Politics of Latin America: The Power Game

by Harry E. Vanden, Gary Prevost

Now in its third edition, Politics of Latin America explores both the evolution and the current state of the political scene in Latin America. Distinguishing itself from more traditional works on Latin American politics, this text demonstrates a nuanced sensitivity to the use and abuse of
power and the importance of social conditions, gender, race, globalization, and political economy throughout Latin America. This new edition includes a new chapter on Bolivia and a stronger focus on anti-neoliberal economics, U.S.-Latin American relations, women's issues, and social movements.

The first part of the book presents relevant information about the region's geographic setting, history, economics, society, people, and religion, setting the stage for a more detailed analysis of the politics, democratization, political culture, political movements, and revolution in Latin America.
The second part of the book consists of carefully constructed case studies of ten representative Latin American nations. Each case study traces the historical development of key political actors and institutions, analyzing contemporary power configurations.

Case Studies :
Guatemala, Susanne Jonas
Mexico, Nora Hamilton
Cuba, Gary Prevost
Brazil, Wilber Albert Chaffee
Argentina, Aldo C. Vacs
Chile, Eduardo Silva
Venezuela, Daniel Hellinger
Colombia, John C. Dugas
Nicaragua, Gary Prevost and Harry E. Vanden
Bolivia, Waltraud Morales (new to this edition)
Incorporating maps, tables, chronologies, bibliographies, and clear indications of key players, Politics of Latin America, Third Edition, is indispensable for students and other readers wishing to gain a deeper understanding of this complex, dynamic, and rapidly changing region of the world.

Genres: History, Politics, Political Science, Nonfiction

656 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Jackson Hawkins]

Everyone should know how much the United States has effected the politics of Latin America

[Nat]

Almost exhaustive in its coverage of Latin American politics and economics, an excellent resource, no country or important event is missed, absolutely excellent and informative. An academic read, not a book to curl up on the couch with :)

I am confused why others have rated this so poorly, maybe they were not expecting it to be a textbook? Accuracy seems on point, as far as what I've learned from other books, and it was published by the Oxford University Press. My only complaint is more recent versions are unavailable on Kindle, so I am not sure whether to get an old version or lug this textbook with me to Peru.