Chavez are attending the fifth Summit of the Americas, a gathering of representatives from 34 countries. [ READ MORE ]

Book Presentation

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Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent – by Eduardo Galeano

Editorial Reviews

A superbly written, excellently translated, and powerfully persuasive exposé which all students of Latin American and U.S. history must read. – Choice

Well written and passionately stated, this is an intellectually honest and valuable study. – Library Journal

A dazzling barrage of words and ideas. – History

Reader Reviews:

By Hector Miranda (Puerto Rico): This book is a masterpiece. I understand why some people (just like Juan Bimba and a couple of reviewers here) hate it: It touches the real cut, the heart of capitalism, and explore it in a way few men dare. His references are not just excellent: they are irrefutable. This is one of the best books I’ve ever read. One of Galeano’s best; a must read for Latin Americans! More than a history book, it’s a compilation of essays that shows how the “strong” always abuses and stand over the “weak” mass.

Neo-Marxist Analysis = Anti-Catholic & Western, April 18, 2009: By Trudigger (Chicago, Il United States): Like so many of the neo-Marxist critiques that have flourished in academia this book comes from a view that the only level of historical analysis is dialectical materialism. Marxist analysis needs a victim/victimizer paradigm to make its case.

This analysis is unbalanced and doesn’t take into account the tens of thousands of natives who were part of the daily human sacrifices made by the Aztecs . . . yes the Aztecs!

The irony of the title (Open Veins) is that the native Latin American blood letting that was the most historically heinous was at the hands of Native Latin Americans.

If you like the kind of Neo-Marxist regime in Venezuela, then get this book because it is the vision animating Chavez . . . and leading him to persecute the Catholic Church. . . be warned – Marxism leads to democide.

You can’t argue with the facts, April 18, 2009: By M. E. Baz “mebaz” (South Pasadena, California): Galeano’s book is an excellent catalog of the atrocities committed by the U.S. government in Latin America over the last several decades. If you can understand that this is not a criticism of Americans but rather of their government and industry (which is screwing them over as well), you’ll be able to understand it. Another great book on the subject is Confessions of an Economic Hit Man , which was written by an AMERICAN.

Beautifully Written, Visceral And Timeless., July 9, 2008: By Mr. Fellini “Fellini” (El Paso, Texas United States): “Open Veins Of Latin America” has not lost its importance in almost 40 years of circulation, today more than ever, Eduardo Galeano’s poetic journey through the history and suffering of Latin America is a vital work of scholarship and observation, it is a record of how the Americas were born and grew. From the Spanish Conquest to the Cuban Revolution and beyond, Galeano touches on nearly every key moment of Latin American history and brilliantly shows the reader how the events of the past helped shape the status of the present.

Part of the genius of this book is how Galeano manages to chronicle in fine detail the history of Latin America but also clearly shows how certain economic orders were established, any reader who wonders who countries like Bolivia and Peru have such wide gaps between rich and poor, white and indigenous communities, needs to read this book. In breathless detail Galeano takes us through the Spanish conquest, using historical documents and eyewitness accounts to record the suffering and terror indigenous communities endured for the sake of imperial expansion. Galeano brilliantly connects the dots between the economic and social models established at the time and the current conditions of these countries today, consider Bolivia, where racial tensions are indeed flaring up again due to the election of an indigenous leader, Evo Morales.

The worlds Galeano paints are rich in detail and fascination, heartbreak and hope. We visit forgotten cities in Peru, once paved in silver, now condemned to misery, we explore the mines of Bolivia where Indians lose their lungs to fumes and tunnels and we step into isolated villages in Brazil, where the ghosts of dead miners are said to still hold Mass on rainy evenings. Key historical events are described with visceral energy such as the outbreak of civil war in Guatemala after a U.S.-backed coup, the eruption of “La Violencia” in Colombia where thousands perished in a bloody rampage following the assassination of a progressive candidate for President. Galeano cheerfully bashes fascists including right-wing groups trying to stop Salvador Allende’s nationalization of copper in Chile by warning parents with false propaganda that their children will be flown to the USSR or Cuba for indoctrination. Galeano also tells the cold hard truth about the military junta that ruled Brazil (with U.S. help), including their pass time of burning books.

“Open Veins Of Latin America,” like all great books, enthralls, educates and makes the reader aware. Historical figures we don’t hear much about in normal textbooks come alive in Galeano’s writing, fascinating figures like Nicaragua’s Sandino, Mexico’s Hidalgo and Zapata and Peru’s Tupac Amaru reveal a heroic tradition of resistance against imperialism and repression. Some complain about Galeano’s Leftist leanings, but much of what he records is simply based on fact, on documented history. Events like the Cuban Revolution, the Mexican Revolution and Haiti’s slave uprising are thrillingly chronicled and their outcomes explored with keen insight.

Latin America remains a place that fascinates many, it is a complex region that is politically, ethnically and religiously diverse, Galeano manages like few writers have, to capture it all in this beautiful volume. “Open Veins Of Latin America” has so much information, so many stories, characters and histories that a full review does not suffice to explore it all, for those who wish to really KNOW about Latin America, this book is a must. It is a history of economies, countries, bloodshed and tears, and most importantly, of people.

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